George Lucas is starting development of a live-action Star Wars TV series. It’s going to be about “minor characters” in that galaxy of his own creation far, far away (Alright, let’s hear from Biggs! Wedge Antillies, your time is now! Mon Mothma, it’s all about you, sweetie! Jar Jar… We’ll call you). As Mr. Lucas [...]

According to Variety, Jesse James, the former host of “Monster Garage”, has decided to re-enter television, cutting a deal with dude-oriented Spike TV for two pilots and two specials.
“I look forward to busting my a**,” James said in announcing the new pact.
I’ve got seriously conflicted emotions on this. On one hand, I’m really excited to [...]

I was at a cousin’s wedding this last weekend in Idaho. It was in Priest Lake, Idaho, the most fashionable part of Idaho, apparently. I had been tapped to videotape the wedding– As anyone who runs a video company will tell you, being asked to cover weddings is a regular occupational hazard.
I was getting some [...]

My old movie theatre in San Francisco had a grand re-opening today. The Vogue on Sacramento street, which was built in 1910 (not 1919 as previously reported), just four years after the Great Earthquake and Fire. It was originally a Biograph theatre, a source of visual news for the neighborhood.
The place is certainly venerable: I [...]

A few weeks ago I posted an article asking studio heads to consider L. Frank Baum’s Oz books as a new fantasy-film project on the lines of Lord of the Rings.
Lo and behold, I found this in today’s Variety: Film impresario, comic-book artist and super-duper fan Todd McFarlane and Warner Bros. are indeed going [...]

From The BBC:
Classic Hollywood romance Casablanca is to be remade - in an Indian setting.
The new version, entitled Ezham Mudra, will relocate the Humphrey Bogart film to contemporary south India.
Actor Suresh Gopi will play a restaurant owner who helps his lover, a Tamil separatist rebel fighting the Sri Lankan government, escape from India.

The director Rajeev [...]

It’s no secret that one of America’s biggest exports is entertainment. Everybody thinks our cars suck, and our agriculture does okay but we’re so hungry that we eat most of it before it gets to the docks. However, the money we lavish on film and television, plus that indescribably American ‘tude, makes our shows big [...]

In-flight movies took another one on the chin recently with the premier of CASINO ROYALE on British Airways. Airlines often cut the entertainment to remove objectionable content (though for some reason entire objectionable movies like ALONG CAME POLLY and THE REAL MCCAW have managed to make it onto flights I’ve taken); once in a while [...]

The Justice Department says, “Prior to its dismantling, DrinkOrDie was estimated to have caused the illegal reproduction and distribution of more than $50 million worth of pirated software, movies, games and music.” DrinkOrDie was an international web piracy group, that is to say, a file sharing site where you downloaded your complete Madonna album collection [...]

Showbiz is a tremendous gamble, and the big studios are specialists at bet-hedging. From an emphasis on proven names, sequels and remakes to diversification into other businesses, the media giants do what they can to keep the bottom line from sinking below your view.
And sometimes, that same strategy guarantees it won’t soar either:
Just when Sony [...]