PHOTOGRAPHY: Past Oscar Nights And The Stars!

 

 

 

Audrey Hepburn (1953)

LIFE Magazine has rolled out from their archives photographs of previous Oscar nights and the stars that made them so special. So take a peek before tuning in this evening to witness the Oscars. The photographs here are filled with icons.

Natalie Wood and Warren Beatty (1962)

Elizabeth Taylor (1961)

Marlon Brando (1955)

Kirk Douglas (1954)

Grace Kelly and Clark Gable (1954)

Lauren Bacall and Humphrey Bogart (1954)

Audrey Hepburn and Grace Kelly (1956)

Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward (1957)

You can see more here......

Independent Spirit Award Winners

 

 

 

The Independent Spirit Awards honors those small films that often get overlooked by the Oscars. This year there is some overlap with the films including Silver Lining Playbook, Beasts of the Southern Wild and Amour all nominated for Spirit Awards. Yesterday in Santa Monica, California was a big day for the independent film industry.

In additional good news, LGBT activist was a producer for the winning film! Cohen also produced American Beauty! BRAVO BRUCE!

Silver Linings Playbook and The Sessions were big winners. Here are the top winners:

Best Movie: Silver Lining Playbook

Best Director: David Russell (Silver Lining Playbook)

Best Actress: Jennifer Lawrence (Silver Lining Playbook)

Best Actor: John Hawkes (The Sessions)

Best Supporting Actor: Matthew McConaughy (Magic Mike)

Best Supporting Actress: Helen Hunt (The Sessions)

Best Screenplay: David Russell (Silver Lining Playbook)

Best International Film: Amour

PHOTOGRAPHY: The Entire World Goes To The Movies!

 

 

 

Last year the entertainment industry made $32.6 billion in revenues from movies. People gathered in all types of theaters to witness the magic of film. Some relaxed in luxury 3-D theaters in New York while others gathered in a small village square to witness another world. The stars are better know than their elected officials and the joy is unlimited.

Many citizens obtain their ideas for a better future from the silver screen. Others learn about the fragile nature of this planet and its people.

Boston.com's Big Picture recently did a photograph essay on movies around the world.

 

You can see more descriptions, important photographer credits and more photographs here.

My Choices For The Oscars!

The Impossible With Naomi Watts

There is simply no doubt in my mind that you have been waiting with abated breath for my choices for this year's Oscars. This is the week all the fun begins with the parties, betting pools and office cooler arguments! This year I have seen all the nominated films and seen them on the wide screen which is very important.

So without making you wait any longer here are my personal picks on who I want to win the Oscars:

Best Picture: Silver Lining Playbook

For the last several weeks I have gone back and forth between Argo and Silver Lining Playbook. In the end, the David Russell film is everything good about the movies. Silver Lining Playbook featured astounding acting, great writing, fantastic direction and brilliant editing. While Argo had me on the edge of my seat it lack a lot of the same ingredients which is reflected in how few other nominations it received from the Academy voters. Also Affleck lost me in the ending with the Blue Brothers police car scene on the runway!

Best Actress:  Naomi Watts (The Impossible)

 This was another close call for me between Jennifer Lawrence (Silver Lining) and Naomi Watts. The Impossible was perhaps the most overlooked movie this year by the Academy. With few words in the screenplay, Naomi Watts gave the acting performance of the year. She held a brilliant ensemble cast together in a powerful movie.

Best Actor: Daniel Day Lewis (Lincoln)

Poor Bradley Cooper and Hugh Jackman because in any other year they would have a real shot at this award. However this isn't even close and Daniel Day Lewis deserves the Oscar in a runaway. Lewis was Lincoln and made the movie which was not one of my favorites. Lewis is clearly one of the great actors of our generation.

Best Supporting Actress: Anne Hathaway (Les Miserables)

There are moments in a theater where you just go 'wow'. Anne Hathaway singing "On My Own" was just such a moment. Her fall from grace was spectacularly played and jumped from the screen. Also loved Jackie Weaver in Silver Lining Playbook and she would be my second choice.

Best Supporting Actor: Robert DeNiro (Silver Lining Playbook)

DeNiro nailed this role in Silver Lining Playbook. In a film with outstanding performances he stood out. One of his best roles and acting in years.

