VIDEO OF THE DAY

TRANSFORMERS 3 TRAILER

BIG HOLLYWOOD TALKS WITH ATLAS SHRUGGED PRODCUERS ABOUT PARTS 2 & 3

Yesterday I posted two articles that gave contradictory answers over the fate of Parts 2 & 3 for the Atlas Shrugged Trilogy. Well John Nolte of Big Hollywood saw the confusion and contacted the producers for clarification :


Here is a very brief excerpt.

Aglialoro then went on to state that he had been “misunderstood” when he said that the critical drubbing the film took “influenced him to abandon the second and third films in the Atlas Shrugged franchise.”  He confirmed that he has ”no intention to go on strike.”

That should come as very good news to the many, many people who obviously enjoyed the film and found it to be something special. Personally, I’ve never seen such polarized reviews before. The critics savaged it and yet everyone who sent a revew into us loved it. The most interesting thing I’ve noticed is that no one was on-the-fence about the film. No one said, “Yeah, it was okay.” People either passionately embraced Part 1 or passionately didn’t. You don’t see a lot of movies like that. So, for those of you who loved it…

Do read the whole thing to get the answer about part 2 & 3.

Speaking from personal experience I know exactly what its like to be "misunderstood" about a quote. But that is a whole different post.

WILL THERE BE AN ATLAS SHRUGGED PART 2 & 3?

When Atlas Shrugged Part 1 expanded to 450 screens last week everyone thought it was going to do gangbusters. Then it collapsed at the box office and everyone began to ask what will happen to parts 2 & 3.


From the Los Angeles Times on Tuesday April 26, 2011 at 5:16 p.m.

Twelve days after opening "Atlas Shrugged: Part 1," the producer of the Ayn Rand adaptation said Tuesday that he is reconsidering his plans to make Parts 2 and 3 because of scathing reviews and flagging box office returns for the film.

"Critics, you won," said John Aglialoro, the businessman who spent 18 years and more than $20 million of his own money to make, distribute and market "Atlas Shrugged: Part 1," which covers the first third of Rand's dystopian novel. "I’m having deep second thoughts on why I should do Part 2."

"Atlas Shrugged" was the top-grossing limited release in its opening weekend, generating $1.7 million on 299 screens and earning a respectable $5,640 per screen. But the the box office dropped off 47% in the film's second week in release even as "Atlas Shrugged" expanded to 425 screens, and the movie seemed to hold little appeal for audiences beyond the core group of Rand fans to whom it was marketed.

Aglialoro attributed the box office drop-off to "Atlas Shrugged's" poor reviews. Only one major critic -- Kyle Smith of the New York Post -- gave "Atlas" a mixed-to-positive review, calling the film "more compelling than the average mass-produced studio item." The movie has a dismal 7% fresh rating on review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes thanks to critics like the Chicago Tribune's Michael Phillips, who said "Atlas" is "crushingly ordinary in every way." Roger Ebert called the film "the most anticlimactic non-event since Geraldo Rivera broke into Al Capone’s vault," while Rolling Stone's Peter Travers said the movie "sits there flapping on screen like a bludgeoned seal."

 [snip]

"Why should I put up all of that money if the critics are coming in like lemmings?" Aglialoro said. "I’ll make my money back and I'll make a profit, but do I wanna go and do two? Maybe I just wanna see my grandkids and go on strike."

From the Hollywood Reporter on Wednesday April 27, 2011 at 8:37 p.m.

The man who says he spent $10 million of his own money to bring Atlas Shrugged: Part 1 to the big screen vowed Wednesday to go through with his plans to make the next two installments, even though critics hate the movie and business at movie theaters has fallen off a cliff.

In fact, said John Aglialoro, the co-producer and financier, it's the monolithic view from critics that say the movie stinks that is motivating him to make Parts 2 and 3, he told The Hollywood Reporter.

 [snip]

Aglialoro acknowledged that spending almost no money on marketing and relying almost entirely on the Internet and talk radio -- a strategy he boasted of a week ago -- was ineffective in the long run.

"You really need to spend millions to get the message on TV screens," he said. "If I want Part 2 to open on 1,500 screens, I need to decide if I want to spend $10 million on TV commercials."

He also is considering partnering with a major studio for the next two installments, as he may do for international distribution on Part 1.

He said he's sticking to his plan to release Part 2 on April 15, 2012, and Part 3 on April 15, 2013, though gathering the same talent and crew might be a problem.

"The critics killed it so badly that agents may tell their clients they shouldn't be associated with this thing," he said. "I've got to give it to the critics. They won this battle, but they will not win the war. The message has been told in Part 1, and it will be told in Parts 2 and 3." 

