When the National Press Club hosted a post-screening panel on the upcoming movie Anna, about Russian journalist and Vladimir Putin critic Anna Politkovskaya, the conversation — to not much of a surprise — led to Donald Trump and what his potential return to the White House would mean for democracy.
Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-ca) and former CIA director John Brennan joined journalist Bob Woodward for the post-screening event Wednesday evening, and each chimed in on the potential impact of another Trump presidency.
Woodward, who released 20 audio interviews with Trump as part of The Trump Tapes in 2022, said, “I think an important question about Trump is, ‘Who is he?'”
“In the course of these interviews I asked him, ‘What’s the job of the president?’ And he said, ‘To protect the people.’ Now that’s a good answer. He did not protect the people [in the Covid crisis]. And if you get into this — I think...
Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-ca) and former CIA director John Brennan joined journalist Bob Woodward for the post-screening event Wednesday evening, and each chimed in on the potential impact of another Trump presidency.
Woodward, who released 20 audio interviews with Trump as part of The Trump Tapes in 2022, said, “I think an important question about Trump is, ‘Who is he?'”
“In the course of these interviews I asked him, ‘What’s the job of the president?’ And he said, ‘To protect the people.’ Now that’s a good answer. He did not protect the people [in the Covid crisis]. And if you get into this — I think...
- 3/21/2024
- by Ted Johnson
- Deadline Film + TV
On June 17, 1972, thieves acting on behalf of Richard Nixon's presidential campaign broke into the Watergate Hotel in Washington DC, the location of the Democratic National Committee headquarters. The group was looking for papers and secrets that would have given Nixon an unfair advantage in the election. Nixon was bafflingly still elected during this kerfuffle and served as president for two more years before enough details about the break-in emerged to warrant his infamous resignation from office. The many, many details of the Watergate scandal have been recorded in innumerable books, documentaries, and Hollywood dramas in the ensuing decades, and Watergate shows are being made to this day; the miniseries "Gaslit" aired in 2022 and "White House Plumbers" in 2023.
The Watergate scandal represented a loss of American innocence for many. It was positive proof that the Republican party was openly corrupt. The scandal was bad enough, but then Gerald Ford pardoned Nixon of all his recorded,...
The Watergate scandal represented a loss of American innocence for many. It was positive proof that the Republican party was openly corrupt. The scandal was bad enough, but then Gerald Ford pardoned Nixon of all his recorded,...
- 1/27/2024
- by Witney Seibold
- Slash Film
As comedian Will Ferrell walked across the magnificent stage of The Kennedy Center to accept the greatest honor an America funny person can receive, The Mark Twain Prize for American Humor, something happened that made us all remember why he is getting this prestigious honor. The award instantly slipped from Will’s hilarious fingers, shattering this legendary humorist’s bust all over the floor. An obvious gag, that was so damn fitting to what Will represents in the history of the art of doing silly stuff. Without breaking character for a second, Will hilariously tries to pick up the pieces as the world just sat back and laughed… but not laughing at him, we were laughing with him. The appeal of Will Ferrell comes from his innocent “I don’t give a f*ck” attitude that elevates simple stupid jokes to performance art. As Mr. Ferrell once said, “What I...
- 1/19/2024
- by Mathew Plale
- JoBlo.com
In a summer of many misses, “Sound of Freedom” has become a major and unlikely box office hit, making a sequel seem a foregone conclusion. But who exactly holds the rights to tackle a new outing? Well, it’s complicated.
A representative for producer Mike Ilitch Jr. told Variety that her client signed a deal with Tim Ballard, the anti-human trafficking activist who is the subject of the breakout film, “for exclusive life rights” and that the pair recently began developing a follow-up. Ilitch Jr., the son of Mike Ilitch, billionaire owner of Little Caesars Pizza, wasn’t going to stop there. He also planned a scripted series and a docuseries about Ballard’s various missions rescuing children from sexual exploitation.
The “Sound of Freedom” franchise plan also included leveraging an unnamed Ballard nonprofit and other nongovernmental organizations “to provide targeted resources, specific calls to action and further real-life and...
A representative for producer Mike Ilitch Jr. told Variety that her client signed a deal with Tim Ballard, the anti-human trafficking activist who is the subject of the breakout film, “for exclusive life rights” and that the pair recently began developing a follow-up. Ilitch Jr., the son of Mike Ilitch, billionaire owner of Little Caesars Pizza, wasn’t going to stop there. He also planned a scripted series and a docuseries about Ballard’s various missions rescuing children from sexual exploitation.
The “Sound of Freedom” franchise plan also included leveraging an unnamed Ballard nonprofit and other nongovernmental organizations “to provide targeted resources, specific calls to action and further real-life and...
- 8/23/2023
- by Tatiana Siegel
- Variety Film + TV
Nicolas Coster, the British-American actor who played an evasive lawyer in All the President’s Men, a fiendish kidnapper in All My Children, zany businessman Lionel Lockridge on Santa Barbara, and the father of Lisa Whelchel’s Blair Warner in The Facts of Life, died Monday at a hospital in Florida. He was 89.
His death was announced by his daughter Dinneen Coster on social media. “There is great sadness in my heart this evening, my father actor Nicolas Coster has passed on in Florida at 9:01 pm in the hospital,” Dinneen Coster wrote on Facebook. “Please be inspired by his artistic achievements and know he was a real actor’s actor!”
A cause of death was not given.
A prolific actor whose career spanned decades on television and encompassed both leading and character roles,...
His death was announced by his daughter Dinneen Coster on social media. “There is great sadness in my heart this evening, my father actor Nicolas Coster has passed on in Florida at 9:01 pm in the hospital,” Dinneen Coster wrote on Facebook. “Please be inspired by his artistic achievements and know he was a real actor’s actor!”
A cause of death was not given.
A prolific actor whose career spanned decades on television and encompassed both leading and character roles,...
- 6/27/2023
- by Greg Evans
- Deadline Film + TV
Curated by the IndieWire Crafts team, Craft Considerations is a platform for filmmakers to talk about recent work we believe is worthy of awards consideration. In partnership with HBO, for this edition, we look at how the team behind “White House Plumbers” found a way to marry comedy, history, and the paranoid atmosphere of 1970s political thrillers.
There’s a scene in Episode 4 of “White House Plumbers” where Howard Hunt (Woody Harrelson), one of the masterminds behind the Watergate break-in, receives a call from reporter Bob Woodward. It’s the other side of the exact phone call dramatized from Woodward’s perspective in “All the President’s Men” — the 1976 movie about how Woodward and Carl Bernstein’s reporting helped bring down Hunt, his partner-in-crime G. Gordon Liddy (Justin Theroux), and the Nixon White House.
“I like to think of [‘White House Plumbers’] as existing almost in parallel to ‘All the President’s Men,’” said director...
There’s a scene in Episode 4 of “White House Plumbers” where Howard Hunt (Woody Harrelson), one of the masterminds behind the Watergate break-in, receives a call from reporter Bob Woodward. It’s the other side of the exact phone call dramatized from Woodward’s perspective in “All the President’s Men” — the 1976 movie about how Woodward and Carl Bernstein’s reporting helped bring down Hunt, his partner-in-crime G. Gordon Liddy (Justin Theroux), and the Nixon White House.
“I like to think of [‘White House Plumbers’] as existing almost in parallel to ‘All the President’s Men,’” said director...
- 5/31/2023
- by Chris O'Falt
- Indiewire
Netflix co-ceo Ted Sarandos will no longer attend a gala meant to honor him next week in New York. The decision comes as labor issues grab headlines across Hollywood.
Sarandos was set to accept the Business Visionary Award at the annual Pen American Spring Literary Gala, alongside fellow honoree Lorne Michaels and a host of literati including Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Susan Choi, Jennifer Egan, Min Jin Lee, Jay McInerney and Gay Talese. He’s skipping the event, to be held under the blue whale at the American Museum of Natural History, as many industry celebrations weigh how to address the writers strike.
