January 11, 2013
Warner wins legal victory for control of Superman
By Paul Elias
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Superman belongs to Warner Bros., according to the latest legal victory granting the film and television studio complete commercial control of the lucrative Superman franchise.
A three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit of Appeals unanimously ruled Thursday that the heirs of Superman’s co-creator Jerome Siegel must abide by a 2001 letter written by the family’s attorney accepting Warner Bros.’ offer for their 50 percent share of Superman. Though the five-page letter was never formalized into a contract, the appeals court said it was still binding.
“Statements from the attorneys for both parties establish that the parties had undertaken years of negotiations, that they had resolved the last outstanding point in the deal during a conversation on Oct. 15, 2001, and that the letter accurately reflected the material terms they had orally agreed to on that day,” Judge Stephen Reinhardt wrote for the panel.
The ruling Thursday undoes a 2008 trial court decision ordering Warner Bros. to share an undetermined amount of money earned since 1999 with the heirs, and to give the family control of key components of the Superman story, including his costume. If that decision were to stand, the studio would have had to negotiate a new costly royalty agreement with the family.
“The court’s decision paves the way for the Siegel finally to receive the compensation they negotiated for and which DC has been prepared to pay for over a decade,” Warner Bros. said in a prepared statement, referring to its DC Comics division. “We are extremely pleased that Superman’s adventures can continue to be enjoyed across all media platforms worldwide for generations to come.”
The family’s attorney, Marc Toberoff, didn’t respond to a request for comment.
Toberoff said earlier that he would appeal another significant Warner Bros. victory won in October involving the family of Superman’s other creator, Joseph Shuster, and their bid for half the commercial rights. Toberoff also represents the Shuster heirs, who lost their bid to retain a 50 percent share of Superman.
A federal judge in Los Angeles had ruled that Shuster’s sister and brother relinquished any chance to reclaim Superman copyrights in exchange for annual pension payments from DC Comics. U.S. District Judge Otis Wright noted in that case that the families of both creators have been paid in excess of $4 million since 1978, plus undefined bonuses and medical benefits.
In April, the $412 check that DC Comics wrote in 1938 to acquire Superman and other creative works by Shuster and Siegel sold for $160,000 in an online auction.
‘Twilight’ finale leads Razzies worst-of listLOS ANGELES (AP) — The “Twilight” finale had better reviews than the franchise’s previous four movies, but you’d never know it from the Razzie nominations singling out Hollywood’s worst of the year.
“The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn — Part 2” led the Razzies lineup late Tuesday with 11 nominations, including worst picture, lead-acting slots for Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson, and supporting-acting nominations for Taylor Lautner and Ashley Greene.
Other worst-picture nominees are the naval action tale “Battleship,” the family flick “The Oogieloves in the Big Balloon Adventure,” Adam Sandler’s raunchy dud “That’s My Boy” and Eddie Murphy’s comedy flop “A Thousand Words.”
A spoof of the Academy Awards, the Razzies announcement came a little more than a day before Thursday’s Oscar nominations. Winners for the 33rd annual Razzies will be announced Feb. 23, the night before the Oscar show.
The final installment in the supernatural romance involving vampires, werewolves and a moody schoolgirl, “Breaking Dawn — Part 2” also had nominations for worst director for Bill Condon, plus worst sequel, screenplay and screen ensemble. It picked up two nominations for worst screen couple — for Stewart and Pattinson and for Lautner and child co-star Mackenzie Foy.
Stewart’s worst-actress nomination came for two performances in 2012, her Bella Swan of “Twilight” and the title role in “Snow White and the Huntsman.”
Earlier “Twilight” movies have been regular nominees for the Razzies but have not come away with any key worst-of awards. But the finale seems to be the one Razzies voters have been waiting for, the way Oscar voters were waiting for the last “Lord of the Rings” film, the one that finally won the big prize.
“That’s the analogy we’re making, that this is the Razzies’ flipside,” said Razzies founder John Wilson. “This is our equivalent to ‘The Lord of the Rings.’ It’s our members’ last chance to razz ‘Twilight.'”
Here’s how Razzies organizers describe the “Twilight” finale in the nominations announcement: “The ultimate installment of the inexplicably successful series focuses on Shirtless Werewolf Jacob and his creepy relationship with the daughter of Sparkly Vampire Edward and Gloomy Goth Gal Bella. Together, the four face a final showdown that will determine the fate of Romantic-But-Boring Monsters everywhere.”
Sandler — whose “Jack and Jill” made Razzies history last season by winning a record 10 awards, sweeping every category — remains a Razzies favorite this time. “That’s My Boy” ran second with eight Razzie nominations, among them worst actor for Sandler and supporting actor for both Nick Swardson and Vanilla Ice.
