LOS ANGELES AND NEW YORK (October 24, 2009) — The National Board of Directors of the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (AFTRA) met today by videoconference plenary in Los Angeles and New York.
The AFTRA National Board approved that the tentative agreement with the video game industry for an extension to the AFTRA Interactive Media Agreement, which is currently set to expire on December 31, 2009, be sent out for ratification by a referendum vote of the affected members who perform work under the contract. The Board is sending out the referendum with an overwhelming and strong recommendation for a yes vote on the new terms. The AFTRA Interactive Media Steering Committee, which is made up of members around the country who work this agreement, and the AFTRA Administrative Committee previously approved and recommended to the Board the tentative agreement, which was reached with video game employers in early October. If ratified, the 15-month extension will take effect on January 1, 2010, and remain in full force until March 31, 2011.
The extension delivers a 2.5 percent wage increase and a 0.2 percent increase in employer contributions to the AFTRA Health and Retirement Funds, both effective April 1, 2010, and a new liquidated damages payment provision to incentivize employers to give notice of vocally stressful work – the first-ever such payment under any union contract. The agreement also preserves the extra “Remote Delivery” payment for performers – currently 135 percent of the original session fee – and establishes a
I first heard about this because of the rumor that "Peter Guber is buying all of Comic Con." Well, that proved false when I checked it out. But, instead, he's one of 3 grown men who are also media veterans aiming to feed the appetite of what they're calling the "geekerati" audience by launching today a free daily email newsletter they want to be the definitive voice of geek culture. (A newsletter? How quaint...) It's called GEEKCHICDAILY and it will purport to cover the tastemakers' choice of video games, toys, tech & apps, movies & TV, comic books and collectibles and gear. Announced this morning at the Big Apple Comic Con, it's backed by Wizard Entertainment's Gareb Shamus, the founder and publisher of Wizard magazine of comic book, toy and character-based genre fare whiuch also started out as a newsletter. Shamus also owns and operates the Big Apple, Chicago, Philadelphia, Anaheim, and Toronto Comic Con festivals. Ergo why that rumor began... Also involved is Internet executive and video game investor Peter Levin. [Full Disclosure: Levin was my business agent in the sale of Deadline Hollywood to MMC.] Also in the partnership is Peter Guber, the CEO of Mandalay Entertainment Group and former Sony Pictures studio mogul. The newsletter will be edited by Scott Gramling, former editor-in-chief of FHM and Wizard. “Gareb and I have been friends for many years and we’ve searched for the right project to embark upon together. Peter Guber became the secret sauce and GeekChicDaily was brought to life," Levin said in a statement. "We strive to bring ... Read More »
Los Angeles (October 2, 2009) — Screen Actors Guild (SAG) and the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (AFTRA) today announced they have reached tentative agreements with video game companies on new contracts. The agreements -- which become effective upon ratification and remain in full force until March 30, 2011 – achieve parity between the AFTRA and Screen Actors Guild contracts and include contemporaneous expiration dates of March 30, 2011.
In addition, the contracts deliver a 3 percent wage increase upon ratification for SAG, thereby bringing SAG’s wages into parity with AFTRA’s, and another 2.5 percent increase on April 1, 2010, for both unions. Both pacts contain increases in benefit contributions and a liquidated damages provision to incentivize employers to give notice of vocally stressful work.
The contracts also establish a new category of performance for “atmospheric voices” that is designed to increase work opportunities for union performers by allowing Producers the flexibility to record multiple minor character voices in a single session. The agreements also establish a cap of $125,000 on contributions to the AFTRA Health and Retirement and SAG Pension and Health funds. The cap will only apply to performers who are paid more than $125,000 by a single producer in a single year for work done on the same game franchise.
The tentative agreements must be approved by Screen Actors Guild’s National Board of Directors and the AFTRA Administrative Commitee, both of which will meet in the coming weeks.
First, the Avatar movie website crashes. Then Fox shows footage to those media who didn't attend Comic-Con. Now, Friday will be "Avatar Day" when audiences worldwide get their first look at selected scenes in 3-D at select cinemas and IMAX theaters as well as the film's trailer. Fox also will take the wraps off its special “3-D”/lenticular one-sheet posters for the film, and Ubisoft will unveil the trailer for their videogame James Cameron’s Avatar: The Game, while Mattel will reveal the action figures for the film’s Avatar and alien Na’vi characters. The extended look at Avatar will unspool for two showings only on the evening of August 21. Information on reserving tickets for these very limited showings will be available are at avatarmovie.com. The film opens everywhere December 18th.