Best Director: David Russell (Silver Lining Playbook):

If Ben Affleck was nominated he could give Russell a run for his money, but no matter what David Russell deserves this award. He took a first rate story and make it magical. This was a masterful job.

Best Adapted Screenplay: Tony Kushner (Lincoln)

 Outside of Daniel Day Lewis's performance this was the other really first rate part of Lincoln! Tony Kushner is a genius.

Best Original Screenplay: Mark Boal (Zero Dark Thirty)

This isn't even a contest. Boal nailed this screenplay.

Best Documentary: How To Survive A Plague

Having seen all these films there is no question in my mind that How To Survive A Plague deserves an Oscar. Searching for Sugarman was delightful but How to ...is everything a we should want from a documentary film.

Who Are The Most Valuable Actors Of All Time?

 

 

 

When you adjust for inflation who rises to the top as the most valuable actors of all time? Does Cary Grant make the top ten? How about Spencer Tracy? The fact of the matter is that very few of the old stars made the list! 24/7 Wall Street has computerized over 700 actor names to come up with the top ten most valuable actors of all time. Here are the top five.

1. Tom Hanks

- Total film gross: $6.2 billion
- Average film gross: $155.4 million
- Films: 40
- Top grossing film: Forrest Gump
- Acting Oscars: 2

Since his film career began in 1984, movies starring Hanks have grossed, on average, more than $155 million in inflation-adjusted ticket sales. However, many of Tom Hanks’s films have grossed significantly higher. The highest grossing film was Forrest Gump, with an adjusted total of more than $611 million. Other films that grossed more than $300 million include Saving Private Ryan, Cast Away and all three Toy Story movies. Hanks has been nominated for five Academy Awards and has won two: best actor in a leading role for Philadelphia in 1994, and the same Oscar again in 1995 for Forrest Gump.

2. Harrison Ford

- Total film gross: $7.4 billion
- Average film gross: $218.3 million
- Films: 34
- Top grossing film: Star Wars
- Acting Oscars: 0

Harrison Ford (photograph above) is best known for starring as Han Solo in the original Star Wars trilogy, which grossed nearly $2.9 billion after adjusting for ticket price inflation, and as the lead in the Indiana Jones franchise, which grossed more than $1.8 million. Outside these series, Ford has starred in numerous blockbuster action films and thrillers, including 1985’s Witness, for which he received his only Oscar nomination, 1993’s The Fugitive, and 1997’s Air Force One.  Following Disney’s acquisition of Lucasfilm in October 2012 and the announcement that new films would be made for the franchise, rumors have circulated that Ford may be open to starring in future Star Wars movies

3. Eddie Murphy

- Total film gross: $5.9 billion
- Average film gross: $154.6 million
- Films: 38
- Top grossing film: Shrek 2
- Acting Oscars: 0

Eddie Murphy, a comedian whose acting career took off at age 19 after he joined Saturday Night Live, has become one of the most successful comedians of his generation. He has been in 11 films that grossed more than $200 million in inflation-adjusted terms, ranging from Mulan to The Nutty Professor. His two highest grossing films, Shrek 2 and Beverly Hills Cop, have grossed more than a half-billion dollars each. Despite his success, Murphy has never won an Academy Award, although he won a Golden Globe in 2006 for his role in Dreamgirls. On the flip side of Murphy’s career, he won a Razzie in 2010 for worst actor of the decade, noting his appearances in busts such as The Adventures of Pluto Nash and Norbit.

4. Robin Williams

- Total film gross: $4.8 billion
- Average film gross: $108.4 million
- Films: 44
- Top grossing film: Mrs. Doubtfire
- Acting Oscars: 1

After starring on the TV series Mork and Mindy, Robin Williams began his film as the title role in Popeye in 1980, the first of his 16 films that would gross more than $100 million in inflation-adjusted ticket sales. Among Williams’ smash hits were comedies such as Mrs. Doubtfire and Flubber, as well as dramas such as Dead Poets Society and Good Will Hunting, which earned Williams his only Oscar to date. Williams has also lent his voice to two of the highest grossing animated movies of all time, Aladdin and Happy Feet. His one Oscar came in a noncomedic role, as best supporting actor in Good Will Hunting.

