Elmer Bernstein, the versatile, Academy Award-winning composer who scored such movie classics as The Ten Commandments, The Magnificent Seven, To Kill a Mockingbird, The Great Escape and True Grit, died on Wednesday. He was 82 and had been in failing health for some time.
It’s been a rough month for hotel heiress Paris Hilton. First, her Hollywood Hills home was burglarised and now her pet chihuahua, Tinkerbell, has disappeared. Hilton, star of the Fox television network’s reality show The Simple Life II: Road Trip, is offering a 000 reward for her dog, missing since last Wednesday.
Movie-goers were easy prey for a double dose of space invaders. The sci-fi smackdown Alien vs Predator, featuring the creatures of the ”Alien” and ”Predator” franchises, debuted as the number one weekend movie in the United States with ,25-million, studio estimates showed on Sunday.
President George Bush will face a home-video barrage four weeks before the election: Fahrenheit 9/11, Michael Moore’s assault on Bush’s handling of the September 11 attacks, debuts on DVD and videotape on October 5. The announcement on Tuesday confirmed Moore’s initial intention to have the film out shortly before election day.
A powerful father from beyond the heavens sends his son on a fateful journey to Earth to become a saviour for humanity. James Caviezel starred in the Biblical version of that story in Mel Gibson’s The Passion of the Christ. Could he play out that premise again under different circumstances? Say, the comic-book version, with blue tights and a cape?
Cantankerous cartoon character Donald Duck was joined by his rival Mickey Mouse on Monday as the fiery fowl received his very own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. ”Mickey isn’t even jealous,” Walt Disney chief Michael Eisner said. ”And all of our characters, particularly Daisy [Duck], want to thank you very much.”
What do Shrek, Spider-Man, Michael Moore and Harry Potter have in common? They have all produced -million movie hits this summer. Moore’s condemnation of United States President George Bush’s actions regarding the September 11 attacks in the documentary Fahrenheit 9/11 has earned ,35-million since opening in late June.
Academy Award-winning composer Jerry Goldsmith, who created the memorable music for scores of classic movies and television shows ranging from the Star Trek and Planet of the Apes series to The Man from U.N.C.L.E., The Waltons and Dr Kildare, has died. He was 75.
He’s been branded a corporate bully and hailed as technological visionary, but Microsoft’s plans for a record pay-out to shareholders has thrown the spotlight on to Bill Gates, the ultra-generous philanthropist. Microsoft on Wednesday unveiled a plan to deliver an estimated -billion to its shareholders over the next four years.
Armies of firefighters were on Friday battling fast-spreading wildfires across the western United States, including one menacing more than 1 000 homes in Nevada’s state capital, officials said. The towering flames in the Carson City blaze, the worst in history of the city of 50 000 people, have already charred 14 homes.
A suspected car thief in the United States has filed a -million claim with the city of Los Angeles after allegedly being assaulted during his arrest. Stanley Miller claims that the beating caused severe injuries and left him with brain damage. City police dispute Miller’s claims, saying that his injuries were minor scrapes and bruises.
Marlon Brando, whose brooding, tongue-tied characters in The Wild One, On the Waterfront and A Streetcar Named Desire uttered some of the most famous lines in movie history, has died at the age of 80. The two-time Oscar winner died in a Los Angeles hospital late on Thursday, media reported on Friday.
The judge in the Michael Jackson child molestation case sealed one of the most critical defence motions in the case without comment on Friday, continuing a pattern of secrecy he has imposed throughout the proceedings. An attorney representing media organisations promised to oppose the seal.
The music industry filed copyright infringement lawsuits against 482 computer users on Tuesday, the latest round of litigation by recording companies against suspected online music file-swappers. As in previous complaints brought by the industry this year, the lawsuits were filed against unnamed ”John Doe” defendants, identified only by their computers’ internet protocol addresses.
The Los Angeles Times is eliminating about 190 jobs at its newspaper and community publications as part of a cost-cutting plan ordered by its corporate parent, Chicago-based Tribune. The Times said on Tuesday that 42 editorial employees accepted voluntary buyouts offered by the paper while another 20 newsroom staffers were laid off.
For much of middle America, as well as middle England and middle France and very possibly Middle Earth, the war in Iraq really hit home on April 19 this year. Opening their newspaper comic supplements or turning to the editorial page where some newspapers place the Doonesbury strip, readers were shocked by yet another piece of grisly news from Iraq. And this was news about someone they knew, some for more than 30 years.