FOX TO CONSIDER CHANGING CONTRACTS TO PUNISH LEAKS

From the Hollywood Reporter. 

Nicole Crowther, a day player on the hit Fox musical, came under fire this week for sharing the names of the prom king and queen in an upcoming episode. In response, Glee co-creator Brad Falchuk quickly took to Twitter to slam Crowther, writing “hope you’re qualified to do something besides work in entertainment…Who are you to spoil something talented people have spent months to create?”

[edit]

[T]he standard SAG day-player contracts Glee uses don’t contain “NDA” (non-disclosure agreement) language providing for punishment when plot secrets are revealed. So while the studio and network might never hire a leaking extra again, the legal ramifications of spilling secrets are probably less serious.

That surprised us, frankly, and it could soon change. An insider at Glee producer 20th Century Fox Television tells us the studio is considering amending all of its talent deals -- from series regulars to day players like Crowther -- to include strict punishments for blabbing online.

If so, 20th wouldn’t be the only Hollywood studio to crack down on leaks via social networks. As we reported 18 months ago, a growing number of studio deals contain new language aimed at plugging leaks of disparaging or confidential information about productions via Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and the rest. 

In October 2009, we revealed a contract from Disney that includes a clause forbidding confidentiality breaches via “interactive media such as Facebook, Twitter, or any other interactive social network or personal blog.” At the time, ABC had recently issued guidelines for tweeting while working on network shows, rules that included seven prohibited actions (including revealing spoilers).

We wouldn’t be surprised if liquidated damages provisions were added to Glee deals, meaning the studio could collect a pre-set amount of money from an offending leaker (and, more likely, prevent them from leaking in the first place out of fear).

Hollywood is getting wise to the power of online media. The prom king on Glee might not impact national security, but it makes sense for studios to enact consequences for spoiling its heavily-guarded plot secrets.

While there is no legal recourse for Fox to take against the leaker you can be sure said leaker is in a deep hole now. Think this is some kind of overreaction? Here is what happened to another person who violated an NDA.

The producers of the new Indiana Jones movie have settled a lawsuit against an actor accused of breaching a confidentiality agreement by revealing the film's plot in a newspaper interview.

A Superior Court order was filed Tuesday finding that Tyler Nelson knowingly violated the agreement that he signed when he was cast to appear in a scene of Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, said Lucasfilm Ltd. publicist Lynne Hale.

The agreement barred everyone involved in the film from publicly discussing it.

Terms of the settlement were not disclosed. An after-hours call to Nelson's talent agency was not immediately returned.

The fourth installment of the adventure series was directed by Steven Spielberg and stars Harrison Ford, Cate Blanchett and Shia LaBeouf. It is due out in theaters next May.

Tyler revealed plot details during an interview last month with his hometown newspaper, Oklahoma's Edmond Sun, Daily Variety reported. That story has been removed from the newspaper's website.

"We ask every cast and crewmember to sign a confidentiality agreement because we want to protect the movie's thrills and surprises for audiences," said Lynn Bartsch, Lucasfilm's director of business affairs.

I will say it before and I will say it again: NDA's are not excuses. If you think they are then you are very ignorant of how this industry works.

ATLAS SHRUGGED PART 1 REVIEW

Well I have seen the film. Here is my review. Well first lets answer some set up questions.

HAVE YOU READ THE BOOK?

No.

DOES IT THE FILM FOLLOW THE BOOK?

I have not read the book so I do not know.

Despite what many of you are thinking  (I know this will generate hate mail) I'm not even a follower of Ayn Rand "objectivist" ideology and have no intention of opening the book. In many ways I'm glad since I can go into this film and judge the film on its merits.

BOTTOM LINE KEV, WHAT DID YOU THINK OF THE FILM?

It is a weird experience for me. The film is surprisingly good and at the same time has some deep and in one case, near fatal flaws.

SURPRISINGLY GOOD? WHAT DO YOU MEAN?

When I first heard of the project going into production I was concerned. It appeared to be an ashcan copy so the producers could hold on to the rights. The budget level reported made it seem that the film would look and sound awful and it set off the dreaded Sucking Donkey Alert.

Boy was I wrong.

The film has an incredible amount of polish to it. There are some studio films that have spent alot more only to get no where near what this film looks like. The film is surprisingly fast paced and does a shockingly good job of setting up its universe. (You almost want it to dig deeper into the world the characters inhabit.

WHAT ABOUT THE ACTING?

The acting is pretty good for the majority of the film. Yes there are no "big" stars but that is a plus here as you buy right into the characters. No star "baggage" as thats [insert stars name here] playing Dagny Taggart, rather you look at the screen and go "There is Dagny Taggart". That is refreshing.

