Tagged: Hollywood

Enter the Dragon gets 40th Anniversary Edition

enter-the-dragon-leeEvery now and then you can tell someone is special. Every now and then you know just when something becomes an event, a trend-setter. That’s exactly who Bruce Lee was and his Enter the Dragon remains. All marital arts films are measured against this one and now Warner Home Video is giving us a 40th anniversary edition. Here are the details:

Burbank, Calif., March 4, 2013 – Enter the Dragon, one of martial arts icon Bruce Lee’s last films, will debut June 11 on Blu-ray™ in the Enter the Dragon 40th Anniversary Ultimate Collector’s Edition giftset from Warner Bros. Home Entertainment. The film, which helped bring interest in the Asian martial arts genre to mainstream Western cinema, has been re-mastered for its 40th anniversary, and will now feature new bonus materials, such as the featurette, No Way as Way, on the legacy of Bruce Lee, plus other featurettes and commentary. Memorabilia — which includes collectible art cards, lenticular card and an embroidered patch –are also part of the giftset.

Bruce Lee was an incredible athlete and mixed martial artist who, despite making a limited number of movies during his short life, became a charismatic megastar and left a permanent mark on cinema and popular culture. Even Time Magazine agreed. They included Lee in the “100 Most Important People of the 20th century” issue (Heroes and Icons 1999*).  Enter the Dragon continues to resonate with today’s audiences. It was a major theatrical hit 40 years ago, grossing approximately $25 million domestically – the equivalent of almost $180 million in today’s box-office. Enter the Dragon has sold more than 450,000 units on DVD and Blu-ray since 2004. In 2004, Enter the Dragon was selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the United States National Film Registry as being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant.” It also received a 95% positive rating on the critics’ review aggregator site Rotten Tomatoes.

Lee was born in San Francisco on November 27, 1940. As a young boy in Hong Kong, he acted in some 20 films there and first became known in the U.S. in 1966 for his role as sidekick Kato in TV’s “The Green Hornet.” He also appeared in TV shows like “Ironside” and “Longstreet,” with his most notable American role coming in the 1969 movie, Marlowe, starring James Garner. Returning to Hong Kong, Lee starred in a number of successful films for Raymond Chow’s Golden Harvest Productions and soon became a superstar in China. His enormous overseas success ultimately reached Hollywood and the attention of filmmaker Fred Weintraub and Warner Bros., who produced Enter the Dragon and tapped the actor to star. Lee died suddenly in Hong Kong, at the age of 32, of a cerebral edema. That was on July 20, 1973, less than a month before the film’s August 17 U.S. premiere. Posthumously, Enter the Dragon rocketed him to international superstardom.

enter-the-dragon-special-edition-20040524022006215Enter the Dragon producer Fred Weintraub, who also wrote the book Bruce Lee, Woodstock, and Me said: “If fans want to hail Bruce as the greatest and most influential martial artist who ever lived, you’ll get no argument from me. He was a shining star who streaked across the night sky of our collective awareness in a flash of white hot unsustainable intensity only to burn up in the atmosphere of fame, wealth, and worldwide adulation. Watching him again (this time even better on Blu-ray), you can see why he became the first international superstar from a third world country.

The plot of the Enter the Dragon revolves around outstanding martial arts student Lee (Bruce Lee), who is recruited by an intelligence agency and then uncovers the evil Han’s (Kien Shih) white slavery and drug trafficking ring located on a secret island fortress. Along with martial arts champions Roper (John Saxon) and Williams (Jim Kelly), Lee infiltrates the stronghold and enters Han’s brutal tournament. Lee and his partners fuse skills in Karate, Judo, Tae Kwon Do, T’ai chi ch’uan and Hapkido, in a now classic fight-to-the-death epic battle, all staged by Lee himself.

Bruce Lee, John Saxon, and Ahna Capri star in Enter the Dragon, which co-stars Bob Wall, and Shih Kien and introduces Jim Kelly. Music is by Lalo Schifrin. Written by Michael Allen, the film was produced by Fred Weintraub and Paul Heller in association with Raymond Chow. Robert Clouse directed.