5. Tom Cruise

- Total film gross: $5.0 billion
- Average film gross: $153.0 million
- Films: 33
- Top grossing film: Top Gun
- Acting Oscars: 0

Tom Cruise is one of just a handful of actors to have grossed more than $5 billion in inflation-adjusted ticket sales. At just 23, Cruise starred in Top Gun, a film that went on to gross $370 million. Other movies starring Cruise that grossed more than $300 million include Rain Man and the first two Mission Impossible movie. Cruise has never won an Academy Award, but has been nominated three times for his roles in Born on the Fourth of July, Jerry Maguire and Magnolia. Cruise has also been nominated for seven Golden Globes, winning three.

See the rest of the list by clicking here.....

REAL ESTATE: Actor Jeremy Renner Is Expert At "Flipping Mansions"; Buy This One For $21 Million

 

 

BusinessInsider.com reports that mega-actor Jeremy Renner might be making more money off 'flipping mansions' then he did for playing in the Oscar winning "Hurt Locker". According to the site, Renner and team have flipped over fifteen homes in the Los Angeles area. The latest is on the market for $25 million.

Renner has joined with his business partner Kristoffer Winters to make this a very lucrative business. For this latest project they teamed with architect Philip Vertoch. The mansion is 10,000 square feet and now has six bedrooms, eleven baths, five fireplaces, a theater and a number of pools. In 2010, they paid $7 million for the property and are asking $25 million for the completely renovated property.

You can see more pictures by clicking here.

Gay And Lesbian Entertainment Critics Announce 2012 Awards

 

 

In the middle of the awards season, the Gay and Lesbian Entertainment Critics have announced the winners of their Dorian Awards. In a wonderful blend of serious and fun, they have chosen their winners from a list of nominees which you can see by clicking here. The awards range from "Best Movie" to "Campy Flick Of the Year" Maybe the Golden Globes should be looking over their shoulder at these critics!

Here are some of the winners:

Best Movie: Argo

Best Actor: Daniel Day Lewis (Lincoln)

Best Actress: Anne Hathaway (Les Miserables)

LGBT Film Of the Year: Keep the Lights On

Documentary of the Year: How To Survive The Plague

Visually Striking Film of the Year: Life of Pi

Campy Flick of the Year: Magic Mike and The Paperboy (Tied)

Campy TV Show of the Year: Liz and Dick

LGBT TV Show of the Year: New Normal and Modern Family (Tied)

TV Musical Performance of the Year: Jennifer Hudson Tribute To Whitney at Grammys

You can see the rest of the winners and nominees here.....

Data Projects Oscars Winners!

 

 

 

Move over Nate Silver, Farsite Forecast has done the numbers and projected the Oscar winners. The Academy Awards are just 38 days away and if I were the team from Lincoln, I would not be looking over my shoulder at Argo but at Silver Lining Notebook. Here are the site projections for the winners after running the data:

Best Picture:

Lincoln: 38.4%
Silver Lining: 30.8%
Argo: 9.3%
Amour: 7.3%
Beasts of Southern Wild: 5.9%
Life of Pi: 4.7%
Zero Dark Thirty: 1.9%
Les Miserable: 1.4%
Django Unchained: 0.5%

Best Director:

Steven Spieberg: 44.5%
David O Russell: 33%
Ang Lee: 8.0%
Michael Haneke: 7.9%
Benh Zeitlin: 6.6%

Best Actor:

Daniel Day Lewis: 48.9%
Bradley Cooper: 41.9%
Hugh Jackman: 6.3%
Joaquin Phoenix: 1.7%
Denzel Washington: 1.2%

Best Actress:

Jennifer Lawrence: 53.5%
Jessica Chastain: 34.6%
Emmanuelle Riva: 5.7%
Quvenzhane Wallis: 4.2%
Naomi Watts: 2.1%

Best Supporting Actor:

Christoph Waltz: 33.7%
Tommy Lee Jones: 24.5%
Philip Seymour Hoffman: 23.8%
Robert DeNiro: 12.4%
Alan Arkin: 5.5%

Best Supporting Actress:

Anne Hathaway: 84.4%
Sally Field: 9.2%
Helen Hunt: 3.%
Jackie Weaver: 2.2%
Amy Adams: 1.3%

Michelangelo Signorile On Jodie Foster's Coming Out

 

 

Last night at the Golden Globes, in her own awkward way, Jodie Foster came 'out of the closet' and acknowledge a long standing former relationship. Count me among those that was thrilled with her coming out and showing such vulnerability and honesty in front of the world. She could have easily accomplished the same coming out in a smaller venue. She chose a huge one.