The problem the actors run into is the script sometimes lets them down. 

I HEARD THE GUY WHO PLAYS QUARK FROM DS9 IS IN IT?

Yes he is. But he plays a character that is much like the anti-Ferengi in the film.

IS ANDREW BREITBART IN IT?

Yes. If you look closely (when the girl wears the purple dress) you will see him.

IS THE FILM HARD TO FOLLOW?

No, in fact it gets quite engrossing despite little or no "action" as we have come to expect.

IS THE FILM BORING?

No, as its quite engrossing...

SO WHAT ARE THE FLAWS?

There are THREE flaws.


1. LOW BUDGET

While the film is well made and has a great degree of polish sometimes the low budget rears its ugly head. EXAMPLE: After two of the characters accomplish a major goal with massive media coverage there is a crowd of say 10 people to greet them where there would normal be hundreds if not thousands. The film runs into this problem a couple of times. Also there are some very bad FX shots.

While they are not fatal flaws they do take you right out of the film.

2. LOGIC HOLES.

****WARNING MAJOR SPOILERS****

Sometimes the film has things that defy logic. EXAMPLE: In an abandoned factory two charters find a room, not very well hidden, filled with schematics and valuable equipment. Just sitting there, out in the open, seemingly untouched by time. I will say Flynn's Arcade "secret" room was better hidden than this one.

Another example is the ending when the oil field blows up. Dagny simply runs up there unobstructed and watches the field on fire. The press cant get up there, there are no firemen or police up there either even though there are a ton of them down by the house.

The film has numerous logic holes like this and they take you right out of the film.

***END SPOLIERS***

3. DIALOGUE

This is the films nearly fatal flaw. Much of the film Rand's dialogue was adapted to fit the screen. The good thing is these adaptations work really well and convey what Rand envisioned in her novel. However, there are numerous instances when the characters are speaking lines directly from the book and its painful to watch. Randian speakings worked in a novel in 1957 but do not work in a film in 2011. You know exactly when they lift lines from the novel cause the speaking begins to clunk along.

It's a shame also cause the script works pretty well throughout most of the film, except where it takes lines literally from rands novel.

SO WHATS GOOD?

Quite alot. The actors are pretty good, the pacing is pretty good, the film is quite engrossing and the production values often hide the low budget. Yes I was quite entertained and so was the audience I saw it with. I also really enjoyed the way it ended...the producers struck the exact note: They made you want more.

WHAT WAS THE AUDIENCE REACTION? 

They seemed to enjoy it. Laughed at the jokes and wanted more when the film ended.

SHOULD I GO SEE IT?

If you understand that you are going to watch a low budget film, with no major action set pieces then yes. Will you like it? Hard to say.

BOTTOM LINE

When I heard how the film was made I expected a donkey sucking disaster. Instead I was pleasantly surprised and was impressed a few times with the film. Yes the film has flaws but you got to give the filmmakers credit for making the film as good as they did in the situation they were given.

I kept on thinking: "This should be sucking donkey" and yet it did not. That is why it was such a weird experience for me. Also they turned off the audio during the end credits.

WHAT DOES THE EASTER BUNNY DO ON THE OTHER 364 DAYS OF THE YEAR?

15 YEARS...THIS WILL GET DONE IN A COUPLE OF YEARS

He thought the studios would grab it but he was wrong.

ST LOUIS AIRPORT HIT BY TORNADO - UPDATE: PHOTO FROM INSIDE DAMGED TERMINAL

It appears that a tornado hit Lambert St. Louis Airport and has closed the airport indefinitely.

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Lambert Field in St. Louis has been closed after an apparent tornado tore through the airport, lifting a roof off the terminal and injuring several people.

Broadcast reports, citing airport officials, said most of the injuries Friday night were believed to be minor.

Airport officials say the airport was shut down and planes were diverted to other locations.

Crews were assessing damage at all the terminals. Plate glass windows were torn out, largely in Concourse C, where the most of the damage appeared to occur.

Television footage showed pieces of twisted metal outside the terminal.

UPDATE: Some one has posted a photo from inside the terminal. From the looks of it the airport will be closed for a good part of the day tomorrow.

ATLAS SHRUGGED PRODUCERS SPEAK

It took them 20 years to make the film and here is their story.



Atlas Shrugged has now expanded this weekend to 456 theaters and you can find one near you here.

ATLAS ShRUGGED TO EXPAND TO 1000 SCREENS

 

The Hollywood Reporter via Big Hollywood has a great article on the expansion of Atlas Shrugged Part 1. 

The power of Ayn Rand devotees have impressed some Hollywood distribution executives, who took note of the hefty $5,640 per-theater average scored by Atlas Shrugged: Part 1 during its opening weekend.