Bedridden former US president Ronald Reagan, once known for his snappy soundbites, will soon be speaking publicly again — via a talking doll made in his likeness, manufacturers said on Monday. Reagan, now an ailing 93-year-old, is the latest political figure to get his own ”mini-me,” part of a line-up of dolls that includes President George Bush.
Sony showed off a new portable video game device on Tuesday that promises very high-quality graphics, a challenge to market leader Nintendo. Nintendo’s GameBoy Advance has essentially cornered the handheld market since its debut in 2001. The company has faced down other portable-game rivals without ceding much of its base — but it has never gone against a competitor as formidable as Sony.
Act two of the Michael Jackson child molestation case gets under way this week with a new cast of lawyers taking centre stage. ”It is imperative that I have the full attention of those who are representing me. My life is at stake,” the pop star said as he announced firing his two high-profile lawyers, Mark Geragos and Benjamin Brafman.
Movie and television writers will seek a bigger cut of profits from the fast-growing DVD market when talks begin on Monday on a new three-year contract. Members of the Writers Guild of America also want studios to help cover rising health care costs.
Brian A Smith didn’t know the two women who were shoplifting. They were caught on security cameras stealing sheets at the Los Cerritos mall in Los Angeles and received a two-year sentence. But Smith was seen standing near the shoplifters as they committed their crime. Despite having no stolen goods, he was convicted of aiding and abetting them.
Michael Eisner probably won’t lose his job at the annual Walt Disney Company shareholders meeting this week in Philadelphia but his foes intend to make sure he at least feels nervous about the possibility.
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/ 18 February 2004
Walt Disney said on Tuesday it will buy the Muppets characters, including Kermit, Miss Piggy and others, as well as the Bear in the Big Blue House franchise from The Jim Henson Company. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
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/ 17 February 2004
The board of directors for Walt Disney rejected a takeover bid by cable television giant Comcast, officials said. The board noted that the current offer to acquire Disney by swapping shares of both companies would undervalue Disney’s holdings.
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/ 13 February 2004
Mel Gibson’s new controversial film The Passion of Christ has come under attack from Jewish leaders in the United States, who claim it will fan anti-Semitism in the way it presents the role of Jews in the death of Christ. Duncan Campbell reports from Los Angeles.
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/ 9 February 2004
”Breast-barer” Justin Timberlake apologised, soul siren Beyonce Knowles grabbed a slice of history and rap duo Outkast won the coveted album of the year trophy at the 46th annual Grammy Awards in Los Angeles on Sunday. Beyonce cemented her solo career away from Destiny’s Child by taking home five Grammys.
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/ 14 January 2004
A second movie sent to Academy Award voters has turned up on the internet. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced the discovery of an unauthorised internet copy of the film The Last Samurai on Tuesday, a day after announcing a probe into an unauthorised copy of Something’s Gotta Give.
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/ 30 December 2003
The Nation of Islam is rallying to support Michael Jackson and has begun handling some security for the pop star as he prepares to defend himself on child molestation charges, sources have said. The sources said the Chicago-based group’s involvement may extend into Jackson’s financial affairs.
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/ 26 December 2003
A mudslide swept over a Greek Orthodox youth camp in California, trapping 24 people as heavy rains triggered flooding in areas ravaged by deadly wildfires last month, authorities said. Fourteen people were rescued on Thursday, but 10 remained missing. Continuing rainfall hampered rescue efforts.
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/ 18 December 2003
Pop icon Michael Jackson will be formally charged with child molestation on Thursday, prosecutors have announced. Last month, Jackson (45) was handcuffed and subjected to humiliating police mugshots and fingerprinting when he returned to Santa Barbara on his private jet to face arrest.
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/ 9 December 2003
It all started on a kitchen table in Chicago 50 years ago when Hugh Hefner, a former scribe at Esquire magazine decided that the men of America deserved better. With of his own money and 000 more in loans he put together the first issue of the men’s magazine Playboy in December 1953.
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/ 23 November 2003
Family and friends rushed to Michael Jackson’s defence, while fans planned candlelight vigils on Saturday to let shine the light of their faith in their idol, who stands charged with child molestation. The beleaguered pop icon kept a low profile early on Saturday at the Green Valley Ranch resort in Nevada.