“Given the threat to disrupt this wonderful evening, I thought it was best to pull out so as not to distract from the important work that Pen America does for writers and journalists, as well as the celebration of my friend and personal hero Lorne Michaels. I hope...
Sarandos was set to accept the Business Visionary Award at the annual Pen American Spring Literary Gala, alongside fellow honoree Lorne Michaels and a host of literati including Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Susan Choi, Jennifer Egan, Min Jin Lee, Jay McInerney and Gay Talese. He’s skipping the event, to be held under the blue whale at the American Museum of Natural History, as many industry celebrations weigh how to address the writers strike.
“Given the threat to disrupt this wonderful evening, I thought it was best to pull out so as not to distract from the important work that Pen America does for writers and journalists, as well as the celebration of my friend and personal hero Lorne Michaels. I hope...
- 5/10/2023
- by Matt Donnelly
- Variety Film + TV
Donald Trump may have stumbled onto a novel copyright issue.
On Jan. 30, the ever-litigious Trump sued Bob Woodward and his publisher Simon & Schuster over the public release of audio recordings from their interviews for Woodward’s book, aptly titled The Trump Tapes. More than eight hours of excerpts from the interviews were published in October as an audiobook, and Trump says he’s entitled to all or most of those profits because he only granted Woodward permission to use his responses in a book. The former president asked for a court order declaring that he owns the copyright to the recordings or, at least, to his responses to the questions in the back-and-forth.
Woodward, in his motion for dismissal, argues that Trump’s claim fails because he hasn’t obtained the requisite copyright registration. While few courts have addressed interview ownership, he also argues it’s “obvious that ownership vests in the journalist,...
On Jan. 30, the ever-litigious Trump sued Bob Woodward and his publisher Simon & Schuster over the public release of audio recordings from their interviews for Woodward’s book, aptly titled The Trump Tapes. More than eight hours of excerpts from the interviews were published in October as an audiobook, and Trump says he’s entitled to all or most of those profits because he only granted Woodward permission to use his responses in a book. The former president asked for a court order declaring that he owns the copyright to the recordings or, at least, to his responses to the questions in the back-and-forth.
Woodward, in his motion for dismissal, argues that Trump’s claim fails because he hasn’t obtained the requisite copyright registration. While few courts have addressed interview ownership, he also argues it’s “obvious that ownership vests in the journalist,...
- 4/17/2023
- by Winston Cho
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
John Dean doesn’t recall the exact date more than 50 years ago when he first met Martha Mitchell, but he remembers his impressions.
“The Attorney General [John Mitchell] used to have lunches every Wednesday for the senior staff, which I was a part of. He’d have them in his large conference room at the Department of Justice. And often Martha would attend those,” recalls Dean, the former White House Counsel under President Nixon, and a key figure in the Watergate coverup. “She was always a bright light in any room she walked into. She was vivacious, she was smart.”
There was a time, even before she became a kind of Watergate whistleblower, when seemingly all of America knew Martha Mitchell. The Arkansas charmer with the bulletproof beehive hairdo captivated the public with her remarkably outspoken manner. But that very quality, refusing to hold her tongue, would bring severe consequences,...
“The Attorney General [John Mitchell] used to have lunches every Wednesday for the senior staff, which I was a part of. He’d have them in his large conference room at the Department of Justice. And often Martha would attend those,” recalls Dean, the former White House Counsel under President Nixon, and a key figure in the Watergate coverup. “She was always a bright light in any room she walked into. She was vivacious, she was smart.”
There was a time, even before she became a kind of Watergate whistleblower, when seemingly all of America knew Martha Mitchell. The Arkansas charmer with the bulletproof beehive hairdo captivated the public with her remarkably outspoken manner. But that very quality, refusing to hold her tongue, would bring severe consequences,...
- 3/2/2023
- by Matthew Carey
- Deadline Film + TV
Gayle King, co-host of “CBS Mornings” and editor-at-large of Oprah Daily, received the Walter Cronkite Award for Excellence in Journalism from Arizona State University on Tuesday at a ceremony in Phoenix.
Since 1984, the honor has been reserved for accomplished journalists who have demonstrated exemplary leadership skills. The award is named after the late Walter Cronkite, who anchored CBS Evening News for nearly two decades. Previous recipients include Al Roker, Anderson Cooper, Bob Woodward and more.
“Gayle King’s career and accomplishments are remarkable, and her professionalism embodies everything that Walter Cronkite valued in journalism,” said Battinto L. Batts Jr, dean of Asu’s Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication. “Her approach to covering important events and interviewing politicians, leaders and celebrities is unparalleled. It’s an honor to present Gayle with this prestigious award.”
The three-time Emmy winner’s work has led her to cover pivotal moments in national history,...
Since 1984, the honor has been reserved for accomplished journalists who have demonstrated exemplary leadership skills. The award is named after the late Walter Cronkite, who anchored CBS Evening News for nearly two decades. Previous recipients include Al Roker, Anderson Cooper, Bob Woodward and more.
“Gayle King’s career and accomplishments are remarkable, and her professionalism embodies everything that Walter Cronkite valued in journalism,” said Battinto L. Batts Jr, dean of Asu’s Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication. “Her approach to covering important events and interviewing politicians, leaders and celebrities is unparalleled. It’s an honor to present Gayle with this prestigious award.”
The three-time Emmy winner’s work has led her to cover pivotal moments in national history,...
- 2/22/2023
- by Katie Reul and Julia MacCary
- Variety Film + TV
Former “Daily Show” host Trevor Noah crashed “The Late Late Show” on Thursday to help James Corden with a segment entitled “Side Effects Only.”
“If only there was someone who could help me with this bit. I sort of need somebody who has experience reading a teleprompter, someone who has experience sitting behind a desk,” Corden said before being interrupted by Noah
Following the applause, Corden asked Noah how it feels to be sitting behind a desk again, to which he replied, deadpan: “Stifling.”
Also Read:
Colbert Fakes Out Audience by Teasing Beyoncé ‘Renaissance’ Tour Stop: ‘The Whole World – That Includes This Theater’ (Video)
The first topic the pair covered was leaving your late night show, with Corden listing side effects including not having to wear a suit or pants “because you’re not on TV every night” and not having to talk about the 2024 presidential election.
Noah chimed in with other side effects,...
“If only there was someone who could help me with this bit. I sort of need somebody who has experience reading a teleprompter, someone who has experience sitting behind a desk,” Corden said before being interrupted by Noah
Following the applause, Corden asked Noah how it feels to be sitting behind a desk again, to which he replied, deadpan: “Stifling.”
Also Read:
Colbert Fakes Out Audience by Teasing Beyoncé ‘Renaissance’ Tour Stop: ‘The Whole World – That Includes This Theater’ (Video)
The first topic the pair covered was leaving your late night show, with Corden listing side effects including not having to wear a suit or pants “because you’re not on TV every night” and not having to talk about the 2024 presidential election.
Noah chimed in with other side effects,...
- 2/3/2023
- by Lucas Manfredi
- The Wrap
Donald Trump has found a new avenue to sue the media: Copyright.
Trump filed a lawsuit in federal court on Monday, alleging that Bob Woodward and his publisher, Simon & Schuster, needed his permission before releasing the audio book The Trump Tapes last year. The audiobook is a collection of 20 interviews that Woodward conducted with Trump.
“Said audio was protected material, subject to various limitations on use and distribution—as a matter of copyright, license, contract, basic principles of the publishing industry, and core values of fairness and consent,” according to the lawsuit (read it here). Among other things, Woodward interviewed Trump for his book Rage, released in 2020. The book was a bombshell, as Trump admitted that he wanted to play down the Covid threat in the early weeks of the pandemic.
The lawsuit names Woodward, Simon & Schuster and the publisher’s parent Paramount Global as defendants.
Trump claims that the...
Trump filed a lawsuit in federal court on Monday, alleging that Bob Woodward and his publisher, Simon & Schuster, needed his permission before releasing the audio book The Trump Tapes last year. The audiobook is a collection of 20 interviews that Woodward conducted with Trump.