Special Features:

  • Commentary by producer Paul Heller
  • New Featurette No Way As Way
  • New Featurette The Return to Han’s Island
  • New Featurette Wing Chun: The Art that Introduced Kung Fu to Bruce Lee
  • Interview Gallery featuring Lee’s wife, Linda Lee Caldwell
  • Vintage pieces
    • Backyard Workout with Bruce Lee
    • Curse of the Dragon
    • Location: Hong Kong with Enter the Dragon
    • Blood and Steel: The Making of Enter the Dragon
    • Personal Profile Bruce Lee: In His Own Words
  •  Five trailers
  • Seven TV spots

ENTER THE DRAGON 40TH ANNIVERSARY BLU-RAY DISC™ AND DVD

Street Date: June 11, 2013

Order Due Date: May 17, 2013

Run Time: 98 minutes

Rating: R

Pricing: $49.99 SRP

Catalog# / UPC: 1000351089 / 883929285693

 

Note: All enhanced content and memorabilia listed above is subject to change.

UCHRONIC PRESS ANNOUNCES LATEST UCHRONIC TALE- THE STUDIO SPECTRE!

  • News
  • January 30, 2013
PRESS RELEASE-The Uchronic Press is proud to announce the third novella in the Uchronic Tales line—The Studio Spectre.



This time around, Clark Tyler finds himself on a movie lot with a killer on the loose. The rumors had always warned that the lot was haunted, but this time it seems the Spectre is out to kill Hollywood’s hottest starlet.

W. Peter Miller (The Zeppelin, The Horn) brings another exciting pulp action tale to the Uchronic series. Dames, death, and Tinseltown are the backdrop for this mystery in the Golden Age of Hollywood.

Is the Spectre real, or an elaborate hoax? The Jade Monk joins forces with Clark as they hunt for The Studio Spectre!

The eBook is on sale now at Amazon and the Nook store and just about everywhere else eBooks are sold. The paperback is at Amazon. The book features a stunning cover by Mike Fyles and is packed with thrill, chills, and a firetruck chase through the streets of Hollywood! How many books can say that!

The Uchronic Press serves reader that crave action, excitement, and a bit of an edge to their pulp adventure fiction. Or stories take place in a alternate past, a Uchronic world greatly like our own, but with a dash more mystery, danger, and the macabre. Here you will find heroic adventure, outlandish science, ferocious alchemy, and an alternate history just slightly larger than our own.

Look for other adventures featuring perilous airships, lost civilizations, and earth-shattering danger!

For more information visit:
UchronicTales.com
docsavagetales.blogspot.com

UCHRONIC PRESS ANNOUNCES LATEST UCHRONIC TALE- THE STUDIO SPECTRE!

UCHRONIC PRESS ANNOUNCES LATEST UCHRONIC TALE- THE STUDIO SPECTRE!

  • News
  • January 30, 2013

PRESS RELEASE-The Uchronic Press is proud to announce the third novella in the Uchronic Tales line—The Studio Spectre.

This time around, Clark Tyler finds himself on a movie lot with a killer on the loose. The rumors had always warned that the lot was haunted, but this time it seems the Spectre is out to kill Hollywood’s hottest starlet.

W. Peter Miller (The Zeppelin, The Horn) brings another exciting pulp action tale to the Uchronic series. Dames, death, and Tinseltown are the backdrop for this mystery in the Golden Age of Hollywood.

Is the Spectre real, or an elaborate hoax? The Jade Monk joins forces with Clark as they hunt for The Studio Spectre!

The eBook is on sale now at Amazon and the Nook store and just about everywhere else eBooks are sold. The paperback is at Amazon. The book features a stunning cover by Mike Fyles and is packed with thrill, chills, and a firetruck chase through the streets of Hollywood! How many books can say that!

The Uchronic Press serves reader that crave action, excitement, and a bit of an edge to their pulp adventure fiction. Or stories take place in a alternate past, a Uchronic world greatly like our own, but with a dash more mystery, danger, and the macabre. Here you will find heroic adventure, outlandish science, ferocious alchemy, and an alternate history just slightly larger than our own.