"Shocking," one executive said about the healthy business the low-budget film has been doing considering its "awful" marketing plan.

Awful or not, business has been brisk enough for producers Harmon Kaslow and John Aglialoro to expand from 299 theaters to 425 this weekend and to 1,000 by the end of the month, they told The Hollywood Reporter on Tuesday. The two said they fielded 500 inquiries from theater bookers Monday but didn't have enough film prints to fill orders.

"Things have turned for us," Kaslow said. "When we started, exhibitors were not embracing the film like we thought they would. Now, we can pretty much go into as many theaters as we want. It's just a matter of logistics."

[snip]

"We didn't take the needle-in-the-haystack approach by running a bunch of TV ads looking for the needles who might want to see the film," Kaslow said. "We turned that model on its head. When the needles looked for us, we advertised to them. We were getting 9 million online impressions a day from people looking for Ayn Rand, Atlas Shrugged and [the book's popular line] 'Who Is John Galt?'"

Aglialoro, who co-wrote and financed the movie, said timing -- politically speaking -- also has worked to the film's advantage, so an expensive marketing campaign wasn't necessary.

It will be interested to see what the second weekend numbers are like.

DEEPWATER HORIZON

One year ago the Deepwater Horizon oil rig exploded in the Gulf of Mexico. In all the coverage afterward there was almost no focus on the people who worked this amazing technology.

The video below showcases the people who worked on it and the job they did.



Valdimir from RedState

- “Please Pray for the Missing Eleven”
- “Why Was BP Drilling in 5,000 ft of Water?”
-

ANDREW BREITBART ON SEAN HANNITY SHOW "I WASNT A RADICAL HIPPY, I WAS A PARTY BOY"

Excellent video of Andrew Breitbart talking about his book on Sean Hannity's show.

CONGRATS TO LITTLE MISS ATTILA ON 1 MILLION HITS!

                        Little Miss Attila at having fun at CPAC 2010 

I just received word that Bank of Kev Blogger Little Miss Attila has passed 1 million views. So how do you get 1 million views on your blog in 8 years? As she so descirbes it.

So, how, you ask, does one get a million hits in eight years? Well, you might start by getting mentioned in a blog post on how to get a million hits in one year, and build it up that way . . .

With gratitude to Insty, Prof. Volokh, James Joyner (who linked me early and often), Venomous Kate, Kelley in Georgia, all of the rest of the crew from 2003, Sarah Palin (for breathing some excitement into the 2008 election, and thereby propping up my numbers), Stacy and Smitty (thanks for the mammaries), Dan Riehl, Jeff and Darleen, Michelle Malkin, Iowahawk, Ace of Spades, Bruce McQuain, Dan Collins, Elizabeth, Moe Lane, and John Hawkins.

 There would not be a Bank of Kev or all the great things I sponsored at CPAC 2010-11 if it were not for Little Miss Attila. If you are not following her you should be.

IF YOU ARE GOING TO HAVE YOUR MINIONS DO A FLASH MOB...

...then do it right!

ANDY ZORIC'S REVIEW OF ATLAS SHRUGGED - PART 1

Bank of Kev Worldwide Partner Andy Zoric of the blog The Adventures Of Andy has put up his review of  Atlas Shrugged Part 1

Here is an excerpt.

Atlas Shrugged: Part 1 is not a summer blockbuster movie.  It does have a fairly wide release in major cities, but not much mass marketing.  A few talk radio hosts are doing their part to promote the film, but advertising seems far and few between.   However if you are a fan of individual liberty and private sector competition, this is the film for you.

Much like the Lord of the Rings films, Tolkin’s dialogue was rarely as snappy as memorable film dialogue usually is. Much of the dialogue seems directly taken from Rand’s tome. Therefore the actors are sometimes limited by the source material.  However it was the message of Atlas Shrugged that has kept it relevant for decades more than the personal stories of the individual characters.

       CLICK HERE TO READ AZORIC'S ENTIRE REVIEW!

ANDREW BREITBART INTERVIEWED BY HUGH HEWITT

Untitled from Breitbart on Vimeo.

FOX ON FOX!

From the Geoff Fox website.

No one, certainly not me, can predict the future accurately every day without fail. I don’t walk on water! I can’t promise 100% accuracy.

Here’s my pledge. I will work my ass off to give you the best forecast I can.
If I am wrong it will never be because I didn’t spend enough time or pay enough attention. I use the best science available, but I’d go back in time and find Miss Cleo and the Psychic Friends Network if that would make me more accurate. I strive to get it right every time without fail. There’s never an advantage in being wrong or hyping something that won’t happen.