“Said audio was protected material, subject to various limitations on use and distribution—as a matter of copyright, license, contract, basic principles of the publishing industry, and core values of fairness and consent,” according to the lawsuit (read it here). Among other things, Woodward interviewed Trump for his book Rage, released in 2020. The book was a bombshell, as Trump admitted that he wanted to play down the Covid threat in the early weeks of the pandemic.
The lawsuit names Woodward, Simon & Schuster and the publisher’s parent Paramount Global as defendants.
Trump claims that the...
- 1/30/2023
- by Ted Johnson
- Deadline Film + TV
“Young and the Restless” star Tracey Bregman has her Daytime Emmy back. The star’s original Emmy was destroyed in 2018 when she lost her house during Malibu’s Woolsey Fire. As she appeared Tuesday on CBS’ “The Talk,” Bregman was surprised with a replacement statue from the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences.
Bregman won her Emmy back in 1985 for the category that was then known as Outstanding Ingenue/Woman in a Drama Series. She appeared on “The Talk” to help celebrate her 40th anniversary on the show (which is also celebrating its 50th anniversary this year). Her on-screen husband, Christian Le Blanc, made a special appearance to surprise her with the new Emmy.
“It has been one of the most extraordinary and heartfelt experiences of my career,” Bregman said. “I tried not to go into the “ugly cry” in the air. Thanks to my ‘Young and Restless’ family, NATAS,...
Bregman won her Emmy back in 1985 for the category that was then known as Outstanding Ingenue/Woman in a Drama Series. She appeared on “The Talk” to help celebrate her 40th anniversary on the show (which is also celebrating its 50th anniversary this year). Her on-screen husband, Christian Le Blanc, made a special appearance to surprise her with the new Emmy.
“It has been one of the most extraordinary and heartfelt experiences of my career,” Bregman said. “I tried not to go into the “ugly cry” in the air. Thanks to my ‘Young and Restless’ family, NATAS,...
- 1/24/2023
- by Katie Reul
- Variety Film + TV
Over his decades-spanning career, Mike Myers has crafted some of comedy's most memorable characters. You might know him most fondly as the headbanging hero Wayne of "Wayne's World," whether on "Saturday Night Live" during his '89-'95 tenure or in the celebrated movie adaptations. Perhaps you recall how he dominated the late '90s as both villain and swinging protagonist in the spy-parodic "Austin Powers" movies, and the subsequent inability to walk down the street without hearing a poorly-feigned Dr. Evil impression. Maybe ogres are your bag, making Myers' turn as an unrefined Scottish mean green machine Shrek the zenith of his talents. Or perhaps the name is fairly new for emergent comedy fans, the product of stumbling upon the cult-centric laugh-fest "The Pentaverate" on Netflix. Myers' influence on comedy is well-established, but what influences the influencer?
Speaking with fellow "SNL" alum and "Documentary Now!" co-creator Fred Armisen for The Hollywood Reporter,...
Speaking with fellow "SNL" alum and "Documentary Now!" co-creator Fred Armisen for The Hollywood Reporter,...
- 1/12/2023
- by Anya Stanley
- Slash Film
Donald Trump did draw the media spotlight for his presidential announcement speech on Tuesday, but the networks varied in how they approached the event, carrying parts of it and cutting away at others.
The coverage perhaps offers a glimpse of how Trump will be covered as he embarks on his third presidential bid — certainly a top story, but not the only one.
Trump promoted the speech as “one of the most important ones in the history of our country,” but the networks alternated their focus on other stories throughout the day. That included the missile hit on Poland that, just minutes before Trump took the stage, put the focus on his nemesis, President Joe Biden.
CNN carried the speech from Mar-a-Lago for more than 20 minutes before cutting away when Trump made the official announcement. Anderson Cooper then went to a fact check with Daniel Dale, a fixture during the 2020 election cycle.
The coverage perhaps offers a glimpse of how Trump will be covered as he embarks on his third presidential bid — certainly a top story, but not the only one.
Trump promoted the speech as “one of the most important ones in the history of our country,” but the networks alternated their focus on other stories throughout the day. That included the missile hit on Poland that, just minutes before Trump took the stage, put the focus on his nemesis, President Joe Biden.
CNN carried the speech from Mar-a-Lago for more than 20 minutes before cutting away when Trump made the official announcement. Anderson Cooper then went to a fact check with Daniel Dale, a fixture during the 2020 election cycle.
- 11/16/2022
- by Ted Johnson
- Deadline Film + TV
Bob Woodward released even more recordings of his interviews with Donald Trump this week. And setting aside the whole “yet again a prominent reporter held back stuff people probably could have benefitted from knowing sooner” of it all, it’s pretty crazy stuff. So much so that on Monday’s “The Late Show,” Stephen Colbert seemed almost happy learning about the creepy, sexual way Trump described the way he vibes with North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un.
In one of the recordings, Woodward asked Trump if he agreed with a CIA assessment that Kim is “stupid.” Trump disagreed and when Woodward asked why, Trump said:
“Because they don’t know. They have no idea. I’m the only one that knows. I’m the only one he deals with. He won’t deal with anybody else…The word chemistry. You meet somebody and you have a good chemistry. You meet a woman.
In one of the recordings, Woodward asked Trump if he agreed with a CIA assessment that Kim is “stupid.” Trump disagreed and when Woodward asked why, Trump said:
“Because they don’t know. They have no idea. I’m the only one that knows. I’m the only one he deals with. He won’t deal with anybody else…The word chemistry. You meet somebody and you have a good chemistry. You meet a woman.
- 10/25/2022
- by Ross A. Lincoln
- The Wrap
Maggie Haberman, the New York Times reporter and CNN analyst, is being hotly discussed as she released her anticipated new book Confidence Man, which details her time coving the Donald Trump White House.
Some of the reveals included several instances of racist behavior by the ex-President, that he nearly fired Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner via Tweet, and that he flushed documents down the toilet in violation of the Presidential Records Act.
She also painted a picture of the Trump White House as extremely dysfunctional, with several top aides concerned about the President’s mental health behind closed doors.
While many of the reveals of the book have been shocking, it is also discouraging to see a journalist sitting on information for years to release it in a book. It reads as little more than a cold and calculated move to spike book sales, when the important part should be...
Some of the reveals included several instances of racist behavior by the ex-President, that he nearly fired Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner via Tweet, and that he flushed documents down the toilet in violation of the Presidential Records Act.
She also painted a picture of the Trump White House as extremely dysfunctional, with several top aides concerned about the President’s mental health behind closed doors.
While many of the reveals of the book have been shocking, it is also discouraging to see a journalist sitting on information for years to release it in a book. It reads as little more than a cold and calculated move to spike book sales, when the important part should be...
- 10/2/2022
- by Jacob Linden
- Uinterview
The CNN image for the past few years has been embodied by passionate on-air personalities like Don Lemon or Brianna Keilar. These days, it might best be symbolized by beat reporters like Jamie Gangel or Kaitlan Collins.
Gone in recent weeks (for the most part) are what had become the network’s signature red-versus-blue showdowns between hot-talking contributors or segments that hinge on an anchor scolding an interviewee. This is the kind of stuff that typically gives cable-news a viral boost. In its place, CNN is trying something else: the news.
And it could guide what three people familiar with the network say will be some sort of recalibration of on-air talent that could become more apparent this fall.
“CNN seems to be moving back more toward straight news and away from some of the blatant opinion-mongering by its anchors that characterized its past few years,” says Mark Feldstein, chairman...
Gone in recent weeks (for the most part) are what had become the network’s signature red-versus-blue showdowns between hot-talking contributors or segments that hinge on an anchor scolding an interviewee. This is the kind of stuff that typically gives cable-news a viral boost. In its place, CNN is trying something else: the news.
And it could guide what three people familiar with the network say will be some sort of recalibration of on-air talent that could become more apparent this fall.
“CNN seems to be moving back more toward straight news and away from some of the blatant opinion-mongering by its anchors that characterized its past few years,” says Mark Feldstein, chairman...
