Exercise or Else!

The Terminator dropped in on some school kids recently. Actually, it was actor Arnold Schwarzenegger who visited Mann Middle School in East San Diego last week. The popular action hero anounced his $50,000 donation by his foundation, Inner-City Games. The money will go towards a series of after-school sports programs for the 2001-2002 school year.

In the past Schwarzenegger served on the President's Council of Physical Fitness and Sports under former President George Bush, and established the Inner-City Games foundation in 1995.

Phantom Comes to DVD

After months of speculation and tenacious gossip, Fox Home Entertainment made it official this week that The Phantom Menace will be released on DVD this coming October. This will be the first time a Star Wars movie will be available in this new format.

The two disc set will offer more than six hours of Phantom Menace extras, such as an hour long documentary on the making of the film, an audio commentary from George Lucas and members of the special effects crew, plus seven previously deleted scenes that have been edited back into the movie. Other extras include behind the scenes music videos and all of the original trailers.

Dirty Deeds For Goodman

A new Australian comedy is in the works. Director David Caeser will take his new film Dirty Deeds into production in August, with plans to shoot on location in Sydney. The film is set to star John Goodman, Bryan Brown and Aussie actress Toni Collette.

The story revolves around the booming business of organized crime in 1960s Sydney. Canadian producer Alliance Atlantis believes the movie will have world-wide appeal.

Red World

Tomb Raider writers Patrick Massett and John Zinman have been brought aboard in what is rumored to be a seven figure deal to rewrite sci-fi thriller Red World for Jerry Bruckheimer Films and Walt Disney Co. The story is a futuristic tale about a man who travels through time to alter the impact of the ruling class on his society. No word yet on who will star.

The team is also writing the Jet Li action flick The First King.

June 18, 2001

Commander Dudley

Comedian and pianist Dudley Moore has been chosen to receive the Commander of the British Empire award from Queen Elizabeth II. The British government bestows the award on those who have greatly contributed to their professions and to charity. Moore says he is looking forward to thanking the Queen personally.

The 66 year old comic actor has been diagnosed with a degenerative brain condition called progressive supranuclear palsy. His new CD Dudley Moore - Live from an Aircraft Hangar will be released this week, with proceeds going to the Dudley Moore Research Fund for PSP. The CD showcases his 1992 performance at the Royal Albert Hall in London.

Lady Marmalade Rides Again

Regardless of the numbers at the box office, the summer live action musical Moulin Rouge has already made history of a different kind. The movie's soundtrack Music from Baz Luhrmann's Film Moulin Rouge has taken off as a result of the number one smash hit remake of Lady Marmalade by the hip hop combo comprised of superstars Christina Aguilera, Lil' Kim, Mya and Pink.

The song is currently the first airplay-only track in history to stay at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for more than one week. This week marks the hit's fourth consecutive week at the top of the chart.

Daniels Has Women Everywhere

Actor Jeff Daniels has figured out a good way to get a lot of women to run screaming for him. His production company Purple Rose Films put out the casting call for 1000 women recently, to show up in their curlers and housecoats for a scene in his movie Super Sucker, a film that centers around vacuum cleaner salesmen who fight over territorial rights.

Daniels is writing and directing the $2 million project, which is being shot in Jackson, Michigan. Executive producer Bob Brown claims that over 1500 women showed up in cold cream and nightgowns to make their big Hollywood debut.

Lecter Leftovers

Universal Pictures is looking for a third big pay-off in the Hannibal series with Red Dragon. Anthony Hopkins is in negotiations to come back in the lead role with director Brett Ratner (The Family Man) in talks to helm the project. Silence of the Lambs screenwriter Ted Tally has adapted the new screenplay from Thomas Harris' novel of the same name.

This one focuses on a serial killer on the loose, and much like the first story, centers around the detective on the case, who consults with Hannibal Lecter, who is now back in prison. The story was originally the basis for the film Manhunter in 1996. Producers Dino and Martha De Laurentiis expect production to begin later this year.

Brosnan Getting Hitched

Looks as though James Bond will finally make it to the altar this summer. Actually, there's no plans to marry off 007, but Bond actor Pierce Brosnan and Keely Shaye Smith have announced their plans to be wed in a Roman Catholic church in Ireland this coming August. According to Reuters, the couple will move the party to Ashford Castle in County Mayo after the nuptials for a huge reception.

