YAHOO gives us: An Oral History of 'Stephen King's It'

This article from Yahoo is a great insight into the making of the mini-series, IT.  (www.yahoo.com/tv)

Ethan Altar writes in his introduction to a series of interviews, "Twenty-five years later, Stephen King’s It still has the power to push its way into your slumbering mind in the dead of night, filling it with nightmarish visions of fortune cookies stuffed with eyeballs, balloons filled with blood and clowns with razor-sharp teeth."

Well, unfortunately -- not really.  But I wish that's how it was, so let's pretend that's reality.  (The truth is, the second half of the film is terrible.)

The Participants (In Alphabetical Order)
Dennis Christopher (Eddie Kaspbrak)
Larry Cohen (Screenwriter)
Stephen King (Author)
Bart Mixon (Special Makeup Effects Supervisor)
Annette O’Toole (Beverly Marsh)
Emily Perkins (Young Beverly Marsh)
Tim Reid (Mike Hanlon)
Marlon Taylor (Young Mike Hanlon)
Tommy Lee Wallace (Director)
Gene Warren Jr. (Special Visual Effects Supervisor)

A few of my favorite insights:

• ABC was always nervous about It, primarily the fact that it was in the horror genre, but also the eight-to-ten hour commitment. They loved the piece, but lost their nerve in terms of how many hours they were willing to commit. Eventually, they were agreed to a two-night, four-hour commitment and at that point, a couple of things happened. 
• His script for Night 2 wasn’t nearly as successful, in my opinion. For reasons of his own, he had completely moved away from the plotting of the book, and created a much smaller story, a very interior melodrama focusing on Beverly’s husband as the ultimate bad guy, or something to that effect. (That explains a lot)
• Most of the adult casting was “telephone” casting, which is, “No need to audition so-and-so for the role, they’d be brilliant.“
• Casting the kids came after casting the adults.
• Obviously the piece of casting that worked the best in the show was Tim Curry as Pennywise. (King)
• The movie, really, is only as good as its villain, and Tim carved out a place for himself as one of the great movie villains of all time.
• Filmed over two to three months on location in Vancouver, It proved a demanding shoot

. . . a lot more interesting stuff here.  Check out the article.  You'll like it.

Even More Shawshank Facts You Didn't Know

GIFs created by Lisa Aileen Dragan

It seems every day I see postings about The Shawshank Redemption.  The movie is a true American gem.  Because it is so popular, every bit of minutia is dug up.  And, truth is -- it's all kind of cool.

Archana Ram at yahoo.com posted an article today titled, "13 Things You Didn't Know About 'The Shawshank Redemption'

• Morgan Freeman’s son makes a cameo.  On Red’s parole papers, that’s not a picture of an extra, but Freeman’s son, Alfonso, who’d come to set often with his father. He also appears as a rowdy prisoner when Andy first enters the yard.
• What Happened to Rita Hayworth? (But I did know that)
• King never cashed the $5,000 check he got for the movie.
• Freeman suggested Robbins for the role of Andy.
• Remember when Red was white and Irish? Darabont made some changes.The director took some dramatic license, the most important of which was changing Red from an Irishman to an African-American. “Once I got over my preconception of what the character was, it became such a good choice,” Darabont says on the DVD. “[Freeman] has become indelible in the role.” (In fact, when Andy asks him why he’s called “Red,” Red quips, “Maybe it’s because I’m Irish.” Darabont chose not to change the line.)
• Real wardens played extras.
• Morgan Freeman pitched that baseball for nine hours.
• Robbins did some time in solitary for research.
• ‘Goodfellas' was one of Darabont’s inspirations.
• Freeman had to record his voiceover over again from scratch
• The opera scene was a memento from Darabont’s writing process.
• That water Andy crawls through was toxic.
• The final scene on the beach was a late addition.

The full article is at yahoo.com/movies

Is Pennywise In New York?

How  would you like to encounter this clown on the side of the road?  A pennywise-eque clown is making his rounds through New York's Staten Island.  What is the clown doing -- handing out balloons, of course.  Nothing harmful in that, right?  Well, as yahoo reports, people are actually pretty freaked out! (FULL STORY: yahoo.com/blogs)

The people who live in the New York City borough are not thrilled with their new addition. Robert Privtera, who took a picture of our friend, told the Advance, “Bro, I did a double take. My heart stopped." Vincent Innocente characterized it as bizarre. People are taking to Twitter and voicing their concern as well…

Pennywise has been making a lot of sightings lately, including on google maps and in England.