- 8/3/2022
- by Brian Steinberg
- Variety Film + TV
The children’s television program “Reading Rainbow” aired on PBS from 1983 to 2006, and “Butterfly in the Sky” is the story of how that show came to be, what it was like to work on it and its afterlife. The people interviewed here are all so nice, warm and likable that watching this movie is like sinking into a warm bath.
The key creators of the show were Twila Liggett, who started out as a teacher of eight- and nine-year-old kids, and Cecily Truett Lancit and Larry Lancit, a married couple who had a production company in New York. Liggett left teaching because she didn’t like the excessive and superficial testing of young kids, and she wanted to take what she had learned and bring it to television, which was seen as an enemy of reading for children in the early 1980s.
LeVar Burton had become a star on TV...
The key creators of the show were Twila Liggett, who started out as a teacher of eight- and nine-year-old kids, and Cecily Truett Lancit and Larry Lancit, a married couple who had a production company in New York. Liggett left teaching because she didn’t like the excessive and superficial testing of young kids, and she wanted to take what she had learned and bring it to television, which was seen as an enemy of reading for children in the early 1980s.
LeVar Burton had become a star on TV...
- 6/9/2022
- by Dan Callahan
- The Wrap
CNN will debut Watergate: Blueprint for a Scandal, with John Dean offering his first-hand account of the break in that brought down Richard Nixon’s presidency, on June 5.
Dean, former White House counsel for Nixon, serves as an executive producer on the project, with the debut tied to the 50th anniversary of the break in.
In a statement, Dean said, “After passage of a half century, we have the complete record of what happened during Watergate and this series is more than a cautionary tale about these events. The criminal conduct of Richard Nixon and his top aides was found to be totally unacceptable to the American people and became the blueprint for what no President of the United States should do.”
Dean said that the history of Watergate “is highly relevant once again, and it is a risk to our democracy to ignore it.”
He appears in a new...
Dean, former White House counsel for Nixon, serves as an executive producer on the project, with the debut tied to the 50th anniversary of the break in.
In a statement, Dean said, “After passage of a half century, we have the complete record of what happened during Watergate and this series is more than a cautionary tale about these events. The criminal conduct of Richard Nixon and his top aides was found to be totally unacceptable to the American people and became the blueprint for what no President of the United States should do.”
Dean said that the history of Watergate “is highly relevant once again, and it is a risk to our democracy to ignore it.”
He appears in a new...
- 5/11/2022
- by Ted Johnson
- Deadline Film + TV
Mitch McConnell has predictably confirmed that he will not be voting to confirm Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court of the United States. But the hosts of “The View” got a good chuckle out of his reasons why on Friday.
“He’s voting against Justice Brown because she has demonstrated what he says is ‘a misunderstanding of the separation of powers that I’ve spent my entire career fighting.’ This is Mitch McConnell. This is ‘Saturday Night Live,’ you know what I mean?” Behar joked.
The dig came as the women were once again discussing the actions of Republican senators this week, in regards to Jackson’s confirmation, but also the controversy surrounding sitting Justice Clarence Thomas.
You can watch the full segment from “The View” in the video above.
To kick off the morning’s Hot Topics discussion, the panel of women began discussing new reporting from Bob Woodward...
“He’s voting against Justice Brown because she has demonstrated what he says is ‘a misunderstanding of the separation of powers that I’ve spent my entire career fighting.’ This is Mitch McConnell. This is ‘Saturday Night Live,’ you know what I mean?” Behar joked.
The dig came as the women were once again discussing the actions of Republican senators this week, in regards to Jackson’s confirmation, but also the controversy surrounding sitting Justice Clarence Thomas.
You can watch the full segment from “The View” in the video above.
To kick off the morning’s Hot Topics discussion, the panel of women began discussing new reporting from Bob Woodward...
- 3/25/2022
- by Andi Ortiz
- The Wrap
The Washington Post‘s Bob Woodward and CBS News’ Robert Costa landed one of the week’s bigger D.C. scoops with a report that Ginni Thomas, the wife of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, texted then-White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows urging him to contest the 2020 presidential election results.
“Help This Great President stand firm, Mark!!!…You are the leader, with him, who is standing for America’s constitutional governance at the precipice. The majority knows Biden and the Left is attempting the greatest Heist of our History,” Thomas wrote to Meadows on November 10, after Joe Biden had been declared by the networks as the projected winner of the election over Donald Trump, according to the the Post and CBS News report.
In the days that followed, Thomas advanced a number of conspiracy theories about the election while pushing for attorney Sidney Powell to take the lead in the...
“Help This Great President stand firm, Mark!!!…You are the leader, with him, who is standing for America’s constitutional governance at the precipice. The majority knows Biden and the Left is attempting the greatest Heist of our History,” Thomas wrote to Meadows on November 10, after Joe Biden had been declared by the networks as the projected winner of the election over Donald Trump, according to the the Post and CBS News report.
In the days that followed, Thomas advanced a number of conspiracy theories about the election while pushing for attorney Sidney Powell to take the lead in the...
- 3/24/2022
- by Ted Johnson
- Deadline Film + TV
Warner Bros. has officially, successfully rebooted the Batman franchise with “The Batman,” which has earned glowing notices from audiences and critics alike and is dominating the box office. And while it will surely be some time before a sequel is ready to go before cameras let alone unleashed on the public, there are plenty of films that influenced “The Batman” that should whet audiences’ appetites – and may expand their cinematic horizons in the process.
Co-writer and director Matt Reeves has made no secret of the fact that several films influenced his dark, “urban noir” take on the Caped Crusader for “The Batman.”
Below, we’ve rounded up a handful of films that served as touchstones for the new Batman film that are well worth seeking out to enjoy more of what made “The Batman” so special. Whether you were thrilled by the detective angle of the film, the hard-boiled noir...
Co-writer and director Matt Reeves has made no secret of the fact that several films influenced his dark, “urban noir” take on the Caped Crusader for “The Batman.”
Below, we’ve rounded up a handful of films that served as touchstones for the new Batman film that are well worth seeking out to enjoy more of what made “The Batman” so special. Whether you were thrilled by the detective angle of the film, the hard-boiled noir...
- 3/18/2022
- by Adam Chitwood
- The Wrap
This week marks 15 years since “Zodiac” was released in theaters, and save for the actors looking 15 years younger than they do now, the film still feels like it could be released today. If anything, “Zodiac” feels more like a product of 2022 than 2007. The country is more obsessed with serial killers than ever before, with true crime podcasts and documentaries continuing to draw massive ratings, Zodiac killer memes being used in presidential primaries, and the latest Batman movie taking the form of a serial killer drama.
That makes it a great time to revisit “Zodiac,” as well as a good opportunity to take a deep dive into the making of the film. “Zodiac” attracted as much attention for its painstaking production process as it did for the finished product, as the always detail-oriented David Fincher went above and beyond to make sure everything in his film was historically accurate. Sometimes his...
That makes it a great time to revisit “Zodiac,” as well as a good opportunity to take a deep dive into the making of the film. “Zodiac” attracted as much attention for its painstaking production process as it did for the finished product, as the always detail-oriented David Fincher went above and beyond to make sure everything in his film was historically accurate. Sometimes his...
- 3/2/2022
- by Christian Zilko
- Indiewire
Networks are starting to roll out their plans to mark the one-year anniversary of the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol.
ABC News plans daylong coverage on that date, led by World News Tonight anchor David Muir and under the banner “Attack on the Capitol: One Year Later.” Muir has interviewed Capitol Police officers Harry Dunn and Aquilino Gonell, and Metropolitan Police Department officer Daniel Hodges, in their first joint sit-down interview, with plans to air it on World News News Tonight on January 5 and also on Nightline.
On This Week with George Stephanopoulos on January 2, Stephanopoulos will interview Rep. Liz Cheney (R-wy), the vice chair of the House’s January 6th Committee, and co-anchor Jonathan Karl will look at the aftermath of the riot. Co-anchor Martha Raddatz will look at the rise of military extremism since the attach, and she reconnected with a participant she met as she was covering the siege.