This will be the third time the couple has set a date for the wedding. The two postponements came after Brosnan's son Sean suffered severe spinal injuries from a car accident last year.

Trouble Afoot For Stone's Hubby

Actress Sharon Stone only wanted to give her husband, San Francisco Chronicle editor Phil Bronstein, a closer look at the rare 10-foot Komodo dragon that lives at the Los Angeles zoo, as a Father's Day gift. Too bad the creature thought Phil's foot was lunch! The four year old dragon mauled the executive's foot when Bronstein and a zookeeper entered the cage. Doctors in a Los Angeles hospital rushed to reattach severed tendons and rebuild Bronstein's big toe.

Apparently, the zookeepers suggested that Bronstein remove his white tennis shoes before entering the cage, for fear the animal would attack his feet, thinking they were the white rats they are normally fed at meal time. The dragon's serrated teeth are specifically designed for flesh ripping, so it is a miracle that Bronstein didn't lose his foot entirely.

Fried Gopher Anyone?

Funny man Bill Murray has found a new way to cash in on his Caddyshack fame. The comic has launched a new restaurant with his five brothers in St. Augustine, Florida at the World of Golf Village. The theme barbecue joint will bear the name of the film, and is the first of three planned by the Murrays.

SNL's Tim Meadows and singer Emmylou Harris were on hand to help Murray with the grand opening festivities last week.

Stiller and Barrymore To Shack Up

Miramax has just signed a deal with newbie director Greg Mottola at the helm that looks extremely promising. Mottola is tickled to be directing Drew Barrymore and Ben Stiller in the black comedy Duplex, a story about a New York couple who decide the only way to get the duplex of their dreams is to murder the little old lady that lives there.

According to Variety, Miramax co-president of production Meryl Poster has been trying to get these two together in a comedy for a long time. Simpsons producer Larry Doyle has been recruited to pen the screenplay. Production will begin in the fall.

June 4, 2001

Mighty Quinn Passes

Two time Academy Award winner Anthony Quinn died Sunday at the age of 86. Born in Chihuahua, Mexico, the actor was probably best loved for his performance as Zorba in Zorba the Greek. Quinn made over 150 films including such classics as Lawrence of Arabia, The Guns of Navarone and La Strada, as well as recent hits like Jungle Fever, Last Action Hero A Walk in the Clouds.

Hospital officials declined to offer a cause of death for the veteran actor. According to Associated Press Quinn is survived by nine sons and four daughters by his three wives and three mistresses.

Connery Offers Support to Scotland

Once a mild mannered milkman in the Scottish town of Edinburgh, Sir Sean Connery has returned to his native homeland to campaign on behalf of the Scottish National Party in the Highland city of Inverness. The veteran actor, known best as the original James Bond, has sported a 'Scotland Forever' tattoo and SNP membership card for years, even though he currently lives in the Bahamas. Connery claims he will return to Scotland when independence has been won.

According to Reuters, opinion polls suggest the nationalists, who see the new devolved Scottish parliament as a stepping stone to independence, are the second most powerful political force in Scotland, with 25 around percent support behind Labor at 50 percent.

An Award For Redford

Actor Robert Redford was honored with the 2001 Freedom In Film award over the weekend. The Freedom Forum First Amendment Center at Vanderbilt University and the Nashville Independent Film Festival presented the award to Redford as a means of recognizing not only his work as an actor, but also for his involvement in social and political issues along with his hefty contributions to independent filmmaking through the Sundance Institute and Film Festival.

Redford is currently working on a film called The Castle, but is best known for his roles in such favorites as All The President's Men, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid and The Way We Were.

Shrek Too

The animated family film Shrek is currently enjoying blockbuster success since its May release, and doesn't look to be slowing down any time soon, so it should not surprise you that DreamWorks has announced plans for a sequel. Yes you can expect more of "the greatest fairy tale never told", though the specifics are just now being nailed down.

Shrek took five years, from concept to the big screen. There has been no word as to whether the original cast of voices would be returning to reprise their roles, but it has been determined there will be a different screenwriting team putting the story together. Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio, writers of such family flicks as Road to El Dorado and Small Soldiers, have agreed to come aboard to pen the sequel.