Look for other adventures featuring perilous airships, lost civilizations, and earth-shattering danger!

For more information visit:
UchronicTales.com
docsavagetales.blogspot.com

Michael Davis: George Clooney And Nice Guys Named Mike

Davis Art 130121“Comics are full of nice guys named Mike.”

Either Mike Gold or Mike Grell said the above quote some 20 years ago. Considering I was just five at the time, please forgive me if I can’t remember who said what.

What?

Whoever said it was talking about the comics industry and the abundance of seemingly nice people in it. At the time we were all working on a comic called Shado: Song of the Dragon.

Mike Gold was the editor, Mike Grell was the writer, and I penciled and colored the book. We jokingly called the project, the Mike book.

It was my second major project and I was trilled as shit to be working with Mike Grell, who was (is) a nice guy. Mike Gold is a nice guy and I’m a nice guy.

Really, I’m a nice guy.

Most of the people I’d met in the comic industry have been really nice people.

I came to Hollywood in 1994 to run the film and television division of Motown Records.  Most of the work I’ve done since then has been in television. I’ve met a lot of people in Hollywood and let me tell you compared to comics, that industry is full of not so nice people.

And by not so nice I mean assholes.

Don’t get me wrong, there are plenty of really nice people in Hollywood. For example, George Clooney and Wayne Brady are two of the nicest people you will ever meet.

I’ve hung out a couple times with George and he’s a great guy. No, he’s not my friend (unless you are a really pretty Asian girl and that would impress you, if that’s the case then George and I are best friends) but every time I see George he treats me warmly and makes me feel genuinely like he’s glad to see me.

This kind treatment from one of the biggest stars in the world, how cool is that?

Now, Wayne is a dear friend and he’s as cool as cool can be and has been since the moment he and I met some five years ago. I don’t want to give the impression that Wayne and George are the only nice people I’ve met in Hollywood they are not…but I’ve met many and I mean many people in Hollywood.

And a lot of them are dicks.

I think I know why there are more dicks in Hollywood than there are in comics.

Respect.

For the most part people in comics meet you and at least try and get to know you. In Hollywood that’s not the case, in Hollywood if people meet you and determine you won’t make them any money then that, as they say, is that.

No, not everyone in Hollywood is a blood sucking, money grubbing parasite but yeah; I’ve met more than a few who are.

The San Diego Comic Con International is the biggest pop culture event in the world. Comic Con does not need Hollywood, Hollywood needs Comic Con.

My point?

I’m sick to fucking death of Hollywood thinking Comic Con is their event.

It’s not.

Every year at Comic Con I give a big party, every year a bunch of Hollywood players show up and I let them in. I won’t bore you with the “stars” that have attended my parties but take my word for it, it’s impressive.

But…

Every year, Hollywood gives parties at Comic Con and every year it seems that the comic book industry is shut out of those events.

That pisses me the fuck off to no end.

I think George Clooney is a wonderful actor and a really nice guy, I really, really do think that. But if George showed up at my Comic Con party at the same time Len Wein showed up and I could only let one of them in, it would be Len.

Why?

Because it’s Comic Con!

Len is part of Comic Con, like water is part of wet. Period.

Long story short, Hollywood, comics do not need you. You need us.

‘Nuff said.

WEDNESDAY: Mike Gold and the Great Comics’ Shell Game

Gerry Anderson, king of Supermarionation: 1929-2012

Gerry Anderson, creator of Thunderbirds, Space: 1999, Supercar, Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons, Joe 90, UFO, Fireball XL5, Stingray, and many other science fiction and fantasy shows, has died at the age of 83.

Gerry was best know for his “Supermarionation” series, featuring detailed marionettes and a science-fiction based storyline.  His ex-wife Sylvia collaborated frequently with him, most famously voicing Lady Penelope Creighton-Ward in Thunderbirds.  The shows were a first step for many well-known actors and creators, including Lois Maxwell (Moneypenny in the early James Bond films), character actors Shane Rimmer and Jaremy Wilkin (Blake’s 7) and special effects master Derek Meddings (Star Wars and the James Bond franchise).  He made successful forays into live action as well, with the series Space: 1999 and UFO, and the feature film Journey to the Far Side of the Sun.

