Free Republic

Lost Charlie Chaplin film bought on eBay for $5 A lost Charlie Chaplin film has been discovered in a can of nitrate film bought on eBay for £3.20 ($5). Morale Park from Henham, Essex, purchased the tin simply because he liked the look of it. He was amazed to discover its fragile contents: a previously unknown seven-minute film Chaplin film called Zepped. His interest was piqued, he said, when he could not find any mention of it on the internet. The film features footage of Zeppelin airships flying over England during the First World War, and out-takes from three pictures...

2:15 PM UPDATE: I've learned that 100 people are being laid off across "several divisions" of the A&E Television Networks yesterday and today "as a direct result of the merger". It will make those employees feel so much better that management tells me it's "no one in a decision making role." A&E Television Networks in August acquired Lifetime Entertainment, and everything is now owned by the Disney-ABC Television Group, Hearst and NBC Universal. Big Media = Big Mergers = Big Mistakes.

Never let it be said that the folks in Hollywood aren't good at coming up with a totally fictional horror story. I just have a problem when they use it not to entertain, but to create a moral panic to push the government to pass laws in their favor. In discussing the recent 60 Minutes piece that was really nothing more than an MPAA scare tactic, some suggested that it was really just a first step in the process of getting the government to make sure net neutrality rules had a special Hollywood exception. So, it's interesting to note that...

'2012' maker destroys Vatican, Jesus, but leaves shrine in Mecca alone. The maker of the upcoming apocalyptic film "2012" has conceded he enjoyed orchestrating the visual disintegration of the world's religious symbols, such as the Vatican and the famous statue of Jesus overlooking Rio de Janeiro. But he left an Islamic symbol alone because he feared the reaction from the Muslim world. In an interview with the online SciFiWire website, Roland Emmerich said he had considered including the destruction of the Kaaba, the cube-shaped structure in Mecca worshiped by Muslims as being built by Abraham and his son Ishmael. "Well,...

...For "2012," Emmerich set his sites on destroying the some biggest landmarks around the world, from Rome to Rio. But there's one place that Emmerich wanted to demolish but didn't: the Kaaba, the cube-shaped structure located in the center of Mecca. It's the focus of prayers and the site of the Hajj, the biggest, most important pilgrimage in Islam. "Well, I wanted to do that, I have to admit," the filmmaker told scifiwire.com. "But my co-writer Harald [Kloser] said, 'I will not have a fatwa on my head because of a movie.' And he was right."...

This has been coming for some time, and after recent shakeups at Disney, is really no great surprise. Now Daniel Battsek, the current president of Miramax, has announced that he’ll step down at the end of January 2010. At the same time, Disney will relocate the label from New York City to Disney’s headquarters in Burbank, CA, where they’ll reduce Miramax’s output to just three films a year. The label that launched Steven Soderbergh, Quentin Tarantino and Kevin Smith and was the biggest face of the ’90s indie explosion is basically dead. OK, the real end of the era hit...

Just got hold of the latest issue of the magazine my old alma mater in Spain sends me regularly. A feature about a movie actor, now also a producer, immediately got my attention. First, a magazine that tries to be serious in character would normally not talk about actors and celebrities. Second, though I’ve heard of the story before in a tangential way, I thought it would just have a short shelf life, just a flash in the pan, you know. In short, the article broke my guiding principles. It deserved to be read. And I did. Now, I feel...

When I read NBC's "Law & Order" was airing an episode last week "ripped from the headlines" of an abortionist shot in church, i.e., Dr. George Tiller, I, of course, anticipated the plot would not go well for pro-lifers. The most I expected was milliseconds of fairness with pro-abortion clichés ruling the hour. My, was I surprised. I could have written that script. The episode wasn't even balanced. It was outright pro-life, not that I mind. If you haven't seen the episode, you should. Sans commercials it is only 42 minutes long. Briefly, the story begins with a pro-life renegade...