When it rains, it pours, especially if you're over-leveraged Sumner Redstone. Despite Monday's stock market rally, the share price for his videogame publisher Midway Games hit the skids and lost a whopping 12% of its market value. The maker of titles Unreal Tournament 3 and Mortal Kombat fell 15 cents to close at $1.10. That's down 67.1% from its year-ago price. As Forbes.com noted, Midway Games had "a doozy of a day" -- making Redstone's really rotten. His holding company National Amusements already had to sell hundreds of millions of dollars worth of shares in Viacom and CBS at rock bottom prices. Forbes speculated Monday that perhaps Redstone was "going to turn around and lend the money to the struggling Midway Games just to keep the company afloat". Redstone already is said to be in talks with bankers to renegotiate terms on $1.6 billion in debt because of the losses in value of his contrlling shares of CBS and Viacom used as collateral. Geez, it wasn't long ago that other media moguls were envious of Redstone for having the foresight to invest in videogames -- which he once boasted were "the hottest part of the entertainment industry” -- not for Viacom but for his personal portfolio. Are they feeling sorry for Sumner now? Anyone? Anyone?
Video below. Politico says comedian turned U.S. Senate candidate Al Franken helped head writer Seth Meyers brainstorm tonight's SNL opening sketch mocking John McCain. Ugh, it was lame. Not funny at all. In fact, the whole show stank.
MONDAY AM: Bigger... Bigger... BIGGEST! The Dark Knight's weekend tally was more than first thought -- a record-setting $158.4M, according to Warner Bros. That comfortably beats Spider-Man 3's $151.1M for best-ever 3-day non-holiday weekend. The latest Batman installment's Sunday take of $43.5M was down only -8% compared to Saturday's $47.6M and set the best-ever Sunday total for its 9th record. Friday's final figure was lowered to $67.1M. TDK's 10th record beats the all-time first week tally.
SUNDAY 8PM UPDATE: I've just been told by unofficial sources that Warner Bros' The Dark Knight is playing to packed Sunday performances for over $40M and maybe as high as $43M. That would mean a 9th record for the latest Batman installment since Spider-Man 3's Sunday take in 2007 was a record-setting $39.9M. It's also now abundantly clear that the Warner Bros caped crusader will crush the old 3-day weekend non-holiday record set by Spider-Man 3 last year. Also, Dark Knight should break its 9th record by beating the all-time weekly tally. Meanwhile, in its first six days, DK will have grossed more than the entire run of director Chris Nolan's first installment Batman Begins.
SUNDAY AM: Warner Bros is reporting The Dark Knight will finish with a total North American weekend take of $155.3M. Here's the surprising studio breakdown: $67.8 million Friday, including those record-setting opening day midnight shows; $48 million Saturday (-29%), and projected $39.4 million Sunday (-18%). So if Sunday holds up, that FSS (Fri-Sat-Sun) non-holiday figure will be enough to snag the record from Spider-Man 3's $151.1 million. But it'll be close. The latest Batman installment did not set a record ... Read More »
Last night on NBC's The Tonight Show, Jay Leno was doing his Monday night "Headlines" segment when he held up a TV Week cover with a picture of himself and a cutline that said "Host of The Tonight Show on ABC". When the few laughs died down, Leno looked into the camera and smirked, "It's like a headline from the future."
Look, I've always thought that Leno and ABC were a logical fit when he leaves NBC (notice I don't say if he leaves NBC) next year. Yes, Fox gets more ink as his possible next home. But ABC doesn't seem to want edgy programming, so Leno's exaggerated mainstream appeal makes sense for the network -- even if his advanced age doesn't. Here's the problem with both Fox and ABC for Jay: he wants to go head to head with Conan and Letterman. So Nightline would be history.
Back in 2002, Disney's Bob Iger was ready to jettison the late night news show in a heartbeat if he could lure David Letterman away from CBS. It almost happened -- that is, until word leaked out that Disney was axing ABC's best news program starring its best news anchor Ted Koppel. There was a shitstorm of protest.