ABC News plans daylong coverage on that date, led by World News Tonight anchor David Muir and under the banner “Attack on the Capitol: One Year Later.” Muir has interviewed Capitol Police officers Harry Dunn and Aquilino Gonell, and Metropolitan Police Department officer Daniel Hodges, in their first joint sit-down interview, with plans to air it on World News News Tonight on January 5 and also on Nightline.
On This Week with George Stephanopoulos on January 2, Stephanopoulos will interview Rep. Liz Cheney (R-wy), the vice chair of the House’s January 6th Committee, and co-anchor Jonathan Karl will look at the aftermath of the riot. Co-anchor Martha Raddatz will look at the rise of military extremism since the attach, and she reconnected with a participant she met as she was covering the siege.
- 12/21/2021
- by Ted Johnson
- Deadline Film + TV
Jonathan Karl’s Betrayal focuses on the final year of Donald Trump’s presidency, and while it’s hardly the first book out this year to capture the tumult of 2020, it is an indication that the bombshells and revelations from that White House will continue well into the future.
Following Bob Woodward and Robert Costa’s Peril, Michael C. Bender’s Frankly, We Did Win This Election, and Carol Leonnig and Philip Rucker’s I Alone Can Fix It, Karl’s Betrayal — with the subtitle The Final Act of the Trump Show — breaks new ground, with a heavier emphasis on the election’s aftermath and the storming of the Capitol on January 6. Among the details: The revelation that there was another detailed memo sent to Vice President Mike Pence’s team on how he could overturn the results of the election. This one came from Jenna Ellis, a Trump campaign attorney,...
Following Bob Woodward and Robert Costa’s Peril, Michael C. Bender’s Frankly, We Did Win This Election, and Carol Leonnig and Philip Rucker’s I Alone Can Fix It, Karl’s Betrayal — with the subtitle The Final Act of the Trump Show — breaks new ground, with a heavier emphasis on the election’s aftermath and the storming of the Capitol on January 6. Among the details: The revelation that there was another detailed memo sent to Vice President Mike Pence’s team on how he could overturn the results of the election. This one came from Jenna Ellis, a Trump campaign attorney,...
- 11/26/2021
- by Ted Johnson
- Deadline Film + TV
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) appeared on Face the Nation where he predictably spread lies and disinformation about the 2020 election and absurdly claimed that voter fraud has been a problem ever since the very first election.
The election conversation began when CBS host Margaret Brennan asked Cruz to confirm what Bob Woodward and Robert Costa reported in their book, Peril: that he and Trump spoke on Jan. 6 and that Cruz, who specialized in constitutional law, knew that “there was no congressional authority to overturn the election.” In the book, the authors...
The election conversation began when CBS host Margaret Brennan asked Cruz to confirm what Bob Woodward and Robert Costa reported in their book, Peril: that he and Trump spoke on Jan. 6 and that Cruz, who specialized in constitutional law, knew that “there was no congressional authority to overturn the election.” In the book, the authors...
- 11/21/2021
- by Peter Wade
- Rollingstone.com
Lawyers for former President Donald Trump wrote multiple memos advising ways to overturn the 2020 election. Two previously unreported memos, uncovered by ABC News’ Jonathan Karl, show how heavily the administration pressured then-Vice President Mike Pence to reject Biden’s victory.
Reported for the first time in Karl’s upcoming book, Betrayal, covering the final days of the Trump administration, one memo was authored by Trump campaign lawyer Jenna Ellis. It outlined a plan for Pence to overturn the election: On Jan. 6, Pence would reject the electoral votes from the six...
Reported for the first time in Karl’s upcoming book, Betrayal, covering the final days of the Trump administration, one memo was authored by Trump campaign lawyer Jenna Ellis. It outlined a plan for Pence to overturn the election: On Jan. 6, Pence would reject the electoral votes from the six...
- 11/14/2021
- by Peter Wade
- Rollingstone.com
Your Agent Is a Con Artist: ‘The Beta Test’ Director Jim Cummings Wants to Liberate Indie Filmmaking
The story usually goes like this: Filmmaker delivers promising work, scores an agent, and lets them take charge. Jim Cummings is on a mission to change that. After turning his Sundance-acclaimed short film “Thunder Road” into a feature with crowdfunding, he secured a Sundance Creative Distribution Fellowship grant to support his self-distribution efforts. Eventually, the movie made back its $200,000 production exclusively in France, which exceeded any traditional distribution offers he’d received. The director came out of the experience intent on retaining control of his work without any representation — and eager to convince other filmmakers to do the same.
“Agencies don’t actually care about independent film,” Cummings said in an interview last week. “They care about money and power. The way we make films is by completely circumventing that system.”
Now, Cummings and co-director Pj McCabe have made the case with a new movie. With “The Best Test,” the...
“Agencies don’t actually care about independent film,” Cummings said in an interview last week. “They care about money and power. The way we make films is by completely circumventing that system.”
Now, Cummings and co-director Pj McCabe have made the case with a new movie. With “The Best Test,” the...
- 11/4/2021
- by Eric Kohn
- Indiewire
The evolution of the human race concluded on Wednesday with the mind-blowing finale of American Horror Story: Double Feature, an hour as rich in gore and twists as it was in stunning, timeless kaftans. And if that isn’t this entire franchise in a nutshell, what is?
The fourth and final “Death Valley” installment began in 1972, with Nixon’s presidency in shambles as the American people demanded an end to the Vietnam War. The president’s trusty advisor Valiant Thor reminded him that the war was merely a temporary distraction to keep the public from noticing how many Americans were being abducted.
The fourth and final “Death Valley” installment began in 1972, with Nixon’s presidency in shambles as the American people demanded an end to the Vietnam War. The president’s trusty advisor Valiant Thor reminded him that the war was merely a temporary distraction to keep the public from noticing how many Americans were being abducted.
- 10/21/2021
- by Andy Swift
- TVLine.com
When a group of insurrectionists took the U.S. Capitol Jan. 6 in order to disrupt the counting of electoral votes from the 2020 presidential election, one might have expected the events of the day to resonate, months later, far more than they do. The attack seems at times to be rapidly fading from our cultural memory, a testament to the efficacy of one party’s attempts to hand-wave it away as an enthusiastic and passionate protest that lost control.
Into this cultural forgetting strides HBO’s “Four Hours at the Capitol,” a documentary directed by Jamie Roberts. This documentary presents a tick-tock of the events of the day, complete with so much harrowing footage that it’s hard to watch (and hard to believe Roberts and executive producer Dan Reed were able to marshal). The imagery of destruction and assault is powerful on its own terms; it’s in building the...
Into this cultural forgetting strides HBO’s “Four Hours at the Capitol,” a documentary directed by Jamie Roberts. This documentary presents a tick-tock of the events of the day, complete with so much harrowing footage that it’s hard to watch (and hard to believe Roberts and executive producer Dan Reed were able to marshal). The imagery of destruction and assault is powerful on its own terms; it’s in building the...
- 10/20/2021
- by Daniel D'Addario
- Variety Film + TV
Steve Bannon, President Donald Trump’s former adviser and host of the War Room podcast, is facing a potential criminal contempt charge for refusing to comply with a subpoena brought by the the committee investigating the January 6 siege on the Capitol.
Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Ms), the chairman of the committee, said in a statement on Thursday in which he announced that the select committee would vote on Tuesday whether to adopt a contempt report.
“Mr. Bannon has declined to cooperate with the Select Committee and is instead hiding behind the former President’s insufficient, blanket, and vague statements regarding privileges he has purported to invoke. We reject his position entirely,” Thompson said.
Bannon’s attorney has told the committee that his client would not appear for testimony until the issue of executive privilege is resolved. Trump has asserted executive privilege over records sought by the committee, but the Biden...
Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Ms), the chairman of the committee, said in a statement on Thursday in which he announced that the select committee would vote on Tuesday whether to adopt a contempt report.
“Mr. Bannon has declined to cooperate with the Select Committee and is instead hiding behind the former President’s insufficient, blanket, and vague statements regarding privileges he has purported to invoke. We reject his position entirely,” Thompson said.