Because Rachel Frank has tomorrow off I will be doing the weather at 4:00, 10:00 and 11:00 PM. I’d like very much it if you would join me. If you want to send a message to my old bosses or a thank you to my new bosses this is the way you do it. Everyone will be looking to see what you do.

You are the prize!

Don’t go to sleep yet, Fox on Fox is still to come.

ATLAS SHRUGGED PART 1 PREMERIE VIDEO

ANDREW BREITBART'S RIGHTEOUS INDIGNATION (MOSTLY SPOLIER FREE) REIVEW

While I was in Washington D.C.’s National Airport preparing to fly a home after an productive World Domination Meeting earlier in the day, something caught my eye.

It was Righteous…

It was filled with Indignation…

Andrew Breitbart wrote it…

So I immediately purchased the book to read on the 7-hour flight back to LAX. As a service to my readers, here is my spoiler free review. 

WHAT DID YOU THINK OF THE BOOK?

Freaking Sweet! Once the plane took off and I opened the cover I could not put it down for the next 7 hours.

IS THE BOOK AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL?

Somewhat. Andrew does cover adventures in his life that made him into the man he is now. The book is also has a good chunk of it devoted to the media and how conservatives need to learn to interact with it.

CONSERVATVIES INTERACTING WITH MEDIA? YOU MEAN THIS IS A POLICY BOOK?

Sort of, rather its more of (I’m going to steal a tweet from John Nolte) a “Handbook for Defeating the MSM” primer.

THAT SOUNDS KINDA OF BORING TO READ.

One thing about Andrew Breitbart is that he is NEVER boring and this book is no exception.He took the story of the Frankfurt School did and made it very readable. (that is no easy task BTW)

DOES ANDREW TALK ABOUT THE ACORN STINGS IN THE BOOK?

Yes.

DOES ANDREW TALK ABOUT THE BIG SITES IN THE BOOK?

Yes. In an interesting way you do not expect.

DOES ANDREW TALK ABOUT HOLLYWOOD IN THE BOOK?

Yes.

DOES ANDREW TALK ABOUT HIS TIME WITH ARIANNA HUFFINGTION IN THE BOOK?

Yes.

DOES THE BOOK HAVE ANY PICTURES?

No.

SHOULD I WAIT FOR THE PAPERBACK?

No. Buy the hardcover today!

SHOULD HE WRITE ANOTHER BOOK?

Yes. This book is a very good read.

Righteous Indignation: Excuse Me While I Save the World is available at bookstores or you can buy it online at Amazon.com

UPDATE: I've been clarifying a few answers for ease of reading. Also, here is a picture of my copy.

APES WILL RISE

PART 1 OF JOEL SURNOW TALKING ABOUT THE KENNEDYS

John Nolte of Big Hollywood has posted part 1 of their interview with Executive Producer Joel Surnow. As Big Hollywood so aptly describes it. 

For those of you new to planet Earth, Surnow’s the Executive Producer of “The Kennedys,” a $30 million, eight-part miniseries that just completed a successful cable run on the Reelz Channel. It starred Hollywood heavyweights Greg Kinnear, Barry Pepper, Tom Wilkinson, and Katie Holmes and was originally set to air on the History Channel, until a last minute decision was made by the parent company’s board (Hearst, ABC Disney, NBC Universal) that the series didn’t meet History Channel’s standards.

No one bought that excuse for a second because at the center of this political storm sat Surnow, one of the rare, openly conservative players in Hollywood.

Here in an excerpt from the interview.

BH:  Did the same people who said, “This script is approved. Go ahead and shoot it,” are they the same ones who later turned around and said, “We don’t want to air it. It’s not right for our network”? Is that a fair representation?

JS: No.  The History executives and historians were the ones who approved the script.  The ones that said we don’t want to air it were the people above History – the corporate board.

BH:  So the board had never approved the script, but the History executives had?

JS:  The board doesn’t get involved in stuff like that.  That wouldn’t be a function of the board. However, having said that, I’m sure that History felt a great deal of pressure to ensure the board what they were putting on the air was historically accurate. 

BH:  Certainly. Especially with the level of scrutiny you were under. And and I agree that’s a good process and probably makes for better storytelling, and you mentioned that one thing you had to prove to a historian was that a gun was part of the White House decoration.

JS: That was when we were shooting, that was the dailies. There was a rifle on the Oval Office wall, and [the historians] were microscopically looking at dailies.  They saw [the firearm] and said, “We don’t want JFK sitting in front of a rifle – it’s sending the wrong message.”  And then we had to dig into the pile to find the photographs to find JFK sitting in front of a rifle. 

BH:  So they were scrutinizing dailies, as well?