Then, in 2004, Iger sought again to steal a late night host -- this time, Conan. That was when Zucker, in order to keep O'Brien at NBC, promised to make Conan host of The Tonight Show in 2009 -- thus explaining ... Read More »
Sunday, July 27 (details here)
10:00-11:00 Smallville Screening and Q&A
10:00-11:00 Jack Kirby Tribute
10:00-11:00 The Radio Adventures of Dr. Floyd
10:00-5:00 San Diego International Children’s Film Festival
10:15-11:15 Nickelodeon: SpongeBob SquarePants 10:30-11:30 Muggles, Wizards, and Fans in the World of Harry Potter
10:30-11:30 Spotlight on Jim Ottaviani
10:30-11:30 Zuda Online Comics
10:30-12:00 CBLDF Live Art Jam
10:30-11:30 Marvel: Women in Marvel
10:30-11:30 FX's It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia
10:30-11:30 Christian Comics Art Society
10:30-11:30 Comics Construction: Literary and Visual Representations
10:30-11:30 Kids Draw
11:00-12:00 Dave Stevens Tribute
11:00-12:30 Asian Ball Jointed Dolls 101/Collectors Meeting
11:15-12:15 Supernatural Screening and Q&A
11:30-12:30 Spotlight on Kyle Baker
11:30-12:30 Graphic Novel Help in Libraries
11:30-12:30 Growing up with Archie
11:30-1:00 The Little Mermaid: Ariel’s Beginning
11:30-12:00 Focus Features: Hamlet 2
11:30-1:00 Postmodernism and Revolution
11:30-12:30 How to Draw Star Wars for Kids
11:45-12:45 DC Nation: One Weekend Later
12:00-1:00 Phineas and Ferb
12:00-1:00 The Business of Cartoon Voices
12:00-12:45 Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay
12:00-2:00 Browncoats Fan Group
12:30-1:30 Emily the Strange
12:30-2:00 The Secret Origin of Good Readers
12:30-1:30 Spotlight on Steve Breen
12:30-1:30 Paranormal State
12:30-1:30 Nick Jr. Presents: Backyardigans and Ni Hao, Kai-lan
12:30-1:30 How to Draw Monsters
1:00-2:30 The Life of Michael Turner Tribute Panel
1:00-2:30 Chowder, TMMIOF, Underfist Sneak Peek
1:00-2:00 Marvel: TV Writers of Marvel
1:00-1:30 Friday the 13th
1:00-2:30 Capes, Tights and Gowns
1:15-2:30 Cartoon Voices II
1:30-2:30 30 Years of Pointed Ears: Elfquest
1:30-2:30 Huntik: Secrets & Seekers
1:30-2:30 CMX: Manga for the Masses
1:30-2:30 Rogue Pictures
1:30-2:30 Manga Art for Kids
1:45-2:45 Ghost Whisperer 4: The New Spirit Mythology of Melinda
2:00-3:00 The Secret Origin of Good Readers Breakouts
2:00-3:30 Starship Smackdown XI
2:00-3:00 Indyfans and the Quest for Fortune and Glory
2:30-3:30 Sunday Conversation with Dan DiDio
2:30-4:00 Pro/Fan Trivia Match—
Saturday, July 26 (details here)
10:00-11:00 Spirituality in Comics
10:00-11:00 Spotlight on Forrest J Ackerman
10:00-11:30 The Black Panel ’08
10:00-11:00 Marvel--Iron Man: Armored Adventures Screening
10:00-11:00 Nickelodeon’s The Fairly Odd Parents
10:00-11:00 Looking at Our World: Eye on the Future
10:00-11:00 Emerging LGBT Voices
10:00-10:45 Futurama Secrets Revealed
10:00-11:30 Science, Justice, and the Media
10:00-11:30 Let’s Make Lots of Money
10:15-11:15 Ben 10: Alien Force
10:15-11:15 Spotlight on Ralph Bakshi
10:30-11:30 DC Talent Search 3
10:45-11:30 The Simpsons
10:45-11:45 Heroes: "Villains" and Q&A
11:00-12:00 Spotlight on Ethan Van Sciver
11:00-12:00 IDW Publishing: Ideas and Dreams 2008
11:00-12:00 Watching the Watchmen
11:00-12:00 Hellboy
11:00-12:00 50th Anniversary Famous Monsters
11:15-12:30 Quick Draw
11:30-12:30 Secrets Behind Turning Comics into Games
11:30-12:30 B.E.T. Animation
11:30-12:30 Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles
11:30-12:30 Image Comics/Tori Amos
11:30-1:00 Reinventing the Superhero
11:30-12:30 Spotlight on Matt Busch with Drawing Demo
11:45-12:45 Spotlight on Dean Koontz
12:00-1:00 Dark Horse Comics
12:00-1:00 Spotlight on John Howe
12:00-1:00 Hasbro: Transformers
12:00-1:00 Spotlight on Howard Chaykin
12:00-1:00 Writing Prime Time Animated Comedy
12:00-1:00 Steampunk Fan Group Meet-up
12:00-1:00 Lost
12:30-1:30 Spotlight on Rutu Modan
12:30-1:30 ABC Family’s Kyle XY
12:30-2:00 Cartoon Voices I
12:30-1:30 The Role of Anatomy in Training Master Artists
12:45-1:45 Exclusive Q&A with the writers of The Office
12:45-2:00 DC Comics: A Guide to Your Universe— Dan DiDio
1:00-2:00 Aspen Comics in 2008 and Beyond
1:00-2:00 Diamond Select Toys: Minimates
1:00-2:00 Will Eisner Tribute
1:00-2:00 Dollhouse
1:00-2:00 Podcasting Superheroes
1:00-2:00 Twomorrows Publishing and The Academic Community
1:15-2:00 Spotlight on Tite Kubo
1:15-2:00 Warner Bros.: Terminator Salvation
1:30-2:30 Comic Book Law School: Gone But Not Forgotten
1:30-2:30 Things That Go Bump— Monsters
1:30-2:30 SLG Publishing
1:30-2:30 Writing 101: Creating Characters
2:00-3:00 Warhammer Online
2:00-3:00 Attack of the Show!