With the noise level rising over consumers possibly paying a fee for TV shows online, now comes a report that iTunes is considering an all-you-can eat $30-a-month TV service. A new subscription service would turn iTunes into a pseudo cable and satellite TV operator -- a company that charges monthly fees for traditional TV/cable networks. The difference is that iTunes service would be sans advertising. Shows would not be distributed via linear networks -- but, as iTunes does now, by program. The story was first reported in AllThingsD.com. Apple's iTunes Stores is the original digital video Internet service, launching with...

Having fended off Hollywood’s lascivious advances for five full decades, Barbie has finally collapsed onto its couch with her legs spread, exhausted from years of being chased around a desk by horny, pantsless studio-executive suitors promising to make her a big movie star. Variety reports that Universal is the beneficiary of the Mattel icon’s weary willingness to surrender her big-screen virtue to the highest bidder, announcing today they’ve reached a deal for a live-action film based on America’s favorite plastic bundle of unhealthy body-image issues. Reaching the deal was the easy part; with the relationship consummated (awkwardly, we’d assume, as...

<p>Prophet Mohammad the new Darth Vader?</p> <p>An epic film about Islam's Prophet Mohammad backed by the producer of "The Lord of the Rings" and "The Matrix" is being planned with the aim of "bridging cultures."</p> <p>Filming of the $150-million English-language movie is set to start in 2011 with American Barrie Osborne as its producer, Qatari media company Alnoor Holdings said on Sunday.</p>

POLIWOOD: D Tonight at 7:30 on Showtime. Director Barry Levinson’s 90-minute “Poliwood” is billed as a film essay. That’s like calling the back of a cereal box a novel. Say what you will about Michael Moore, but at least he knows how to spin a story. Levinson (“Rain Man”) aims to explore the crash of politics, celebrity and media. He’s fascinated as to why performers are greeted with hostility when they become politically active. He trails famous members of the Creative Coalition, Hollywood’s nonprofit, nonpartisan lobbying group for arts funding, through the 2008 Democratic and Republican presidential conventions. The coalition’s...

CANCUN, Mexico - Roland Emmerich has an ongoing project: destroying the world. In 1996's Independence Day, the German director sent aliens to wipe out the White House. In 1998, he unleashed Godzilla to wreak havoc on the streets of New York. In 2004's The Day After Tomorrow, he froze the planet in a new ice age. But in his new film, 2012, to be released Nov. 13 and already the eye of a vast promotion storm, things get really bad. Emmerich, who has earned the unofficial title of "Master of Disaster," admits having searched Google for a doomsday scenario even...

What is your favorite movie theme tune? Mine is definitely the "Third Man" theme from the movie of the same name. Interestingly the director of that film didn't originally intend for music to play such an important part of that movie but Carol Reed was doing location scouting in Vienna and heard the zither sounds of Anton Karas at a beer garden. Reed loved the sound and brought Karas to London to compose a tune for his movie. Even before the movie was released, then tune was a big hit. When the movie was released, it too became a big...

LOS ANGELES — Like many of Jason Jones’ best ideas, this one came in the middle of the night.A member of the production team that put out the pro-life hit movie of 2006, Bella, Jones’ previous nocturnal brainstorm had instigated Bella Hero, a campaign devoted to putting a copy of the film in the hands of every visitor to a crisis-pregnancy center in the United States. Next came Bella on Campus, which raises funds to pay for college screenings.Now, because of a chance meeting with a New York City beggar, drug addict and ex-con to whom he had given...

There’s something weird about Law Abiding Citizen, and it isn’t simply the movie’s attempt to gussy up the legal thriller genre with gruesome, Saw-style theatrics. No, the most notable thing about the film is how it appears to inadvertently channel the recent, inchoate Republican anger at the Obama administration and use it to power a violent revenge fantasy. Don’t believe me? Here are four ways Law Abiding Citizen feels like a Republican wet dream. Mild spoilers ahead: Sympathy with the Devil Jamie Foxx’s district attorney Nick Rice is ostensibly our hero, struggling to put an end to the murderous schemes...