Now there is a lot of discussion about how she came out, the timing, the words and every sentence she uttered. What is important is that she came out her way. Every single LGBT American is a unique individual and we don't all walk in lock step with how we proceed with our lives. Ms. Foster should be greeted into the open LGBT community and applauded for her courage.

Michelangelo Signorile on Huff Post Gay Voices has written a great article about the situation, "Jodie Foster: What Her Gay Coming Out Means In 2013?" You must read the entire column but here is an excerpt:

"The defensiveness was there last night as she seemed to be trying to jab us, the public, even while finally giving us what she believed we wanted, and while seeming to announce that she's retiring. The responses on Twitter were as all-over-the-place as Foster's speech itself. Some lauded her for saying she was "proud" and said she came out with "grace," while others shrugged off Foster's coming out as "too little, too late" and still others expressed anger and indignation for her casting it all as so private and never saying the "L" word.

But whatever you thought of last night, you'd have to agree that it was another indication of how it's becoming harder and harder for anyone in public life to have any real credibility and still be living in the closet. Personally, I don't care if people like Jodie Foster are bitter or annoyed at activists. It's the job of activists to challenge people and, yes, to annoy people. What I care about is that the repressive and suffocating gay closet not be seen as a good place even if it is still the only safe choice for many. The only reason that millions are still in the closet is that society forces them there under threat of punishment. But things get easier for all those millions of closeted individuals when Hollywood celebrities and media figures come out. And more and more, it appears that it's becoming their responsibility, as privileged members of society, to do so."

Hell's Kitchen Journal: Going To The Movies

 

 

 

Tonight is the Golden Globes which is without question one of the most fun evenings in the entertainment industry award circuit. Already have selected my favorites and can't wait for Tina and Amy to make us howl with laughter. All my life I have loved the movies and in childhood it was a great treat.

Times were different in the sense that an eight to ten year old was allowed to go almost anywhere without parental guidance. Often on a Saturday if both my folks were working I would walk about a mile across the fields and woods to Route 77. The two lane highway was the main road between Bridgeton in Southern New Jersey to Philadelphia. The bus would carry citizens between the two.

Standing on the rural corner straight out of a Norman Rockwell painting, the bus would stop when I waved it down and for 25 cents I would take the half hour ride to Bridgeton and my movie dreams. Unloading at the somewhat seedy terminal, I would walk the blocks to the Laurel Movie Palace. Theaters back then were segregated either by side or often by African-Americans sitting in the balcony. For 50 cents you could get a double feature that included cartoons, newsreels and coming attractions.

Then afterwards I would walk back to the station and get my ticket and journey back to the same rural corner and walk the mile back through the fields to our home on Mr. Seabrook's farm. No one gave a second thought about how young we were in walking and catching a bus alone.

In my teens, I learned to catch the bus to the hour plus ride to Philadelphia and go the amazing 'Cinerama' which was the largest innovation in film. There was this huge screen that used three synchronized 35 projectors and it was all the rage. On that screen it was where I saw The Ten Commandments for the first time.

My years of going to the movies have yielded many unusual and funny experiences.

There was the time that I want to see the first King Kong at the Delsea Drive-In and for weeks I would wake up screaming at night that 'King Kong was on the roof'.

Or seeing Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea and going home seasick!

Horror movies have always been a favorite of mind both because of the genre and that the audience would scream or talk to the characters attempting to warn them of pending danger. Nothing frighten me more than the movie Jaws which I saw in a Denver movie house in my twenties. In the very first scene, when the shark seized the girl and pulled her down, I screamed threw my popcorn and coke all over the people in front of me!

Finally, I arrived in the Hollywood of my dreams! When I was young I would look at LIFE Magazine pictures of Hollywood at night with the searchlights all over the place. One night I was able to sit on the roof of my West Hollywood house doing the Oscars and see the searchlights fill the sky. I literally got chills witnessing this ritual. Life was complete.

Still have a couple of movies to see to complete them all before this years Oscars but there is nothing like going to the movies. When I was eight and crossing those fields or now walking down to Times Square going to the movies still provides the same joy. Thanks Hollywood!