Tyler Perry was nominated for both worst actor (“Alex Cross” and “Good Deeds”) and actress (“Madea’s Witness Protection,” in which he reprised his cross-dressing title character).
Along with Sandler, Pattinson and Perry, worst-actor contenders are Nicolas Cage for “Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance” and “Seeking Justice”; and Murphy for “A Thousand Words.”
Joining Stewart and Perry in the worst-actress lineup are Katherine Heigl for “One for the Money”; Milla Jovovich for “Resident Evil: Retribution”; and Barbra Streisand for “The Guilt Trip.”
Kaley Cuoco joins Shatner in Priceline ad campaignBy Lynn Elber, Television Writer
LOS ANGELES (AP) — William Shatner is getting a new Priceline commercial co-star: Kaley Cuoco of CBS’ “The Big Bang Theory.”
In an upcoming campaign for the online travel services company, Shatner’s Negotiator reveals he has a daughter, played by Cuoco. She’s been schooled since childhood in the art of — what else? — deal-making, and now is ready to join dad in pitching Priceline.
Cuoco, 27, said the 81-year-old Shatner has made Priceline “cool,” but the company wanted to update its message for younger consumers.
The actors taped a pair of spots for the ad campaign that begins Jan. 14, with plans for two more commercials to be shot this summer, Cuoco said. The first spot is available on YouTube starting Wednesday.
She and Shatner turned out to be a good comedic match and had “way too much fun” making the spots, Cuoco said. Shatner returned the compliment, calling her “quite a talent.”
Then there’s that connection between Shatner’s “Star Trek” history and Cuoco’s role on the geekfest sitcom “Big Bang Theory.”
“The nerdy factor, the Trekkie stuff, it goes with ‘Big Bang’ and it all worked together,” she said.
Fox taking a page from HBO for ‘big event’ series
PASADENA, Calif. (AP) — Fox is taking a page from HBO and scheduling some “big event” series.
The network’s entertainment chief, Kevin Reilly, said Tuesday that Fox wants to order some short series of around a dozen episodes or less, much like the cable network does. But don’t call it a miniseries; the name seems to have a negative connotation in TV now.
Fox announced a development deal with producer M. Night Shyamalan for “Wayward Pines,” a thriller Reilly compares to “Twin Peaks.” Based on the Blake Crouch novel, “Pines,” it involves a Secret Service agent going to an Idaho town to investigate two missing federal agents.
The second deal is to develop “Blood Brothers,” about the West Point Class of 1861, with members who fought on both sides of the Civil War yet didn’t lose their regard for each other.
Reilly said he hoped the special series would attract famous actors who would normally be reluctant to be involved in television because they don’t want to commit to a project that could stretch for several years.
The series are expected to air in 2014.
Bill Taylor to be awarded John A. Bonner MedalLOS ANGELES (AP) — Visual effects supervisor Bill Taylor is being honored by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
The academy says Taylor will be awarded the John A. Bonner Medal of Commendation at the Scientific and Technical Awards banquet Feb. 9 at the Beverly Hills Hotel.
The John A. Bonner Medal is named in honor of the late director of special projects at Warner Hollywood Studios. It’s awarded for outstanding service and dedication in upholding the high standards of the motion picture academy.
Taylor’s visual effects credits include such films as “Lawless,” ”Public Enemies,” ”Milk” and “Bruce Almighty.”
Portions of the Scientific and Technical Awards presentations will be included in the Academy Awards broadcast on Feb. 24.
Chevy adopts new global ad campaign
DETROIT (AP) — Chevrolet is dropping its “Chevy Runs Deep” slogan and replacing it with the new tagline “Find New Roads,” saying that it’s better geared toward drivers outside the U.S.
The General Motors Co. brand pointed to its significant overseas expansion over the past several years, noting that it’s developing products for sale in more than 140 markets around the world.
“Find New Roads will enable the whole company to rally around a consistent theme for the brand, and at the same time serve as an external message that works in all markets,” GM marketing chief Alan Batey said in a statement.
“The theme has meaning in mature markets like the U.S. as well as emerging markets like Russia and India, where the potential for continued growth is the greatest,” he said.
“Find New Roads” will be used in the brand’s advertising starting in the U.S. this quarter.
GM unveiled the “Chevy Runs Deep” campaign in the fall of 2010. The ads drew on the brand’s 100-year history and were narrated by movie and TV star Tim Allen, but failed to resonate with customers.
Joel Ewanick, who headed GM’s global marketing when the campaign was launched, left the company in July.
The new campaign also comes after the March hiring of Commonwealth, a newly formed company, to handle the carmaker’s global advertising.
‘Snakes on a Plane’ director David R. Ellis diesDerrik J. Lang, Entertainment Writer
JOHANNESBURG–David R. Ellis, the actor-turned-stuntman-turned-director of “Snakes on a Plane,” has died. He was 60 years old.