Michelle Marvin, ‘Palimony’ Figure, Dies THE ASSOCIATED PRESS October 30, 2009 LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Michelle Triola Marvin, who fought a landmark "palimony" case against her former lover, actor Lee Marvin, has died. She was 76. Family spokesman Bob Palmer says Marvin died Friday morning of lung cancer at the Malibu home she shared with actor Dick Van Dyke, her partner of 30 years. Marvin lived with Lee Marvin for six years and took his name. They broke up in 1970 and nine years later she sued for nearly $2 million, even though she had no alimony rights because the...

Kalpen Modi, the star of the Harold and Kumar Go To movies and the TV series House, made a big splash when he put aside his Hollywood career to take a White House position as “director of public engagement,” which everyone assumed would be more or less a liaison to Hollywood as an adjunct social secretary. Unfortunately for Modi, he apparently didn’t stick to those duties. According to new documents released as part of a FOIA request, Modi helped plan the notorious NEA call conducted by Yosi Sergant that attempted to link NEA grants with support for the Obama agenda,...

In honor of Halloween, I have assembled two lists. One holds a ranking of the ten best slashers of all time. While these characters were awesome, that does not necessarily mean that any of their respective movies were any good. So my other list looks solely at the movies, and which come in tops. The list of the best slashers will be published tomorrow (Saturday) on hometownstation.com. Today though, we'll take a stab (please pardon the pun I know it's bad) at identifying the ten best horrors movies...ever.

LOS ANGELES – Dennis Hopper has been diagnosed with prostate cancer and is canceling all travel plans to focus on treatment. Manager Sam Maydew says the 73-year-old actor and artist is being treated through a "special program" at the University of Southern California. Asked about Hopper's prognosis, Maydew said, "We're hoping for the best."

WASHINGTON, Oct. 29 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — A prominent national Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization today called on HBO to apologize for an episode of “Curb Your Enthusiasm” in which the main character splattered urine on a painting of Jesus. snip “It is beyond tasteless to insult the religious sensibilities of billions of people in America and around the world with such a cheap and vulgar publicity stunt. Jesus, peace be upon him, is loved and revered by both Christians and Muslims. Muslims view him as one of God’s greatest messengers to mankind. snip “We understand the drive for ratings, but...

Comedian Larry David is under attack from critics who say he pushed the mocking of religion and Christian belief in miracles over the edge in the latest episode of his HBO series "Curb Your Enthusiasm," which the cable network defended as "playful."

Hollywood, the land of endless examples of what happens when you cast your lot with a bunch of deranged liberal lunatics, essentially you turn into an immoral piece of trash who supports a child rapist like Roman Polanski. Hollywood is a place where dreams are made true, literally. The trash Hollywood produces is becoming so bad, that more Americans are staying home and catching a good nights worth of sleep. Hollywood and politics is another reason why to avoid a career in this vile town, as if you believe in freedom, life, the second amendment, capitalism, conservatism, or even that...

My Extremely Cute Chinese Communist SpyPosted By Robert J. Avrech On October 28, 2009 @ 6:51 am In Obama, Politics | 6 Comments T- snip-American Journalism Goes Dark—VoluntarilyJournalism died in America when Barack Hussein Obama was running for President.The dinosaur media gleefully surrendered to the cult of personality—standard for leftist politics—and since then normally skeptical journalists have turned into nothing less than a collective Pravda for the Obama White House.- snip- Elite journalists and editors recognize in Obama a kindred spirit, a hard left, big government ideologue who is adept at mouthing—endlessly, tediously and vacuously—all the politically correct rhetoric. Questions...