From my September 17, 2013 article:
PENNYWISE IS ALIVE:

Pennywise might have been chased off from Derry Maine, but he's not dead!  The evil clown has been making appearances throughout the United Kingdom borough of Northampton.

Shea Bennett of Media Bistro says, "Residents are, as you’d imagine, spooked, and you can understand why – imagine seeing this guy standing outside your window?"

Indeed, the clown has become so popular that a Facebook Page erected on Friday has already picked up more than 25,000 Likes, with the clown using Facebook to update fans, as well as fend off a few slightly sensationalised reports. 

As for why he’s doing all of this, that still remains unclear. But, as we can see from the photos, he has balloons. So, I guess the only question that really matters, is…

(Source: www.mediabistro.com)

Now. . . a question --  If you saw Pennywise,  would you pause to take a picture?  Well, I probably would.  But I don't think I'd have the courage to go up and say howdy.  Just for fear of hearing him say, "They float!"

And -- another question -- does anyone think the British Pennywise is perhaps a bit more, eh, scary than  the American versions?  I don't know why,  but I find that clown just flat out creepy.  And that's not to put down Curry's performance in the mini-series.  In fact, it's probably good Curry didn't look that scary, or I would have died watching it.

First Images Of CELL Movie Hit Internet

From uk.movies.yahoo.com :

It's hardly the most revealing image ever, but the photo - which premiered at Blairwitch.de - shows the key players John Cusack, Samuel L Jackson, Isabelle Fuhrman and Owen Teague, all looking a bit cold judging by those hats, scarves and coats - and all of them seeming a wee bit concerned about something. 

'The Shining' Twins All Grown Up

Yahoo Celebrity TV notes, 

The siblings were just 12 years old when they terrified moviegoers in 1980, but today the 46-year-old sisters lead a rather normal life. And while they still look frighteningly similar, they barely resemble the creepy handholding sisters who lurked around the Overlook Hotel. "The Shining" was their final film. Lisa went on to study literature, and Louise became a microbiologist. 

Today the twins are active on social media and make regular appearances at horror conventions. Check out the vid to see what the Grady sisters look like nowadays, and be sure to tune in to "The Insider" on TV tonight for the latest in entertainment news.

Full story at: celebrity.yahoo.com

I'm Thinking. . . LIBRARY POLICE!

yahoo.com has  posted news that a Copperas Cove man was arrested for not returning his library book.
ulie Lehmann of the Copperas Cove Police Department said they don't hunt down people with overdue books, they just snag them when they are at a traffic stop or have some other reason to come in contact with these criminals.

The article gives these examples of good  folk arrested for overdue books:

• Christopher Anspach pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 10 days in jail. He also was required to pay a $625 fine and "restitution for the materials."
• In 2011, an Iowa man was arrested for failure to return roughly $700 worth of items from his local branch. 
• And. . . in 2012, police went to the home of 4-year-old Katelyn Jageman to investigate four books that had not been returned. Fortunately, Katelyn stayed out of prison, but her mother was asked to pay an $81.60 fine. The books, which included "Dora the Explorer: The Halloween Cat," were also returned, according to KDKA.

So next time it takes forty five minutes for police to respond to a 911 call -- guess what they're doing. . .

1976 Carrie Still Scares

Stephen king's Carrie is on a list of yahoo movies 9 scariest movie endings.

.

"Carrie" (1976)Carrie White made short work of her prom, a few cars, and a gas station before turning her psychic fury onto her Bible-thumping mama and really bringing the house down. Even though she seemingly met her demise under all the burning rubble, Carrie's still the stuff of nightmares as she ensures that Sue Snell (Amy Irving) will never have sweet dreams for the rest of her life. You can keep your damn flowers, lady

I think the end of the new Carrie did not come anywhere close to the strength of the original.

Also on the list: Blair Witch Project, Candyman, The Descent, The Evil Dead, Friday the 13th (yes!), A Nightmare on Elm Street, Rec, Scream.