Bannon’s attorney has told the committee that his client would not appear for testimony until the issue of executive privilege is resolved. Trump has asserted executive privilege over records sought by the committee, but the Biden...
- 10/14/2021
- by Ted Johnson
- Deadline Film + TV
Exclusive: Cavalry Audio, the podcast arm of Keegan Rosenberger, Dana Brunetti and partner Matt DelPiano’s company, is moving into scripted podcasts with ten-part suspense thriller Verdict.
Spencer Garrett, who played Bob Woodward in Jason Reitman’s The Front Runner and featured in Once Upon A Time in Hollywood and Amazon’s Bosch, is to lead the ensemble cast of the audio series.
Verdict, which will launch on October 19 via the iHeartPodcast Network, centers on a federal investigator who must unravel the mystery behind a murder in a small town.
It tells the story of a murdered high school football star and the Federal Investigator who is brought in to potentially save an innocent man’s life. When the victim’s best friend confesses to the brutal crime that could land him on death row, Investigator Abigail Kaplan must navigate small-town politics, the awesome power of the local Mega Church...
Spencer Garrett, who played Bob Woodward in Jason Reitman’s The Front Runner and featured in Once Upon A Time in Hollywood and Amazon’s Bosch, is to lead the ensemble cast of the audio series.
Verdict, which will launch on October 19 via the iHeartPodcast Network, centers on a federal investigator who must unravel the mystery behind a murder in a small town.
It tells the story of a murdered high school football star and the Federal Investigator who is brought in to potentially save an innocent man’s life. When the victim’s best friend confesses to the brutal crime that could land him on death row, Investigator Abigail Kaplan must navigate small-town politics, the awesome power of the local Mega Church...
- 10/12/2021
- by Peter White
- Deadline Film + TV
Fox News’ Tucker Carlson was talking about Gen. Mark Milley Thursday night when a chyron appeared under him declaring, “This man is a danger to the country.”
Cue the jokes.
‘If the shoe fits…” tweeted Republican commentator Ana Navarro-Cárdenas.
Screenshots of the on-air graphic quickly spread online, circulated by those who didn’t feel the need to re-caption what was already captioned. Others just wrote, “accurate,” or joked that Fox News’ competitors couldn’t have branded him better than his own show inadvertently did.
Carlson was discussing Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and new reporting from Bob Woodward and Robert Costas that he personally moved to stop former president Donald Trump from being able to order military or nuclear action in the wake of the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol.
Carlson does draw millions of viewers each night, breaking ratings records with his primetime program on Fox News.
Cue the jokes.
‘If the shoe fits…” tweeted Republican commentator Ana Navarro-Cárdenas.
Screenshots of the on-air graphic quickly spread online, circulated by those who didn’t feel the need to re-caption what was already captioned. Others just wrote, “accurate,” or joked that Fox News’ competitors couldn’t have branded him better than his own show inadvertently did.
Carlson was discussing Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and new reporting from Bob Woodward and Robert Costas that he personally moved to stop former president Donald Trump from being able to order military or nuclear action in the wake of the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol.
Carlson does draw millions of viewers each night, breaking ratings records with his primetime program on Fox News.
- 9/17/2021
- by Lindsey Ellefson
- The Wrap
“Peril,” by journalists Bob Woodward and Robert Costa, hits shelves next week but is already generating buzz as excerpts and tidbits show what former president Donald Trump’s final days in office were like.
Here are a few takeaways from what has been released so far.
Trump threatened to unfriend former vice president Mike Pence
According to CNN, the book includes details of a meeting between Trump and his vice president on Jan. 5, one day before supporters of the then-president breached the Capitol in a deadly attempt to overturn President Joe Biden’s election win.
Trump’s pressure on Pence to help overturn the election was widely reported at the time, but in the meeting described in the book, the then-president said, “No, no, no! You don’t understand, Mike. You can do this. I don’t want to be your friend anymore if you don’t do this.”
2. Dan Quayle...
Here are a few takeaways from what has been released so far.
Trump threatened to unfriend former vice president Mike Pence
According to CNN, the book includes details of a meeting between Trump and his vice president on Jan. 5, one day before supporters of the then-president breached the Capitol in a deadly attempt to overturn President Joe Biden’s election win.
Trump’s pressure on Pence to help overturn the election was widely reported at the time, but in the meeting described in the book, the then-president said, “No, no, no! You don’t understand, Mike. You can do this. I don’t want to be your friend anymore if you don’t do this.”
2. Dan Quayle...
- 9/16/2021
- by Lindsey Ellefson
- The Wrap
“The Late Show With Stephen Colbert” opened Wednesday’s episode with a gag that channeled the classic cartoon “Johnny Quest” to mock former Vice President Mike Pence.
The background? Pence received a lot of praise earlier this year for refusing to go along with Donald Trump’s attempts to overthrow the government based on lies about voter fraud. Particularly because his decision not to contest certification of Joe Biden’s victory made him a target for execution by the Trump-incited mob that attacked the Capitol on Jan. 6 shouting “Hang Mike Pence.”
Alas, it turns out people may have been too generous in their estimation of Pence. One of the big revelations this week from Bob Woodward and Robert Costa’s upcoming book “Peril” is that Pence actually wanted, very badly, to help Donald Trump throw out the election and undemocratically install himself in a second term in office. According to the Washington Post,...
The background? Pence received a lot of praise earlier this year for refusing to go along with Donald Trump’s attempts to overthrow the government based on lies about voter fraud. Particularly because his decision not to contest certification of Joe Biden’s victory made him a target for execution by the Trump-incited mob that attacked the Capitol on Jan. 6 shouting “Hang Mike Pence.”
Alas, it turns out people may have been too generous in their estimation of Pence. One of the big revelations this week from Bob Woodward and Robert Costa’s upcoming book “Peril” is that Pence actually wanted, very badly, to help Donald Trump throw out the election and undemocratically install himself in a second term in office. According to the Washington Post,...
- 9/16/2021
- by Ross A. Lincoln
- The Wrap
The hosts of “The View” clashed on Wednesday morning over whether U.S. General Mark A. Milley committed treason during the final days of Donald Trump’s presidency. For hosts Sara Haines and Sunny Hostin, the answer was a firm yes.
According to a new book by Washington Post associate editor Bob Woodward and national political reporter Robert Costa, the Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Milley was so worried about Trump’s mental state and anger management skills after his 2020 election loss, that he called his counterpart in China twice to assure him that the United States would not initiate a nuclear strike — and promised to alert them if it did happen.
For “The View” host Sunny Hostin, this was too blatant a disregard for the chain of command, even though she was also admittedly worried about what Trump might do.
“I think that, you break command in that way,...
According to a new book by Washington Post associate editor Bob Woodward and national political reporter Robert Costa, the Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Milley was so worried about Trump’s mental state and anger management skills after his 2020 election loss, that he called his counterpart in China twice to assure him that the United States would not initiate a nuclear strike — and promised to alert them if it did happen.
For “The View” host Sunny Hostin, this was too blatant a disregard for the chain of command, even though she was also admittedly worried about what Trump might do.
“I think that, you break command in that way,...
- 9/15/2021
- by Andi Ortiz
- The Wrap
MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” hosts balked on Tuesday at reports that President Trump considered holding Americans who had contracted Covid-19 abroad at Guantanamo Bay.
On Monday, excerpts from Washington Post journalists Yasmeen Abutaleb and Damian Paletta’s upcoming book “Nightmare Scenario” were published in the paper, including the above account from early in Trump administration’s response to the pandemic. Host Willie Geist read some excerpts aloud on air.
“Don’t we have an island that we own?” Trump reportedly asked in a Feb 2020 Situation Room meeting detailed in the book. “What about Guantanamo?”
“We import goods, we’re not going to import a virus,” Trump reportedly added. Aides, per the book, shot that down, given that’s the location where the United States holds people suspected of terrorism.
As Geist read through the passage, Joe Scarborough quipped “too late” and laughed. Co-host Mika Brzezinski reminded the panelists and viewers...