...But last week’s episode marked a dramatic departure from the familiar, biased trope. After detective Bernard makes a few forceful pro-life points in an impromptu squad car debate with his partner, ADA Cutter jumps into the fray. He professes his pro-life views and refutes a condescending response from his pro-choice colleague (Rubirosa) by citing the “turning tide” of public opinion and mentioning that most Americans now consider themselves pro-life. Apparently Mr. Cutter’s been checking the latest Gallup stats. Rubirosa replies by pointedly referring to those who share Cutter’s views as “anti-choice,” at which point the reliably liberal District Attorney, Jack...

Larry David’s ‘Piss Christ’Posted By Big Hollywood On October 27, 2009 @ 2:22 pm In Religion, Television | 78 Comments An email received today:“First let me state that I’ve been a fan of “Curb Your Enthusiasm” for many years and, even though Larry David is a liberal, I generally enjoy the writing and Larry’s antics. However, this time what I saw made me feel a little sick, extremely disappointed and a bit angry as well. I will never watch the show again as I have lost all respect and feelings of good will for Mr. David.“Did you happen to see...

Polanski's arrest has caused his victim health problems and job worries, and she just wants to be left alone, her attorney wrote in a court filing. Attorney Lawrence Silver urged a California appeals court to dismiss the criminal case against the "Chinatown" director. The filing with the Second District Court of Appeal on Friday said Samantha Geimer and Silver have received nearly 500 media calls seeking comment since Polanski was arrested in Switzerland on Sept. 26. Geimer, who long ago identified herself publicly, and her family have to contend with such pressure whenever Polanski is in the news, the six-page...

WASHINGTON, DC, October 26, 2009 (LifeSiteNews.com) -- Last Friday's episode of Law & Order on NBC, entitled "Dignity," has infuriated pro-abortionists while pleasantly surprising pro-lifers with an unexpectedly even-handed treatment of the issue of abortion.  Ripping its plot from recent headlines, "Dignity" begins with the murder of late-term abortionist Dr. Walter Benning (Matthew Boston) during a church service.  Although the episode has a disclaimer stating that the story is fictional, its initial outline closely matches the case of the late-term abortionist Dr. George Tiller, who was shot and killed in a church in Wichita, Kansas, on May 31st.  After the...

Hollywood hearts Obama. Obama hearts government-directed national service. That is why you won’t be able to change the TV channel all week without getting lectured about the need to get off the couch and Do Something. (After your favorite shows are over, of course.) Creeped out? You should be. The entertainment industry, inspired by Obama’s $6 billion expansion of government volunteerism spending, is coordinating plot lines and ads to push public service. “The message will be nearly ubiquitous,” reports the Los Angeles Times, “starting in the morning with programs such as ‘Today’ and ‘The View,’ and then echoed on soap...

I just noticed on the 'Recently Added' list on Hulu, that they have added the first season of Magnum P.I. to their content. I hope they keep adding seasons ala SG-1.

Who would've thought the horror movie series I love would go political on me. I'm not going to spoil the movie, so I'll just tell you the political message of it. So the movie opens up and we see 2 people who are in cells and they're across from 1 another, Jigsaw comes on and he starts his speech, he says that they're PREDATORY LENDORS who take advantage of people who would never be able to pay back their loans. I turn my head to the right and whisper to hubby "did he just say predatory lenders" hubby smirks and...

MEXICO CITY -- When the Nobel Prize-winning Colombian author Gabriel García Márquez penned his most recent novel, "Memories of My Melancholy Whores," he was being provocative. The book begins with this line: "The year I turned 90, I wanted to give myself the gift of a night of wild love with an adolescent virgin." But there is art and there is life. And so just as an international cast and crew were about to begin filming a movie adaptation of the 2004 novella, the plug was pulled as the filmmakers and García Márquez were denounced as aiding and abetting perverts....