Ellis’ manager, David Gardner, confirmed his death Monday and said Ellis’ body was found in a hotel room in Johannesburg, South Africa. Ellis was in Johannesburg working on “Kite,” a remake of the 1998 Japanese anime film that was to have starred “Snakes on a Plane” actor Samuel L. Jackson.
Gardner declined to provide additional details, and no cause of death has been released.
“So sad to hear of David R. Ellis passing!” Jackson tweeted Monday. “So talented, so kind, such a Good Friend. He’ll be missed. Gone too soon!”
Ellis’ directing credits include “Shark Night 3D,” ”The Final Destination,” ”Cellular” and “Final Destination 2.” He also worked on such films as “Misery,” ”Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” and “Waterworld.” Ellis began his Hollywood career as an actor in the 1970s before moving into stunts and directing.
He is survived by his wife and three children.
BAFTA announces 5 actors running for Rising Star
LONDON (AP) — British Academy Film and Television Awards says 23 year-old British actress Juno Temple is one of five young stars shortlisted for the BAFTA Rising Star award.
Other actors in the running include Swedish actress Alicia Vikander, British-born Andrea Riseborough, Elizabeth Olsen of the United States and India’s Suraj Sharma. The list was announced on Monday.
Temple says she is giddy about the nomination, especially as the winner will be chosen by the public.
Recently seen in William Friedkin’s “Killer Joe,” she appears in three movies at Sundance Film Festival and will also star with Angelina Jolie in Robert Stromberg’s “Maleficent.”
The BAFTA Film awards take place on Feb. 10 in London.
HBO will continue screening Universal moviesNEW YORK (AP) — HBO has renewed its deal with Universal Pictures to be the exclusive pay-TV provider of the studio’s movies for another decade, the companies said on Sunday. Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.
HBO, part of Time Warner Inc., and Universal Pictures, part of Comcast Corp., have had an agreement in place since 2003.
The deal includes movies produced by Universal and its specialty films unit, Focus Features.
Current films from the studio include “This is 40” and “Les Miserables.” It is also responsible for classics like “E.T.”, “Jaws” and “Scarface.”
“With our upcoming slate of films, HBO will continue to offer outstanding film content to their already vast library of movies, specials and award-winning original programming,” Rick Finkelstein, vice chairman and COO of Universal Pictures, said in a statement.
The deal is key for HBO, which faces a threat from streaming movie providers like Netflix Inc. Since it is an exclusive agreement, Universal movies won’t be able to be streamed on Netflix or other competitors until 2022 at the earliest.
Last month, Netflix inked an agreement with The Walt Disney Co. to start steaming its movies in 2016.
HBO also has exclusive agreements with 20th Century Fox, part of News Corp., and Warner Brothers, which is also part of Time Warner.
New York Festivals World’s Best Advertising Soars at 30,000 Feet
NEW YORK–The trophy-winning work from New York Festivals๏ฟฝ International Advertising Awards๏ฟฝ soars at 30,000 feet as in-flight entertainment. NYF’s World’s Best Advertising๏ฟฝ will be showcased on international flights on 10 airlines circling the globe: Air Canada, Alaska Airlines, British Airways, Etihad Airways, Finnair, Lufthansa, Qantas Airways, Royal Jordanian, Scandinavian Airlines and Thai Airways. As in-flight entertainment the award-winning work lives on long after the winners have taken home their trophies.
The World’s Best Advertising๏ฟฝ program, offered by New York Festivals as in-flight entertainment, includes some of the most innovative international television commercials of the year. The award-winning creative work was chosen at live jury sessions by the NYF Executive Jury, comprised of prominent global chief creative officers. This captivating selection of TV commercials entertains its viewers with ground-breaking creative concepts and commentaries by 2012’s Executive Jury.
New York Festivals has also developed additional strategic content partners in an effort to provide continued global recognition for award-winning work. NYF offers Media Centers for entertainment and educational opportunities at three universities in China. Students are invited to visit the New York Festivals Media Center to view award-winning campaigns entered from agencies all over the world. And NYF’s award-winners are also featured weekly on Shanghai Young Media’s Advertising Figures television, generating an online audience of 40 million viewers.
BAM Studios marks 13th anniversaryCHICAGO–BAM Studios recently celebrated its 13th birthday in the postproduction audio industry.
This is an extraordinary milestone for Brian Reed, BAM’s owner and founder, for both personal and professional reasons. Having been in the industry for 26 years, he has spent half of those years building BAM into what it has become today.