On Monday, excerpts from Washington Post journalists Yasmeen Abutaleb and Damian Paletta’s upcoming book “Nightmare Scenario” were published in the paper, including the above account from early in Trump administration’s response to the pandemic. Host Willie Geist read some excerpts aloud on air.
“Don’t we have an island that we own?” Trump reportedly asked in a Feb 2020 Situation Room meeting detailed in the book. “What about Guantanamo?”
“We import goods, we’re not going to import a virus,” Trump reportedly added. Aides, per the book, shot that down, given that’s the location where the United States holds people suspected of terrorism.
As Geist read through the passage, Joe Scarborough quipped “too late” and laughed. Co-host Mika Brzezinski reminded the panelists and viewers...
- 6/22/2021
- by Lindsey Ellefson
- The Wrap
Former Vice President Mike Pence is writing his autobiography, signing with Simon & Schuster to publish his memoirs that will cover his life from Columbus, Indiana, to governor to his tenure as Donald Trump’s vice president.
The publisher said that they signed a two-book deal with Pence, with the first book tentatively scheduled to be published in 2023. Pence was represented by David Vigliano and Thomas Flannery of Vigliano Associates.
In a statement, Pence said, “I am grateful to have the opportunity to tell the story of my life in public service to the American people, from serving in Congress, to the Indiana Governor’s office and as Vice President of the United States.”
Dana Canedy, senior vice president and publisher of Simon & Schuster, said that Pence’s “revelatory autobiography will be the definitive book on one of the most consequential presidencies in American history.”
A slew of books will...
The publisher said that they signed a two-book deal with Pence, with the first book tentatively scheduled to be published in 2023. Pence was represented by David Vigliano and Thomas Flannery of Vigliano Associates.
In a statement, Pence said, “I am grateful to have the opportunity to tell the story of my life in public service to the American people, from serving in Congress, to the Indiana Governor’s office and as Vice President of the United States.”
Dana Canedy, senior vice president and publisher of Simon & Schuster, said that Pence’s “revelatory autobiography will be the definitive book on one of the most consequential presidencies in American history.”
A slew of books will...
- 4/7/2021
- by Ted Johnson
- Deadline Film + TV
G. Gordon Liddy, a central Watergate figure who spent more than four years in prison but went on to appear in a number of TV series, a few films and hosted a radio talk show for two decades, died Tuesday in Virginia, his son Thomas told media outlets. He was 90.
Unrepentant till the end, the imposing, mustachioed Liddy led the “Plumbers,” President Nixon’s secret White House group, but was not among those caught burglarizing the Democratic National Committee headquarters at the Watergate complex in June 1972. Still, he was tried on conspiracy and burglary charges as the mastermind of the scheme. Also convicted of refusing to testify at the Watergate hearings, he served more than 51 months in federal prison.
He famously did not implicate Nixon, but the 37th president of the United States was forced to resign in August 1974 amid the growing scandal.
Liddy is referenced — but his character did...
Unrepentant till the end, the imposing, mustachioed Liddy led the “Plumbers,” President Nixon’s secret White House group, but was not among those caught burglarizing the Democratic National Committee headquarters at the Watergate complex in June 1972. Still, he was tried on conspiracy and burglary charges as the mastermind of the scheme. Also convicted of refusing to testify at the Watergate hearings, he served more than 51 months in federal prison.
He famously did not implicate Nixon, but the 37th president of the United States was forced to resign in August 1974 amid the growing scandal.
Liddy is referenced — but his character did...
- 3/31/2021
- by Erik Pedersen
- Deadline Film + TV
Dr. Deborah Birx, coordinator of the White House’s coronavirus task force under Trump, says the former president’s response to the virus caused hundreds of thousands to die.
In a new CNN documentary set to air on Sunday night, Birx said the initial wave of deaths caused by covid-19 in the US were mostly unpreventable, but the majority of deaths following the first 100,000 “could have been mitigated or decreased substantially.”
“I look at it this way: The first time, we have an excuse. There were about 100,000 deaths that came from that original surge,...
In a new CNN documentary set to air on Sunday night, Birx said the initial wave of deaths caused by covid-19 in the US were mostly unpreventable, but the majority of deaths following the first 100,000 “could have been mitigated or decreased substantially.”
“I look at it this way: The first time, we have an excuse. There were about 100,000 deaths that came from that original surge,...
- 3/28/2021
- by Peter Wade
- Rollingstone.com
Exclusive: The Matthew Miele-directed documentary Alan Pakula: Going For Truth is going out to distributors to give a posthumous appraisal of an understated filmmaker who directed some of the most seminal films of his era.
Pakula was killed in a freak accident in 1998, when a metal pipe was turned into a deadly projectile on the Long Island Expressway after a car in front him ran it over and sent it airborne. The object smashed through the windshield of Pakula’s black Volvo station wagon and struck him in the head, killing him instantly at age 70.
Pakula’s passing stunned Hollywood at the time. The film, which was first revealed by Deadline in 2017 and which played last fall at an AFI tribute to the director, celebrates the iconic works that Pakula left behind. That includes the films All The President’s Men, The Parallax View, Klute, Sophie’s Choice, Presumed Innocent, Consenting Adults and The Pelican Brief.
Pakula was killed in a freak accident in 1998, when a metal pipe was turned into a deadly projectile on the Long Island Expressway after a car in front him ran it over and sent it airborne. The object smashed through the windshield of Pakula’s black Volvo station wagon and struck him in the head, killing him instantly at age 70.
Pakula’s passing stunned Hollywood at the time. The film, which was first revealed by Deadline in 2017 and which played last fall at an AFI tribute to the director, celebrates the iconic works that Pakula left behind. That includes the films All The President’s Men, The Parallax View, Klute, Sophie’s Choice, Presumed Innocent, Consenting Adults and The Pelican Brief.
- 2/17/2021
- by Mike Fleming Jr
- Deadline Film + TV
Larry King, the broadcast legend who died Saturday at the age of 87, deserves more credit than he typically gets for helping to build CNN and realize Ted Turner’s audacious vision for a 24-hour global news network.
In his prime, King’s “Larry King Live” interviews regularly made headlines thanks to his unique questioning style, which could be remarkably incisive about the subject at hand as well as, occasionally, cringe-worthy misinformed. As CNN gained prominence in the late 1980s and ’90s, King’s show became one of the hottest stops on the TV circuit for newsmakers, political leaders, captains of industry, crusading activists and celebrities, ranging from Barbra Streisand and Liza Minnelli to Donald Trump and Oprah Winfrey to Suzanne Somers and Barbara Eden.
The variety of King’s guests and the fact that it went out live every night at 9 p.m. Et/6 p.m. Pt gave the show extra sizzle.
In his prime, King’s “Larry King Live” interviews regularly made headlines thanks to his unique questioning style, which could be remarkably incisive about the subject at hand as well as, occasionally, cringe-worthy misinformed. As CNN gained prominence in the late 1980s and ’90s, King’s show became one of the hottest stops on the TV circuit for newsmakers, political leaders, captains of industry, crusading activists and celebrities, ranging from Barbra Streisand and Liza Minnelli to Donald Trump and Oprah Winfrey to Suzanne Somers and Barbara Eden.
The variety of King’s guests and the fact that it went out live every night at 9 p.m. Et/6 p.m. Pt gave the show extra sizzle.
- 1/23/2021
- by Cynthia Littleton
- Variety Film + TV
Updated with video: Neon’s documentary Totally Under Control paints a devastating picture of the Trump administration’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic.
“There are moments that we look at in the film where the administration could have sort of righted the ship, released more funds, released the Defense Production Act to get more companies making more PPE, and that didn’t happen,” co-director Suzanne Hillinger says during Deadline’s Contenders Documentary awards-season event. “We’re still seeing effects of that now, unfortunately.”
Oscar winner Alex Gibney, Ophelia Harutyunyan and Hillinger joined forces to direct the film, springing into action to release it by October. “We moved at lightning speed,” Gibney says. “All three of us were working nonstop.”
Gibney was asked whether the administration’s failures resulted from incompetence or willful negligence.
