ELVIS PRESLEY made 31 movies, from Love Me Tender (1956) through Change of Habit (1969)
He also has 349 soundtrack credits
 
His co-stars included actresses such as: Angela Lansbury, Ann-Margret, Barbara Eden (Jeannie in “I Dream of Jeannie”), Barbara Stanwyck, Carolyn Jones (Morticia in “The Addams Family”), Delores del Rio, Donna Douglas (Elly May in “The Beverly Hillbillies”), Hope Lange, Joan Blondell, Mary Tyler Moore, Maureen Reagan (daughter of Ronald), Nancy Sinatra,  Shelley Fabares (Christine on “Coach”), Sue Ane Langdon, Tuesday Weld, Ursula Andress
 
And actors such as: Bill Bixby, Burgess Meredith, Charles Bronson, Dabney Coleman, Dick Sargent, Ed Asner, Gig Young, Harry Morgan, Jack Albertson, John Carradine, Leif Erikson, Rudy Vallee, Vincent Price, Walter Matthau
 
He starred in films directed by Michael Curtiz (known for Casablanca) and Don Siegel (known for Dirty Harry) , and had NINE of his films directed by Norman Taurog.  Taurog became the youngest to win a Best Director Oscar at age 32 for Skippy (1931).  His final Elvis film Live a Little, Love a Little (1968) was also his final film as a director.
 
Elvis’ long-time manager, Col. Tom Parker, made him turn down the role in A Star is Born (1976), when the producers refused to give him equal billing with Barbra Streisand.  Kris Kristofferson took the role instead.  Elvis died a year after the movie was released.

 ZOOEY DESCHANEL has struck TV gold with her new comedy series “New Girl”
 
Previously she was best known as “the Queen of Indies” due to the number of independent and arthouse films she was part of.  It started with Mumford (1999) and Almost Famous (2000), and her status jumped after Elf (2003) and again in 2009 with (500) Days of Summer.
 
Zooey was born into a show-biz family.  Her father Caleb Deschanel is a 5 time Academy Award nominated cinematographer (The Right Stuff, The Natural, The Passion of the Christ) and her mother Mary Jo Deschanel is an actress best known for the TV series “Twin Peaks” (she was also Annie Glenn in The Right Stuff).  Of course, her older sister is Emily Deschanel, the star of the long running TV series “Bones”.
 
According to her parents, they named her for the lead male character in the novel “Franny and Zooey” by J.D. Salinger.
 
Zooey’s two year marriage to Ben Gibbard of Death Cab for Cutie recently ended in divorce.
 
She is half of the indie musical duo, She & Him, with M. Ward
 
She currently has no new movies in the works as she concentrates on her hit TV series

 YUL BRENNER was born in Russia and came to the US in 1941.
 
In 1959, Mary Martin (Larry Hagman‘s mother) recommended Brenner for the lead Rodgers and Hammerstein’s new Broadway production, “The King and I”.  He went on to also star in the film version in 1956 with Deborah Kerr, and he won an Oscar for Best Actor.  Mr. Brenner had a strong film career, while being most associated with his clean-shaven head.
 
He played Rameses against Charleston Heston‘s Moses in The Ten Commandments (1956)
 
In 1960, he was one of The Magnificent Seven … with Steve McQueen, Robert Vaughn, Charles Bronson, James Coburn, Brad Dexter, and Horst Bucholz
 
In the 70′s he returned to the stage and, for the rest of his life, he toured the world performing “The King and I”.
 
One of only eight actors to have won both a Tony and an Oscar for having portrayed the same roles on stage and screen. The others are Joel Grey in Cabaret (1972), Shirley Booth in Come Back, Little Sheba (1952), Rex Harrison in My Fair Lady  (1964), Anne Bancroft in The Miracle Worker (1962), Paul Scofield in A Man for All Seasons (1966), Jose Ferrer in Cyrano de Bergerac (1950) and Jack Albertson in The Subject Was Roses (1968).

Mr. Brenner died of lung cancer in 1985 at the age of 65.

“X-MEN” originated in comic form through Marvel.  They first appeared in September 1963 and were created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby.
 
Many have written of the analogy of minority groups as represented by the mutants … and the subsequent sociological issues within.
 
The most recent film franchsise began with X-Men (2000) and X2 (2003), both directed by Bryan Singer.  Mr. Singer also directed an instant classic before he was thirty years old, The Usual Suspects (1995). Next up in the series was X-Men: The Last Stand (2006), directed by Brett Ratner.  Then came two prequels: X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009), and X-Men: First Class (2011), directed by Gavin Hood and Matthew Vaughn respectively.
 
It has been reported that each of the two prequels will turn into their own trilogy (which would mean four new movies in the franchise).  Wolverine has already been announced for 2013.
 
The five X-Men films have grossed more than $1.3 billion worldwide, making it one of the most successful franchises in history.

WES ANDERSON is the writer and director of such off-beat films as: Rushmore (1998), The Royal Tenenbaums (2001), Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009)
 
His roommate at The University of Texas was Owen Wilson.  They have since collaborated on most of Mr. Anderson’s films.
 
His next film is Moonrise Kingdom and does not include Owen Wilson.  Instead Mr. Anderson co-wrote the script with Roman Coppola (son of Francis Ford and brother of Sophia).  Expected release date is May 25, 2012

Two positive things stand out for me in the film. Young Thomas Horn as Oskar Schell is an interesting and talented newcomer, and someone I enjoyed watching on screen for most of two hours. Approximately 70 years his senior, Max von Sydow is captivating as the speechless “Renter” from Oskar’s grandmother’s apartment. The two are quite an entertaining pairing on their road-trip through NYC.