The Academy award-winning actor Nicole Kidman used an appearance before the US Congress to accuse Hollywood of contributing to violence against women by portraying them as sex objects. Kidman was speaking yesterday in her role as a UN ambassador to a House foreign affairs subcommittee that is considering legislation to tackle violence against women overseas. When asked by Republican representative Dana Rohrabacher whether the film industry "played a bad role" in the way it portrayed women, Kidman replied "Probably", before going on to say that she refused to take roles that portrayed women as weak sex objects. "I can't be...

How much access can a possible agent of influence for state sponsors of terrorism buy from President Barack Obama? For Jodie Evans, a progressive Hollywood activist, the going rate appears to be $30,400 for dinner and a conversation. Last week in San Francisco, Obama headlined a three million dollar fundraiser at the Westin St. Francis Hotel. The San Francisco Chronicle reports about 160 people paid $30,400 or more per couple for a private dinner with Obama followed by a reception costing $500 to $1000 that drew over 900 attendees. Among those at the dinner was the leftist, so-called antiwar group...

The comedy icon made pie-in-the-face gag a pop-culture phenomenon: It was a simple gag, but one that made Soupy Sales a household name: a pie in the face, or 20,000 pies, to be exact. That slapstick comedic trick, along with a warehouse of goofy faces and wacky characters helped elevate Sales (born Milton Supman) to one of the country's most beloved comedians in the late 1950s. Sales died on Thursday at the age of 83 at a hospital in the Bronx, after several years of declining health... With his loose-limbed physicality and malleable face, Sales honed his craft on children's...

HIGHLANDS, N.C. – Actress Collin Wilcox-Paxton, who portrayed the false accuser in the movie classic "To Kill a Mockingbird," died of brain cancer just months after the diagnosis. She was 74. Her husband, Scott Paxton, confirmed Thursday that she died Oct. 14 in Highlands in the southwest part of the state. No funeral was held. Instead, the family held a service before her death. "It's pretty special being at your own memorial," said her husband of more than 30 years. She was diagnosed Aug. 11 with three brain tumors, he said.

The Fashion Time Magazine’s Best Dressed Of The Day, who could it be? There were many strong candidates embracing old school glamour and chic, but Blake Lively and Hilary Swank sartorially inspired us the Hollywood way. Hilary Swank walked the red carpet in New York for the “Amelia” premiere. The actress stunned — we saw stars — in a blue Vionnet Resort 2010 draped gown. Super!

WASHINGTON – Nicole Kidman conceded Wednesday that Hollywood has probably contributed to violence against women by portraying them as weak sex objects. The Oscar-winning actress said she is not interested in those kinds of demeaning roles, adding that the movie industry also has made an effort to contribute to solutions for ending the violence. Kidman testified before a House Foreign Affairs subcommittee that is considering legislation to address violence against women overseas through humanitarian relief efforts and grants to local organizations working on the problem. Asked by Rep. Dana Rohrabacher, R-Calif., if the movie industry has "played a bad role,"...

http://www.JewishWorldReview.com | Hollywood hearts Obama. Obama hearts government-directed national service. That is why you won't be able to change the TV channel all week without getting lectured about the need to get off the couch and Do Something. (After your favorite shows are over, of course.) Creeped out? You should be. The entertainment industry, inspired by Obama's $6 billion expansion of government volunteerism spending, is coordinating plot lines and ads to push public service. "The message will be nearly ubiquitous, " reports the Los Angeles Times, "starting in the morning with programs such as �Today' and �The View,' and then...

To: Charlize Theron, Hugh Jackman, Seth Rogen, Tina Fey, Steven Spielberg, Michael Mann, every actor, actress, screenwriter, costumer, best boy, cameraman, set designer, makeup artist, and agent--plus anyone else who makes their living in the film industry. From: Greg Sandoval, CNET media reporter and film fan. Re: Your livelihood Cut your spending. Save your money. Many of the revenue streams that have gushed into your industry for decades, some for nearly a century, are about to dry up. This will likely mean a period of belt tightening like you've never seen before. The end is coming for DVDs, traditional movie...