Gerry suffered from Alzheimer’s Disease for several years, and spent much of his time as a celebrity ambassador for The Alzheimer’s Society, raising both funds and awareness for the disease.  His condition worsened in the past six months, which limited his ability to both work for the organization, and to serve as consultant on a Hollywood remake of UFO.

Gerry’s son Jamie has requested, in lieu of other remembrances, that people donate to The Alzheimer’s Society via Just Giving. Our condolences to his family and friends.

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John Ostrander: Sweet Jesus!

The thing about a great story is that it can be told so many different ways. That includes the Greatest Story Ever Told and, at this festive time of year, my mind turns to the Christmas Story. I recently had a flash of (possibly divine) inspiration: how would it work as a sitcom?

Hear me out.

It would focus on a middle-aged Jewish carpenter named Joseph back in Roman times. I’m thinking Tim Allen for the part. He’s got this hot young fiancée named Mary (Megan Fox?) who is saving herself for marriage but then winds up pregnant – and not by Joseph. Well, Joseph’s all set to break off the wedding when he gets visited by the Angel Gabriel. I’m thinking Morgan Freeman or possibly Chi McBride (who was so good in being the smart butler to a daffy, horny Abraham Lincoln in “The Secret Diary of Desmond Pfeiffer” that aired for about three heartbeats back in 1998).

Not only is it God’s will that Joseph take Mary as his wife but, according to the doctrine of the Perpetual Virginity of Mary, Joseph can never have sex with her. At all. This would be a recurring gag. Joseph gets hot and horny and has to leap into a barrel of cold water to cool down. Maybe steam rises from the barrel. Trust me, this joke will never get old.

So the Romans order a census and Joseph has to go to Bethlehem, the city of David (because he’s descended from David) and get counted. Mary’s “great with child” which means she’s about to give birth at any moment. Maybe they got a late start, maybe Mary can’t move so fast or has to stop often, but by the time they get to Nazareth, everything is booked up. Lots of room for comedy there. One innkeeper (I’m thinking Richard Lewis, although Richard Karn who was in Home Improvement with Tim Allen could do it and audiences might like that) agrees to let them sleep in the barn out back.

Nowhere in any of the gospels or anything else I could find mentions a midwife. You think you would. Mary’s midwife would be a pretty important role. No mention. So – who has to do it? That’s right – Joseph. Tim Allen as Joseph. Can you see it? Alpha male having to deal with childbirth? Tons of humor to be mined there.

So while Mary is screaming and Joseph is ready to faint, Gabriel shows back up. He waves his fingers, Mary’s labor pain goes away (Gabriel claims it’s a divine epidural) and then – lo! – a great light shines ‘round about them coming from Mary’s womb. Enter Jesus.

I’m going to take a little artistic license here and suggest that he’s like the eTrade baby or the babies in the Guess Who’s Talking movies. The adults don’t react but it lets Baby Jesus comment on what’s going on. I always found young Jesus to be a little snarky, what with the “Don’t you know I’m supposed to be about my father’s business?” Jesus can play all sorts of tricks on Joseph, too, like change his wine into water.

In addition to the Innkeeper, there’s all sorts of wacky characters who can be brought in – shepherds wandering the fields at night, three Wise Men bearing gifts (maybe Joseph has to convince them that Jesus is the child they are seeking), and Mary’s Cousin Elizabeth can come for a visit (is it too much to hope for Carol Burnett? And maybe Tim Conway could play Elizabeth’s husband, Zachariah.).

I was contemplating the title. Modern Family is a popular show so I was thinking Ancient Family or Holy Family, but that doesn’t catch the flavor. I think Sweet Jesus! works. It could be pitched to the networks but HBO or Showtime might be looking for an edgy comedy. Or we could get Seth McFarlane interested and take it over to Fox. He’d animate it. Bill O’Reilly could denounce it on his show and when he cuts away for a commercial, there’s an ad for Sweet Jesus! I love it.