 The basic story is that Oskar’s father (Tom Hanks) is one of the victims of the WTC attacks. Through flashbacks we see that he was a world-class father to Oskar, who may very well be inflicted with Asperger’s Syndrome. Either way, Oskar is intelligent way beyond his years and possesses quite a curious and analytical mind. When his father dies, Oskar is convinced he can make sense of things by finding the lock that fits a key he found in his father’s closet. He assumes it’s another puzzle his father laid out for him with the only clue being “Black” written on the envelope.

While it is interesting to see how Oskar organizes his mission of contacting the 472 Black’s noted in the NYC phone book, it seems mostly a writing trick to get this unusual youngster mingling with “normal” citizens. When he teams with von Sydow, the energy level picks up, but we can still feel the wheels turning on the machinery to create tear-inducing moments. These moments are EVERYWHERE and include Oskar being oblivious to his hurtful ways with his mom (Sandra Bullock).

 The support work is excellent and includes John Goodman, Viola Davis and Jeffrey Wright. Young Mr. Horn is best known for his winning Jeopardy during “Kid’s Week”, so he is obviously real-life smart as well as on screen talented. This story is just too preposterous to take seriously. How many parents would let their 11 year old wander the streets of NYC? What reaction would this kid receive as he confronts strangers while jingling his tambourine so as to calm his nerves? Just too much melodramatic storybook stretching to make this a story worth telling in regards to the September 11 events. However, if you are need of a few good cries, this one tees it up for you.

SEE THIS MOVIE IF: you want to see an exciting newcomer in Thomas Horn OR it’s just been too long since you had a good cry (or 3 or 4)

SKIP THIS MOVIE IF: you prefer movie/story manipulations not be quite so obvious

watch the trailer:

VALLEY OF THE DOLLS (1967) was based on the top selling novel of 1966 by Jacqueline Susann, who pulled much of the material from her time as a stage and struggling wanna-be film actress, and her behind the scenes look at the entertainment world thanks to her marriage to Irving Mansfield, a renowned PR expert.
 
Judy Garland was originally cast as Helen Lawson, but was replaced by Susan Heyward after the producers became frustrated with Ms. Garland’s behavior.  Oddly, Judy Garland kept her costume from the movie and was often seen wearing the sequined pantsuit at her live concert performances.
 
Lead actress Barbara Parkins (as Anne Welles) also starred in the TV series “Peyton Place” (1964-69)
 
Director Mark Robson also directed the film version of Peyton Place (1957)
 
Composer John Williams received the FIRST of his 45 Academy Award nominations for this film.  He is considered a front runner for another nomination in 2012 (War Horse, The Adventures of Tintin).
 
Richard Dreyfuss made his big screen debut in this film
 
Raquel Welch was originally offered the role of Jennifer North.  When she turned it down, Sharon Tate was cast.  Of course, in 1969 Ms. Tate became a victim in the notorious Tate-LaBianca murders carried out by the Charles Manson “family”.  At the time of her murder, Ms. Tate was pregnant with the child of her husband, director Roman Polanski.
 
The film is often listed among the Worst Films of all-time, as well as the Campiest Films of all-time … but despite the brutal lashing it took from critics, it was a huge box office success.

UNIVERSAL PICTURES and STUDIOS – founded in 1912 by Carl Laemmle
 
now owned by NBC, Universal is the second oldest movie studio … Paramount is one month older
 
Laemmle broke with tradition and started giving credit to the actors within the movies, thereby helping create the star system
 
Lon Cheney became a breakout star for Universal thanks to his work in The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1923) and Phantom of the Opera (1925)
 
Known as a low-budget film studio, Universal struggled financially for decades.  Even during the “studio period”, Universal often had to borrow stars from other studios. 
 
In 1942, it became the last studio to contract with Technicolor and released Arabian Nights (1942) and an update of its own hit Phantom of the Opera (1943)
 
In 1958, MCA purchased Universal’s giant back lot for its TV production.  The studios were modernized and slowly more stars were signed to Universal contracts (Cary Grant, Alfred Hitchcock, Doris Day)
 
Though never previously successful in consistenly producing film hits, the 1970′s brought such movies as: Airport (1970), The Sting (1973), American Graffiti (1973) and the biggest fish yet … Jaws (1975).  Later came such franchises as Back to the Future (1985), Beethoven (1992) Jurassic Park (1993), Meet the Parents (2000), The Fast and the Furious (2001), and The Bourne Identity (2002).

Universal has movie-related theme parks open to the public in southern California, Orlando Florida and Singapore.

TCM: TURNER CLASSIC MOVIES – thank you Ted Turner.
 
The network launched in 1994 and the first movie aired was Gone With the Wind (1939)
 
TCM now holds its own annual Film Festival and periodic TCM-themed cruises
 
TCM shows movies commercial-free and in widescreen format whenever possible … and we love them for it!

STAGECOACH (1939) directed by John Ford (his first with sound), is the movie that turned John Wayne into a star.
 
The film was nominated for 7 Academy Awards, including Best Picture … winning for Best Supporting Actor (Thomas Mitchell) and Best Score
 
The box office success of Stagecoach is credited for pulling the western genre out of the B-movie rut and back into the mainstream
 
Orson Welles watched this film in private at least 40 times in preparation for filming Citizen Kane.  He claimed the film taught him how to direct.
 
First movie made in Monument Valley (and one of seven Ford classics that he filmed in the area)
 
John Wayne eventually appeared in 24 John Ford movies (plus 3 TV episodes), and almost 250 movies in total.  He won an Oscar for True Grit (1969).  He died in 1979.
 
John Ford directed approximately 140 films, including documentaries and shorts.  He won 6 Academy Awards and is often called “The Great American Director”.  He died in 1973