JS: Absolutely.  They not only approved the script, they approved the shows – the cuts of the show.

Go read the whole thing its a fascinating read.

WHILE IN WASHINGTON D.C.

There is only one taxi cab company I will use.

LOS ANGELES TIMES ATLAS SHRUGGED ARTICLE

 

A scene from the film Atlas Shrugged

Hat Tip: John Nolte at Big Hollywood.

After decades in development the film adaptation of Atlas Shrugged comes into theaters this Friday.  The film will be done on what is called a platform release from distributor Rocky Mountain Pictures.As part of the ramp up to the films release the Los Angeles times has a fascinating article on its devlopment, production and distribution.

In February, the producers began to share the film with people likely to be in accord with the author's views. They showed footage at the Conservative Political Action Conference in Washington, unveiling a trailer that has since been downloaded more than a million times on YouTube, and screened the final cut for influential conservatives like House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) and commentator Andrew Breitbart. They enlisted Freedomworks, the political organizing group behind many tea party events, to help promote it, and started advertising with posters that said "Who Is John Galt?," the first line of the book and a meaningful catchphrase for Rand's acolytes.

Part of the marketing for "Atlas Shrugged: Part I" relies on the movie's status as a product, as Fox News host Sean Hannity has described it, that "liberal Hollywood doesn't want you to see."

The real story of what kept "Atlas" out of movie theaters for so long is a bit more complicated.

During Rand's lifetime, the author stymied "The Godfather" producer Al Ruddy's attempts to make a movie of "Atlas Shrugged" by demanding veto power over every frame. Rand, who was also a screenwriter, had adapted her 1947 novel "The Fountainhead" herself for a 1949 movie starring Gary Cooper, and was irked by a single line cut from the final film. A book like "Atlas Shrugged," at more than 1,000 pages, dense with philosophical ideas and containing a character's speech that covers 57 pages, would require major changes in its adaptation for screen.

[snip]

In 1992, the heir to Rand's estate sold a 15-year option on the book's rights to Aglialoro for $1 million. "This is the greatest epic that's never been made into a movie," said Aglialoro, who is now chief executive of the exercise equipment manufacturer Cybex. "I was like, 'I don't need a 15-year lease. This is done in 18 months.'"

The businessman, now 67, had first read "Atlas Shrugged" while working as a stock and bond trader on Wall Street in the early 1970s. "It was a stunning realization," Aglialoro said. "It gave a political poetry to capitalism — capitalism as the only moral way people should live in this world." Aglialoro would fashion himself into a kind of Randian hero, owning and operating more than 30 companies and winning a U.S. poker championship.

Over the next 18 years (he bought extensions on his option), Aglialoro developed several ill-fated scripts. One attempt to get the book greenlighted as a miniseries at TNT got caught in post-9/11 concerns about the novel's apocalyptic setting, according to Ruddy, who worked on it. A feature screenplay, by "Braveheart" writer and "Secretariat" director Randall Wallace, was set up at Lionsgate in 2007 with Angelina Jolie attached to play Dagny. According to a source close to Lionsgate, the project fell apart when Aglialoro's commitment to the book's philosophical messages clashed with the studio's aims to make the story more cinematic. According to Aglialoro, the multiple parties couldn't agree on a director.

"There are two big factors that I sense have frightened filmmakers about 'Atlas Shrugged,'" Wallace said. "One is the reverence with which Rand's followers hold the novel and the other is the sprawling nature of the story. I believed to climb that mountain I'd have to shrug off both those fears."

Meanwhile, Rand was gaining a new currency with readers. After several years of selling about 75,000 copies a year, sales of "Atlas Shrugged" spiked during the recent recession, reaching 500,000 in 2009, according to the Ayn Rand Institute, a nonprofit think tank in Irvine.

By March of 2010, Aglialoro had three months to get a film into production or the book's rights would revert to Rand's estate. "It was my wife who said you better get the hell out there and do it," he said.

The film opens on (at press time) 277 screens this Friday.

Here’s how you can find a theatre near you. Here’s how you can request it be shown in your town.

RED EYE MISTAKEN IDENTITY STARRING CHRIS BARRON

My friend Chris Barron of GOProud was on Red Eye this week and he was mistaken for someone else.



Here is what Chris had to say about it via his website. 

By the way, Mick was a great guy and the mistake made for some awesome tv. My parents called me after watching it and my dad literally said the episode was one of the funniest shows he had ever seen.

I will never be able to listen to the Spin Doctors the same way again.

MUSIC VIDEO OF THE DAY

Since many of you are very depressed from doing your taxes I give you a music video to cheer you up.



Its just another day in the office for me.

REVENGE

"Not mine, Joe. God's."