This past year, clients old and new brought projects to BAM like radio for Fisher Nuts (Blue Chip Marketing) and Coca-Cola (Commonground), and TV for the Big Ten Network(Teamworks Media). Additionally, BAM has become Chicago’s go-to studio for film and television ADR with a roster that includes full seasons of Dick Wolf’s “Chicago Fire”, and MTV’s “Underemployed,” as well as two full seasons of Kelsey Grammar’s “Boss”.
BAM recently completed a total renovation of its third studio, Studio C. Additionally, the shop upgraded all three of its audio suites to Avid-Digidesign’s latest HDX platform. The upgrades are a combination of DSP hardware, audio software, and new audio interfaces. “Besides the sonic upgrades,” Reed notes, “the HDX platform adds an amazing amount of power to our projects here at BAM and will increase efficiency throughout the facility.”
James Bond’s 50th anniversary celebrated at Oscars
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Oscar won’t be the only chiseled man in the spotlight at the 85th Academy Awards.
Telecast producers say the show will also feature a celebration of Bond, James Bond.
Producers Craig Zadan and Neil Meron announced Friday that the show will pay tribute to the 50th anniversary of the James Bond film franchise, which they describe as “the longest-running motion picture franchise in history and a beloved global phenomenon.”
The most recent Bond film, “Skyfall,” was released in November and has made more than $1 billion worldwide — a franchise record.
Nominations for this year’s Academy Awards will be announced Jan. 10. The Oscars will be presented Feb. 24 at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles.
Kilar to quit as CEO of Hulu by MarchBy Ryan Nakashima, Business Writer
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Jason Kilar will step down by the end of March as the chief executive of Hulu, the online video service owned by the parents of ABC, NBC and Fox.
Kilar, 41, broke the news to staff in an email, which he posted on the Hulu blog on Friday. While he didn’t state a reason, the video site has been losing money despite posting nearly $700 million in revenue last year. But it’s growing fast, and added 200,000 paying subscribers in the last seven days alone, Kilar said. Last month, the company said it had more than 3 million subscribers.
The company’s CEO since its founding in 2007, Kilar has at times clashed with Hulu’s owners over strategy. Spawned in part as a bid to offset Internet piracy, Hulu got its start showing reruns of ABC, NBC and Fox shows free on the Web with minimal advertising, and added a $10-per-month subscription tier in June 2010 that expanded the back catalog.
The price of a subscription to Hulu Plus was cut to $8 a few months later, but a paid plan is necessary for viewers who wish to watch shows on tablets, phones, or Internet-connected TV sets. It’s unclear if Kilar’s resignation signals a change in strategy, but it could be a good opportunity for the companies to implement changes.
Two people familiar with the matter said the move was not surprising, partly because Kilar is flush with cash after being paid about $40 million for his stake in the company in a sale that coincided with Providence Equity Partners selling its 10 percent stake for $200 million late last year. The people spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly.
Providence’s exit came after the owners decided not to sell Hulu in 2011 following months of entertaining outside offers.
Kilar said in the blog that Richard Tom, senior vice president and chief technology officer, will leave at about the same time. As an entrepreneur who previously helped Amazon get into the video streaming business, Kilar could re-emerge as the head of a new fledgling business. Prior to joining Hulu, Tom spent eight years at Microsoft, where he led a team that created a business application platform for its Office Live online software.
“We are fortunate to have collectively built a culture that matters, a brand that matters, a business that matters,” Kilar said in his memo. “It is impossible to state in words how much this team means to me, how much Hulu means to me.”
Hulu’s parent companies, The Walt Disney Co. and News Corp., lauded Kilar’s accomplishments.
“Jason has been an integral part of the Hulu story, transforming it from an interesting idea into an innovative business model that continues to evolve,” said Disney CEO Bob Iger in a statement. “We are proud of his achievements, we appreciate what he’s built, and we share his confidence in his team’s ability to drive Hulu forward from here.”
News Corp. CEO Rupert Murdoch added, “Jason and his team have done a great job building Hulu into one of the leading online video services available today and it’s incredibly well positioned for the road ahead. We are grateful for Jason’s leadership and wish him the best on his next venture.”
NBC parent Comcast Corp. is required to be a silent partner in Hulu as part of the government signing off on its purchase of NBCUniversal in January 2011.
Presidential staff chiefs all in documentary
PASADENA, Calif. (AP) — Makers of a Discovery network documentary on presidential chiefs of staff have a perfect participation record.
All 19 living men who had that job gave interviews for “The Presidents’ Gatekeepers.” The four-hour documentary is expected to air in two parts early this summer.
Filmmakers Jules and Gedeon Naudet (naw-DAY) said Saturday that their well-regarded previous documentary on the Sept. 11 terrorist attack in New York was a calling card that probably helped them convince some former chiefs to participate.
Their longest interview was with former Vice President Dick Cheney, who was President Gerald Ford’s chief of staff in the 1970s. Cheney said a chief is more powerful than a vice president.