You'll be able to watch popular cable television series such as HBO's "Entourage" and AMC's "Mad Men" on your computer by the end of the year without paying extra — as long as you're a Comcast Corp. subscriber watching at home. Comcast will be the first cable TV operator to unlock online access to a slate of valuable cable shows and movies, aiming to replicate what's available on television through video on demand. Time Warner Cable Inc. and others plan to follow as the pay-TV companies look to satisfy growing consumer appetite for online video while preserving subscription revenue. Access...

HOLLYWOOD hearts Obama. Obama hearts government-directed national service. That is why you won't be able to change the TV channel all week without getting lectured about the need to get off the couch and Do Something. Creeped out? You should be. The entertainment industry, inspired by Obama's $6 billion expansion of government-volunteerism spending, is coordinating plot lines and ads to push public service. "The message will be nearly ubiquitous," reports the Los Angeles Times, "starting in the morning with programs such as 'Today' and 'The View,' and then echoed on soap operas, prime-time series and late-night shows." First lady Michelle...

Halloween is almost upon us and you're probably thinking, "Gee, wouldn't it be great to kick back on the couch and rent a few conservative horror flicks for the big night?" Here's the problem: horror films aren't family friendly. They're gory, they're violent, and they're vulgar. Even setting that aside, there really aren't very many "conservative" movies overall and there are almost no truly "conservative" horror flicks. Still, as a Right-Wing horror film aficionado, I can at least make a few solid recommendations that might have some extra-added appeal for conservatives. Cloverfield (2007): This is probably the best "giant-monster" film...

LOS ANGELES – The songwriter who wrote the catchy theme songs to "The Addams Family" and "Green Acres" television shows has died. Vic Mizzy was 93. .......................................... Mizzy has said that he didn't mind if people only remember him for the finger snaps at the start of the "The Addams Family" theme song. After all, he said "two snaps got me a mansion in Bel Air."

We may have to introduce Beck Dyrangement Syndrome, Joy Behar calls him an idiot, the guest calls him a mental patient, and Bonaduce says he caused him to start drinking again...(Video from CNN)

Roman Polanski has been moved from his Zurich jail for medical treatment, his French lawyer said Saturday. The film director was arrested in September after nearly 32 years in self-imposed exile from the United States following his conviction for having sex with a 13-year-old girl. "All I know is that he has been taken from prison for medical attention. I don't know where he is or when he will be returned to prison," Herve Temime told Reuters. Temime also said he visited the director in jail last week and found him depressed and tired. The move comes in the wake...

Why is WYSP morning man Danny Bonaduce drinking again? Not a reaction to his recent ratings, which were up. (September was his best month among men 18-49.) As a panelist on Joy Behar's show on HLN (formerly Headline News), Bonaduce blamed remarks by syndicated talker Glenn Beck's on the Fox News vs. White House feud for making him fall off the wagon.

Already dubbed "the most horrific movie ever seen" for explicit and pornographic sadomasochism, violence and occult content, the film "Antichrist" is not yet rated, but when it is, the rating it gets could determine whether or not it's seen in your local theater – and there may be something you can do about it. The Christian media ministry MovieGuide is inviting people concerned about the film's gruesome and graphic content to join a petition of the Motion Picture Association of America to rate the movie NC-17, which would not only prevent children from viewing the film, but also dissuade many...

Three times in the past several weeks, fortune has seemed to beam on conservatives, in unexpected and unprompted ways. Not that they've won much, but their tormentors keep losing. Three days in fall 2009 damaged or neutralized three liberal institutions, whose powers have now been curtailed. Break number one came on September 26, when Roman Polanski, on his way to collect a lifetime achievement award from the Zurich Film Festival, was intercepted by Swiss police and tossed into prison, pending extradition to the United States, which he had fled 30 years earlier to avoid a jail sentence for drugging and...