So, what do you think, Hollywood? I think we have a winner here. Have your people call my people. Wait. I don’t have people. Maybe Michael Davis could be my people; he’s always putting together deals. Hey, Michael – want to be my people?

And as Tiny Tim was heard to say, “God bless us everyone!”

MONDAY: Mindy Newell

JOHN CARTER TAKES ON THE GODS OF HOLLYWOOD

  • News
  • December 14, 2012

Michael D. Sellers’ new book, John Carter and the Gods of Hollywood, takes a look at the story that brought John Carter of Mars to the big screen.

About John Carter and the Gods of Hollywood:

It took 100 years to bring Edgar Rice Burroughs’ John Carter of Mars to the big screen. It took Disney Studios just ten days to declare the film a flop and lock it away in the Disney vaults. How did this project, despite its quarter-billion dollar budget, the brilliance of director Andrew Stanton, and the creative talents of legendary Pixar Studios, become a calamity of historic proportions? Michael Sellers, a filmmaker and Hollywood insider himself, saw the disaster approaching and fought to save the project – but without success. In John Carter and the Gods of Hollywood, Sellers details every blunder and betrayal that led to the doom of the motion picture – and that left countless Hollywood careers in the wreckage. JOHN CARTER AND THE GODS OF HOLLYWOOD examines every aspect of Andrew Stanton’s adaptation and Disney’s marketing campaign and seeks to answer the question: What went wrong? it includes a history of Hollywood’s 100 year effort to bring the film to the screen, and examines the global fan movement spawned by the film.

John Carter and the Gods of Hollywood is now available at Amazon.

WEIRD WESTERN COMIC IN THE WORKS-WELCOME TO PARIAH, MISSOURI

  • News
  • December 13, 2012

Pariah, Missouri: The Graphic Novel Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Local Man Uses Kickstarter to Realize His Hollywood Dreams


Ventura, California – December 7, 2012 – Doing something creative that you love is a challenge.  Finding an audience for your work and getting paid for it is even harder.   Andres Salazar understands those struggles.  Andres is a stand-up comedian,  has directed and produced short films, written screenplays even sells his paintings at craft fairs.  Most recently Andres has turned to the crowdfunding website, Kickstarter.com to find an audience and realize his dream of being a creator.

His latest project is a graphic novel titled Pariah, Missouri–a supernatural story set in pre-civil war.  He wrote it originally as a television pilot script in hopes to get attention from the cable networks.  “I pitched it as Deadwood meets Buffy the Vampire Slayer, but nowadays you gotta have the script, a cast and director attached and half of it shot before they will look at you, and that’s only if you have an agent, manager and have previously worked on three shows,” says Andres. 

So instead of beating his head against Hollywood’s doors, he turned to other mediums to tell the tale.  “When I conceived Pariah, I wanted something that I could tell graphically since comics have been my love as a kid.  It’s much cheaper of course to generate a comic and this is a good way to build a fan-base and that is always something that Hollywood wants to see,” says Andres.  Turning an hour drama script into a comic book is not without it’s challenges.  An artist needed to be found so Andres turned to sites such as Deviantart.com to find affordable and dependable artists. 

“That was a challenge.  I mean, I could have drawn it myself, but comic book art takes an incredible amount of time, plus there is value in adding others creative juices to the mix.  I was lucky to find a great artist like Jose,” says Andres.  Jose Luis Pescador is no stranger to the comic book world.  He studied at the National Autonomous University of Mexico and has worked on a number of independent graphic novels and has shown fine art in galleries across the country. 

His super-team was assembled, but Andres still needed funding.  Enter Kickstarter.com  Kickstarter is a new phenomenon in what is dubbed crowdfunding which gives creators a chance realize their ambitions by asking others to “back” their project.  From films, music albums to food, Kickstarter generates hundreds of projects daily in the hopes that they meet their funding goal.  If the goal is achieved, backers then receive rewards according to their pledge amount.

Having worked for Howard Chaykin as an assistant, Andres learned much of the business from his mentor.  Andres also wrote and directed SAG short film After Cheri and stated , “We are very excited about our Kickstarter for Pariah, Missouri!  It will be an exciting story for the next 30 days to see how we progress through the campaign.  I will be posting videos and updates often so backers really get a sense of the “behind the scenes” of what it takes to make a comic book.  Please check us out.”