Check out the yahoo movies article by Karen Warner which compares the "old Carrie" to the "new Carrie." movies.yahoo.com

Warner breaks it down for us nice and simple.  She also really likes the film!

Key differences Warner notes:

• Contemporary Humiliation
• Age-Appropriate Actors
• Variations on Mom
• More Death! More Destruction!
• A Telekinetic Takeoff
• Survivor Pool

There's an article that goes with these simple points -- so read it!

When discussing the death and destruction, Warner says, "“In Stephen King's novella she destroys half the town and Kimberly Peirce's new version hints at that more than the De Palma one (though neither film really recaptures the scope of the book's ending).”  (NOVELLA?!)

Carrie's Bullies Are Meaner Than Ever

Hey, check out Derrik j. Lang's article titled, "An updated 'Carrie' for the digital age New Blood: An updated 'Carrie' incorporates online bullying, special effects (finance.yahoo.com)

It seems the updated Carrie has some painful new twists -- smartphones and internet.  Not only must Carrie endure teasing, it is replayed over and over after being uploaded to the internet.

Lang quotes Moretz, who seems to think that Carrie would not have gone nuts if it weren't for the video. "I do think she would have walked out of that gym, gone home, cried and been fine — figured her life and moved back into her shell. Without the video, I don't think the telekinesis would've taken over her body." WAIT A MINUTE!  There was no video the first billion times this story was filmed -- and she still nuked the school.  And, there is the small matter of the book.  Did Moretz read the book?  See, there was no video in the book, and her telekinesis did take over.  We do get to see what would happen if Carrie weren't videoed, because that's what happened in every other version!  And, guess what -- it never ever ever ever ever plays out the way Moretz thinks it would have.

Uhhhh. .  . "With the aid of computer-generated effects" great.  Call George Lucas.

But, there's hope:

The filmmakers focused more on the novel than the original film, with screenwriter and "Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark" playwright Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa incorporating additional elements from King's book. 

I kept going back to Stephen King's impetus for writing the book, and that's how damaging isolation can be to people." 

Yahoo Lists Under The Dome One Of The Hottest Shows This Summer

shine.yahoo.com has decided to help us find what's worth watching this Summer.  "Forget summer reading!  Haha teachers!" Ali Wentworth declares.  I don't know if I'm going to do that.  In fact, I'm paying my kids to read the Little House series this summer -- so take that Ali!
First up, Under the Dome!

Nikki Boyer, host of Daytime in No Time, offers her  take on what's worth our time.

What should you watch if it’s a rainy day and you don’t feel like getting out of bed? Under the Dome on CBS, a sci-fi series about a town cut off from the rest of the world by a mysterious barrier. “It’s putting a microscope on what we would do as a society if this really happened,” Nikki says.

Boyer tells Wentworth under  the Dome is "awesome!"  Wentworth then points out that this is kind of like the Truman Show.  Interesting, since our family watched that this weekend, and I had the same thought.  Only, in Truman Show, everyone knows what's up except poor Truman.  In UTD, they're all in it together.

YAHOO: Who Was Stephen King's Inspiration for His 'Under the Dome' Villain?

Check out this yahoo article on Big Jim, titled, "Who Was Stephen King's Inspiration for His 'Under the Dome' Villain?"  (tv.yahoo.com)

Kelly Woo writes,

If the villain of "Under the Dome," which premiered to an audience of 13.14 million viewers making it the most-watched summer drama on any network since 1992, seems familiar, it's because he's based on former Vice President Dick Cheney.

and,

Norris revealed, "Stephen King whispered in my ear, 'You're Dick Cheney. That's who you are.'"

Yep, Big Jim is Cheney in King's view.  

 With recent developments of the government spying -- I wonder if Big Jim might have a broader context than first offered.

Carrie Trailer

The new Carrie trailer is out.  Looks great!  (http://movies.yahoo.com)

MAINE: Girl Rewarded For Returning Lost Money

Hey, check out Susan B. Weir's article on YAHOO (Shine) titled, Maine Girls Returns Lost Money, Gains Awesome Reward" (HERE)  The girls  name is Abbie Jacobson.

How cool is it. . . it comes from SHINE.