ATLAS SHURGGED: PART 1 - FROM DEVLOPMENT TO DISTRIBUTION

The Hollywood Reporter has a must read piece on the upcoming adaptation of Atlas Shrugged. Here is a brief excerpt.

The first installment of Atlas was 44 years in the making because Rand and Hollywood couldn’t agree on how to bring the book’s 1,168 pages to the screen.

Through the years, big names have attached themselves to film or TV versions, but the film was made without A-listers and is being distributed by a Utah-based indie with an affinity for political and religious themes.  

“Talent agencies were not sending us many of their top people,” Kaslow says. “I don’t think it was political. We just suffered a credibility issue because everyone knew that a lot of well-known people had already tried to get this movie made.”

Aglialoro, who paid Rand’s heir Leonard Peikoff $1.1 million for rights to Atlas in 1992, ended up rushing it into production to prevent them from reverting. He beat the deadline by two days; Peikoff lost faith in the filmmakers over 19 years and said through a colleague that he fears the film doesn’t sufficiently reflect Rand’s philosophy.

If you want to see some of the twists and turns of how a globally known property goes from development to distribution in the world of feature films, this is a must read article.

Atlas Shrugged opens in select cities on April 15th.

VIDEO OF THE DAY

Very busy today so to entertain you I give you Baby Monkey:



(Special thanks to Larry O'Connor of The Stage Right Show for the link.)

I will see you all later tonight.

OIL & GOLD HIT FRESH NEW HIGHS

With the price rise from these commodities people are now talking about the dreaded I word.

Gold hit record highs a second straight day Wednesday and oil soared to fresh 2-1/2 year highs, sparking fears of inflation that could hurt some of the world's most dependable economies.

Price pressures were rising in Asia's emerging economies — which had been the catalyst for the world's recovery from the financial crisis — and were unlikely to subside soon, the Asian Development Bank cautioned.

"High and volatile oil and food prices will, in particular, reverberate through the world economy, and they are likely to stay that way in 2011-2012,'' the ADB said. "They will thus be a significant source of global inflation, especially in developing countries where recovery is firmly under way,'' the Manila-based agency said in a report.

Add this to the fact that even President Obama acknowledges that high gas prices are here to stay.

Pitching the promise of energy independence, President Barack Obama cautioned Wednesday that it's going to be tough to transition from America's oil-dependent economy and acknowledged there's little he can do to lower gas prices over the short term.

"I'm just going to be honest with you. There's not much we can do next week or two weeks from now," the president told workers at a wind turbine plant. It's a theme Obama's struck before as he tries to show voters he's attuned to a top economic concern with gas prices pushing toward $4 a gallon.

Obama said he wants to move toward "a future where America is less dependent on foreign oil, more reliant on clean energy produced by workers like you." That will happen by reducing oil imports, tapping domestic energy sources and shifting the nation to renewable and less polluting sources of energy, such as wind, the president says. He has set a goal of reducing oil imports by one-third by 2025.

But the president said it won't happen overnight and if any politician says it's easy, "they're not telling the truth."

"Gas prices? They're going to still fluctuate until we can start making these broader changes, and that's going to take a couple of years to have serious effect," Obama said.

The article goes on to say that with gas prices now hovering at a nationwide avarage of  $3.70 USD. This is still a full two months before the start of the summer driving season where the prices go up. Does anyone really think people are going to be happy paying $4-5 USD per gallon gas?

SOUTHWEST FINDS MORE CRACKS IN PLANES

After the incident last Friday where a Southwest 737 lost a portion of its fuselage the FAA has ordered inspections of all Southwest 737's.

"THE DARK KNIGHT RISES" TO BE FLIMED IN PITTSBURGH

When I was in Pittsburgh last weekend for Tekkoshocon I could not help but think "This would be great place to shoot a Batman movie".

Well it appears I'm not the only one who thinks that.

It's official. "The Dark Knight Rises" is coming to Pittsburgh this summer to film the third installment in Christopher Nolan's spectacular franchise starring recent Oscar winner Christian Bale in the title role.

"Pittsburgh is a beautiful city," the London-born director said in a statement. "We have been able to find everything we were looking for here, and I am excited to spend the summer in Pittsburgh with our final installment of Batman."

Pittsburgh is going to be a great location for Batman. The city really has the "look" of a Batman film.

BOX OFFICE DOWN 20% SO FAR THIS YEAR

During one of my panels at Tekkoshocon this past weekend I pointed out that the Theatrical Box Office is down 20% so far this year. Now comes an article, via Big Hollywood, supporting that claim.

