Archive for December 5th, 2007

NEW YORK Susan Pagan was surprised by her 9-year-old daughter’s report card. It wasn’t the fact that she made the honor role. Rather it was the fact that she expected to get a free Happy Meal because of her grades.

“She came home bubbly and happy about her report card,” said Pagan. “On the cover was a McDonald’s ad. I was blown away.”

Full Story

Share This

On a recent picket line of striking writers, a giant inflatable pig smoking a fat cigar bobbed above a crowd of chanting screenwriters. The image was classic Hollywood, portraying the producers as a united force of greed.

But behind the scenes, the producers are anything but united in their needs and ambitions. The major entertainment companies that dominate the Association of Motion Picture and Television Producers each have starkly different stakes in the strike’s outcome.

The fate of talks between the AMPTP and the Writers Guild of America, which resumed yesterday, could depend on that dynamic. The diverging agendas of the companies’ television and movie interests have resulted in the emergence of two camps: the moderates, which are angling for a swift resolution, and the hard-liners, which can withstand a strike longer.

Full Story

Share This

Hollywood star Will Smith had the producer of his latest film holding his head in anguish on Tuesday after the actor gave away the ending of “I Am Legend.”

Speaking at a Tokyo news conference, Smith inadvertently revealed the plot, prompting co-producer and co-screenwriter Akiva Goldsman to shout: “Don’t give away the ending!”

Goldsman then pretended to be surprised, but it was all too late, and press handlers asked all present to keep the ending a secret, so as not to spoil it for viewers.

Smith plays a virologist fighting a man-made virus in “I Am Legend,” the film adaptation of Richard Matheson’s 1954 novel of the same title.

The movie premieres simultaneously in the United States and Japan on December 14.

Original Link

Share This

2004’s Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle, followed two likeable underdogs who set out on a Friday night quest to satisfy their craving for White Castle hamburgers and end up on an epic journey of deep thoughts, deeper inhaling and a wild road trip as “un-PC” as it gets. John Cho and Kal Penn starred in the title roles which featured cameos by Ethan Embry, Jamie Kennedy, Anthony Anderson, Ryan Reynolds and Luis Guzman.

Fast forward to 2008 as New Line Cinema will release Harold and Kumar Escape From Guantanamo on April 25. The sequel follows the cross-country adventures of the pot-smoking duo as they try to outrun authorities who suspect them of being terrorists when they try to sneak a bong on board their flight to Amsterdam.

Full Story and Video

Share This

NEW YORK — “Quarterlife” and “Roommates,” two original series that recently debuted on MySpace, have seen early successes, with the former garnering nearly 2 million views on the Web and the latter being reupped for a second season.

“Quarterlife” won’t stick around the Web too much longer, though, as last month it was revealed that the show would run on NBC after its initial run concludes in early 2008. The network will air the 36 webisodes as a six-episode hourlong drama.

Full Story

Share This

NEW YORK WPP Group’s Ogilvy & Mather here said it has added America’s Second Harvest, a nonprofit hunger relief organization, for integrated branding and advertising chores following a review.

“Bringing together all our capabilities to help build awareness of hunger, what America’s Second Harvest is doing to address it, and how the public can better support it is a wonderful challenge,” said Michelle Bottomley, COO at Ogilvy New York, in a statement.

Ogilvy will devise campaigns that include traditional and digital advertising, branded entertainment and content, promotions and public relations.

Wendy MacGregor, client CMO, said, “The agency’s powerful brand-building and business-driving track record, combined with its compassion for our cause, will undoubtedly drive our mission to enter America’s consciousness and engage our country in the fight to end hunger. We believe that communications can create a powerful wake-up call that transforms the issue of hunger in America from invisible to real and urgent.”

The budget for the assignment was not disclosed. The client has typically spent $2-3 million annually in domestic measured media, per Nielsen Monitor-Plus.

Original Link

Share This

NEW YORK (Hollywood Reporter) - ESPN will launch itself into an even wider worldwide pool early next year with the start of ScoreCenter.com, which eventually will provide live scores for 23 sports in 180 countries.

The Bristol, Conn.-based Disney unit has ramped up its international business of late, not only with linear channels but also with key acquisitions like London-based European sports network NASN, online sites for rugby and cricket, and mobile businesses that have gone from five countries last year to 37.

ESPN chief George Bodenheimer told investors and analysts at the annual UBS media conference that the goal is to provide live scoring from every significant sport on Earth. That will include football, cricket, baseball and soccer, the latter with live scores from 460 leagues.

ScoreCenter.com will encompass six languages and have country-specific content and advertising.

“I believe this is ESPN’s most international product,” Bodenheimer said Monday. It will be managed by ESPN units in Bristol, New York, London and Bangalore, India.

Also on the agenda for next year is a rebranding of NASN and the availability of ESPNU as the company’s fourth network to be available in high-definition. It will join ESPN HD and ESPN2 HD as well as ESPNEWS in HD, which starts in March. ESPNU HD begins in August.

Full Story

Share This

The moment of truth is fast approaching. If the TV writers’ strike persists into the new year, the networks won’t just be loading up with reruns. They’ll be packing their schedules with reality shows, from standbys like “American Idol” and “Deal or No Deal” to a host of new shows that prove, where reality TV is concerned, there’s nothing new under the sun. Not everything is scheduled yet, raising faint hope that some of these won’t see the light of primetime. But here’s a sneak peek at what could be on the way, divided into handy categories.

Full Story

Share This

Two men are captured on surveillance video, shopping for candy and sodas in the nude. Affiliate KTVK reports. This is so not product placement. It’s not like this is a Skittles ploy, but you must admit you can’t buy advertising quite like this. Click here for the video.

Share This

Camcording Expert Arrested in Canada

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police have arrested a Montreal man who camcorded movies in local theaters and then technically enhanced them to remove the imperfections common with most camcorded movies available online before offering them for sale. RCMP Staff St. Noel St. Hilaire told the Canadian Press wire service, “It’s a new technology. In the past the quality [of the camcorded product] was so bad that nobody was interested in buying it.” The suspect, Geremi Adam, is due to be prosecuted under the Canadian Copyright Act since the country’s recently enacted law barring camcording in theaters did not go into effect until after Adam was arrested.

Full Story

Share This