“It was clearly incompetence because the Trump administration had playbooks…that they themselves designed…for exactly what...
“There are moments that we look at in the film where the administration could have sort of righted the ship, released more funds, released the Defense Production Act to get more companies making more PPE, and that didn’t happen,” co-director Suzanne Hillinger says during Deadline’s Contenders Documentary awards-season event. “We’re still seeing effects of that now, unfortunately.”
Oscar winner Alex Gibney, Ophelia Harutyunyan and Hillinger joined forces to direct the film, springing into action to release it by October. “We moved at lightning speed,” Gibney says. “All three of us were working nonstop.”
Gibney was asked whether the administration’s failures resulted from incompetence or willful negligence.
“It was clearly incompetence because the Trump administration had playbooks…that they themselves designed…for exactly what...
- 1/10/2021
- by Matthew Carey
- Deadline Film + TV
Director R.J. Cutler was in the early stages of working on his Showtime documentary Belushi, about the late comedian John Belushi, when he experienced a breakthrough. It came courtesy of Judy Belushi-Pisano, John’s widow, who kept an archive of material at her home on Martha’s Vineyard.
“It was there we found these remarkable letters that John had written throughout his life…And we found these boxes in which were kept audiotapes and videotapes that comprised an oral history that Judy had put together,” Cutler says during Deadline’s Contenders Documentary event. “From that treasure trove…I realized we have the foundations of a film.”
The tapes contained interviews with Belushi’s closest friends and co-workers, recorded in the 1980s to counter Bob Woodward’s depiction of Belushi in his book Wired, which the family had felt misrepresented the star.
“These tapes…had that immediacy, they had that rawness,...
“It was there we found these remarkable letters that John had written throughout his life…And we found these boxes in which were kept audiotapes and videotapes that comprised an oral history that Judy had put together,” Cutler says during Deadline’s Contenders Documentary event. “From that treasure trove…I realized we have the foundations of a film.”
The tapes contained interviews with Belushi’s closest friends and co-workers, recorded in the 1980s to counter Bob Woodward’s depiction of Belushi in his book Wired, which the family had felt misrepresented the star.
“These tapes…had that immediacy, they had that rawness,...
- 1/10/2021
- by Matthew Carey
- Deadline Film + TV
Updated with Hawley response: Senator Josh Hawley responded Thursday to what he called “the woke mob” at Simon & Schuster, which earlier in the day announced it was canceling publication of his upcoming book, calling the move “Orwellian.”
“This is not just a contract dispute. It’s a direct assault on the First Amendment, Only approved speech can now be published. This is the Left looking to cancel everyone they don’t approve of. I will fight this cancel culture with everything I have. We’ll see you in court,” he tweeted.
Publisher Simon & Schuster announced it will no longer publish Hawlye’s The Tyranny of Big Tech after “witnessing the disturbing, deadly insurrection that took place yesterday in Washington, D.C.”
“As a publisher, it will always be our mission to amplify a variety of voices and viewpoints: at the same time we take seriously our larger public responsibility...
“This is not just a contract dispute. It’s a direct assault on the First Amendment, Only approved speech can now be published. This is the Left looking to cancel everyone they don’t approve of. I will fight this cancel culture with everything I have. We’ll see you in court,” he tweeted.
Publisher Simon & Schuster announced it will no longer publish Hawlye’s The Tyranny of Big Tech after “witnessing the disturbing, deadly insurrection that took place yesterday in Washington, D.C.”
“As a publisher, it will always be our mission to amplify a variety of voices and viewpoints: at the same time we take seriously our larger public responsibility...
- 1/8/2021
- by Jill Goldsmith
- Deadline Film + TV
Wonder Woman 1984 is only the latest in a long line of movies that have ventured into the District of Columbia to capture the backdrop of monuments and neoclassical architecture. But the mega pic is relatively rare in that is uses locations in the Dmv — the moniker used to denote the greater metro area of the district and parts of Maryland and Virginia — so extensively. Rather, D.C. typically is used for establishing shots and much of the rest of principal photography is shot elsewhere.
What’s even more unusual is for D.C. to be used for projects that have little to do with politics or government, but have used the city and its surroundings for its sense of place.
There are hopes that it is changing.
D.C. reinstated a film production tax credit several years ago, and although it is not as generous as states like Georgia, it is not insignificant.
What’s even more unusual is for D.C. to be used for projects that have little to do with politics or government, but have used the city and its surroundings for its sense of place.
There are hopes that it is changing.
D.C. reinstated a film production tax credit several years ago, and although it is not as generous as states like Georgia, it is not insignificant.
- 1/3/2021
- by Ted Johnson
- Deadline Film + TV
At nearly the end of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris’ first joint interview since the election, the vice president elect told CNN’s Jake Tapper that “there couldn’t be a more extreme exercise in stark contrast between the current occupant of the White House, and the next occupant of the White House.”
That almost goes without saying, but it is perhaps more true this week than any other.
Just a day ago, the current occupant, President Donald Trump, released a 46-minute video, full of unfounded election fraud claims and conspiracy theories, that Bob Woodward said was “one of the most bizarre permeances I have ever seen.” After the interview with Biden and Harris, which ran for almost an hour in primetime, Tapper and CNN’s Don Lemon talked of how “normal” the conversation with the two was, i.e. no theatrics or cringeworthy moments.
Trump still has not conceded the election,...
That almost goes without saying, but it is perhaps more true this week than any other.
Just a day ago, the current occupant, President Donald Trump, released a 46-minute video, full of unfounded election fraud claims and conspiracy theories, that Bob Woodward said was “one of the most bizarre permeances I have ever seen.” After the interview with Biden and Harris, which ran for almost an hour in primetime, Tapper and CNN’s Don Lemon talked of how “normal” the conversation with the two was, i.e. no theatrics or cringeworthy moments.
Trump still has not conceded the election,...
- 12/4/2020
- by Ted Johnson
- Deadline Film + TV
German media giant Bertelsmann has set a deal with ViacomCBS to acquire publishing unit Simon & Schuster for $2.17 billion in cash.
Bertelsmann, owner of publishing giant Penguin Random House, was seen as a logical contender for Simon & Schuster. ViacomCBS announced its intent to sell the publishing arm earlier this year as part of the company’s post-merger streamlining to focus on content investment.
Simon & Schuster will operate as a separate unit under the Penguin Random House umbrella. Jonathan Karp, president-ceo of Simon & Schuster, and Dennis Eulau, chief operating officer and chief financial officer, will continue to lead the division. The deal is expected to close next year.
ViacomCBS said it would use the proceeds from the sale to pay down debt, fund its dividend and to invest in “strategic growth priorities.” ViacomCBS chief Bob Bakish in March told investors that Simon & Schuster had attracted interest from 25 bidders. Bertelsmann was believed...
Bertelsmann, owner of publishing giant Penguin Random House, was seen as a logical contender for Simon & Schuster. ViacomCBS announced its intent to sell the publishing arm earlier this year as part of the company’s post-merger streamlining to focus on content investment.
Simon & Schuster will operate as a separate unit under the Penguin Random House umbrella. Jonathan Karp, president-ceo of Simon & Schuster, and Dennis Eulau, chief operating officer and chief financial officer, will continue to lead the division. The deal is expected to close next year.
ViacomCBS said it would use the proceeds from the sale to pay down debt, fund its dividend and to invest in “strategic growth priorities.” ViacomCBS chief Bob Bakish in March told investors that Simon & Schuster had attracted interest from 25 bidders. Bertelsmann was believed...
- 11/25/2020
- by Cynthia Littleton
- Variety Film + TV
Oregon governor Kate Brown, until Friday, could not get President Donald Trump on the phone. She noted this the day before, when she also revealed her state has never seen this amount of uncontained wildfire. The skies have turned into a literal hellscape and more than one million acres have burned to date, double what the state normally sees in a year. Right now, about half a million Oregonians are facing evacuation orders. At least five people there have died, and dozens more are missing. And yet, the White House...
- 9/12/2020
- by Jamil Smith
- Rollingstone.com
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