While [Hop's] gross was slightly below the $38.1 million recorded for Rango last month, making it the second-highest-grossing film of the year, it was far overshadowed by last year’s Clash of the Titans, which opened during the same weekend (Easter weekend) with $61.2 million.

Indeed, the total domestic box office this weekend came in at 29.6 percent below the same weekend a year ago. For the year, total box-office revenue is down 20.3 percent, while attendance is down 21.5 percent.

A 20% loss in revenue and we are already 3 months into the year. This 20% loss in revenue is despite numerous large marketing campaigns by several studios for movies that have fizzled. If this keeps up it will cause a severe crimp in revenue (theatrical runs are 15% of a films total business) for the studios.

Now would be a good time for the people who "know this business" to explain how a 20% loss in revenue and losing 18 million subscribers is somehow a good thing.
 

GOLD AND OIL RISE ON MIDEAST UNREAST AND DEBT FEARS

If you think we were out of the woods you would be wrong.

First gold is rising

Gold prices rose to settle at a record high above $1,452 ounce Tuesday, as new peaks in crude oil and grains fueled inflation fears and a downgrade of Portugal's credit rating fed safe-haven demand.

Bullion prices broke out after a struggle to sustain new highs in the last month, and silver soared to a 31-year peak after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke suggested he was committed to complete a $600 billion stimulus program as scheduled in June.

"What it shows is that big money continues to believe gold will go higher...because Bernanke wants to grow at any cost," said Axel Merk, portfolio manager of the $600 million Merk Mutual Funds.

"The other reason for gold to go up is that there was a downgrade in Portugal, so people realize there are still some issues."

Also the price of gas continues to rise.

With crude oil’s price continuing to climb this spring, the gasoline produced from it has stayed on an upward price trend locally as well.

Between Sunday and Monday, stations around Petoskey typically adjusted their selling price for regular unleaded upward by 20 cents, to $3.89.9 gallon.

A search of fuel price monitoring website gasbuddy.com revealed similar pricing at stations in Charlevoix, East Jordan and Gaylord.

Statewide, AAA Michigan’s price survey showed regular unleaded’s price averaging $3.75 per gallon on Monday.

“Prices ... are up almost 15 cents from a week ago, and 91 cents more from this day last year,” AAA spokeswoman Nancy Cain said.

The key driver in the price increase continues to be the rising cost of crude oil, Cain said. With ongoing unrest in parts of the oil-producing Middle East, fears about supply losses have influenced crude’s per-barrel price upward by more than $20 in the past couple of months, to about $108 early this week.

A seasonal factor — oil refineries’ changeover to produce different gasoline blends for warmer-weather use — likely is at play in the fuel price increase as well, Cain said.

When I was in Pittsburgh this past weekend I saw gas around $3.60-80 USD and we were only in April. When I came back to SoCal last night I noticed that regular unleaded was over $4 USD everywhere. We have yet to hit the big summer driving season (where most of the big anime conventions take place) where prices normally go up. We could easily see 5 USD per gallon gas in SoCal before June if prices keep climbing the way the have been.

It will be interesting to see how that impacts the anime conventions.

THE KENNEDYS A BIG HIT FOR REELZ CHANNEL

From Studiobriefing.net

Reaffirming the argument that there is no more effective publicity than controversy, the debut of The Kennedys miniseries on ReelzChannel on Sunday produced the biggest audience in the channel’s existence. The miniseries, which was reportedly rejected by the History Channel after it received complaints from members of the Kennedy family and close associates and found no takers among the higher-rated channels, turned out to be a ratings goldmine for ReelzChannel, which averaged 1.9 million total viewers for back-to-back presentations of the first two episodes. While an audience of that size would be considered small by broadcast television standards, it is quite solid in the cable universe.

 DirecTV feels Reelz are offering programming that is more relevant to their larger customer base. Not all networks can make the same claim. 

YOUR HOLLYWOOD LINK INSANITY

As the people who "know this business" so tell us most media avoids discussions of politics and religion.


Sarah Palin to appear on E!'s 'True Hollywood Story' later this month

Sony Pictures to Host Obama at 'Victory Fund 2012' Fundraiser

What 'The Kennedys' Taught Me: The Importance of Conservatives in Hollywood

Trailer: Arnold Schwarzenegger’s ‘The Governator’

Why Does Hollywood refuse to learn from the box office?

More Proof Hollywood Lies About Pro-American Films Not Making Money Overseas

The New Blacklist: Entertainment Reporter Concedes ‘Kennedys’ Pulled Due to Surnow’s Politics

Funimation Sold For $25 Million USD
 
Gorbachev’s Birthday Bash: Sharon Stone, Kevin Spacey, The Scorpions, and Sporty Spice Celebrate A Dictator

THE GHOST CITIES OF CHINA