For a 23 page preview of Pariah, Missouri- go HERE.

To see the Pariah, Missouri Kickstarter campaign to go: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/andresjsalazar/pariah-missouri-the-graphic-novel

###

If you’d like more information about the Pariah, MO graphic novel or to schedule interviews with Andres

Salazar please email andresjsalazar@gmail.com or call 805-746-6884

  • News
  • December 13, 2012

Pariah, Missouri: The Graphic Novel Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Local Man Uses Kickstarter to Realize His Hollywood Dreams

Ventura, California – December 7, 2012 – Doing something creative that you love is a challenge.  Finding an audience for your work and getting paid for it is even harder.   Andres Salazar understands those struggles.  Andres is a stand-up comedian,  has directed and produced short films, written screenplays even sells his paintings at craft fairs.  Most recently Andres has turned to the crowdfunding website, Kickstarter.com to find an audience and realize his dream of being a creator.

His latest project is a graphic novel titled Pariah, Missouri–a supernatural story set in pre-civil war.  He wrote it originally as a television pilot script in hopes to get attention from the cable networks.  “I pitched it as Deadwood meets Buffy the Vampire Slayer, but nowadays you gotta have the script, a cast and director attached and half of it shot before they will look at you, and that’s only if you have an agent, manager and have previously worked on three shows,” says Andres. 

So instead of beating his head against Hollywood’s doors, he turned to other mediums to tell the tale.  “When I conceived Pariah, I wanted something that I could tell graphically since comics have been my love as a kid.  It’s much cheaper of course to generate a comic and this is a good way to build a fan-base and that is always something that Hollywood wants to see,” says Andres.  Turning an hour drama script into a comic book is not without it’s challenges.  An artist needed to be found so Andres turned to sites such as Deviantart.com to find affordable and dependable artists. 

“That was a challenge.  I mean, I could have drawn it myself, but comic book art takes an incredible amount of time, plus there is value in adding others creative juices to the mix.  I was lucky to find a great artist like Jose,” says Andres.  Jose Luis Pescador is no stranger to the comic book world.  He studied at the National Autonomous University of Mexico and has worked on a number of independent graphic novels and has shown fine art in galleries across the country. 

His super-team was assembled, but Andres still needed funding.  Enter Kickstarter.com  Kickstarter is a new phenomenon in what is dubbed crowdfunding which gives creators a chance realize their ambitions by asking others to “back” their project.  From films, music albums to food, Kickstarter generates hundreds of projects daily in the hopes that they meet their funding goal.  If the goal is achieved, backers then receive rewards according to their pledge amount.

Having worked for Howard Chaykin as an assistant, Andres learned much of the business from his mentor.  Andres also wrote and directed SAG short film After Cheri and stated , “We are very excited about our Kickstarter for Pariah, Missouri!  It will be an exciting story for the next 30 days to see how we progress through the campaign.  I will be posting videos and updates often so backers really get a sense of the “behind the scenes” of what it takes to make a comic book.  Please check us out.”

To see the Pariah, Missouri Kickstarter campaign to go: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/andresjsalazar/pariah-missouri-the-graphic-novel

###

If you’d like more information about the Pariah, MO graphic novel or to schedule interviews with Andres

Salazar please email andresjsalazar@gmail.com or call 805-746-6884

The Point Radio: ARROW’s Aim Is Still True


As ARROW  hits the halfway mark of the TV season, fans and critics alike say it keeps getting better. We go backstage with the creators and cast to find out how they got this far, and what lies ahead for new characters including one played by fan favorite John Barrowman. Plus How about Captain Kirk, Ron Burgundy or Spock doing your voice mail message? It can happen if you hurry.

Take us ANYWHERE! The Point Radio App is now in the iTunes App store – and it’s FREE! Just search under “pop culture The Point”. The Point Radio  – 24 hours a day of pop culture fun for FREE. GO HERE and LISTEN FREE on any computer or on any other  mobile device with the Tune In Radio app – and follow us on Twitter @ThePointRadio.

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