2:00-3:00 Comics: Across Every Medium
2:00-3:00 Spotlight on Bryan Hitch
2:00-3:00 Lettering Roundtable
2:00-3:00 Customizing Action Figure Fan Group
2:00-3:30 Poster Session
2:15-3:15 Grant
Friday, July 25 (details here)
10:00-11:00 VIZ Media’s Shonen Jump Panel
10:00-11:00 DC Comics Talent Search 2
10:00-11:00 Marvel: Your Universe
10:00-11:00 Batman: Brave & Bold
10:00-10:50 Star Wars: Designing the Clone Wars Universe
10:00-11:00 TheOneRing.net: The Hobbit
10:15-11:15 The Big Bang Theory Screening and Q&A
10:30-11:30 Spotlight on Max Brooks
10:30-11:30 10 Years of DC Direct
10:30-11:30 One on One with Terry Moore
10:30-11:30 Focus on Mark Buckingham
10:30-12:00 Comic Book Law School 202
10:45-11:45 Stargate Continuum
10:50-11:35 Star Wars: The Clone Wars 3D Modeling
11:00-12:00 Print The Legend: Mike Grell and Mark Ryan
11:00-12:00 Image Comics Studio Space
11:00-12:00 LEGO and BrickJournal: Brave New World
11:00-12:00 Masquerade 101
11:15-12:15 Powerpuff Girls 10th Anniversary
11:15-12:15 Worlds Collide: Midway's Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe
11:30-12:30 Hey Kids, the First One's in the Library
11:30-12:30 Marvel Cup o’ Joe Quesada
11:30-12:30 Mattel and DC Comics: A Heroic Partnership
11:30-12:30 Spotlight on Jim Starlin
11:30-12:30 Comics Studies: Developing Canon and Theory
11:35-12:35 Industrial Light & Magic and The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
11:45-12:15 Stargate MMO
11:55-1:00 Warner Bros.: Watchmen 12:00-1:00 ABC Family: Samurai Girl
12:00-1:00 50 Years of Gay Legion of Super-Heroes Fandom
12:00-1:00 Prince of Persia
12:00-2:00 Steve Rude Painting Workshop
12:00-1:00 Costume Illustrators, Production Illustrators...
12:15-1:15 Stargate Atlantis
12:25-1:15 Star Wars: The Clone Wars: New Books
12:30-1:30 The Art of Adapting Comics to the Screen
12:30-1:15 Spaced
12:30-1:30 Spotlight on Jim Lee: The Art of DC Universe Online
12:30-1:30 Spectacular Spider-Man
12:30-2:00 That ’70s (Comics) Panel
12:30-1:30 Spotlight on Connie Willis
12:30-2:00 Visual Language
1:00-2:00 Introducing Resident Evil: Degeneration
1:00-2:00 Looking at Our World: Eye on the Present
1:00-2:00 Spotlight on Victor Gorelick
1:00-2:00 Production Designers
1:15-2:00 Primeval
1:15-2:00 Hasbro: Star Wars and Indiana Jones
1:15-2:00 Trailer Park—All the latest film trailers
1:30-2:30 Editorial Cartoons
1:30-2:30 Scott McCloud
Wednesday, July 23
Warner Bros. TV screens Fringe, the new Fox series from J.J. Abrams
Thursday, July 24 (more details here)
10:00-11:00 Click & Clack’s As the Wrench Turns
10:00-11:00 75 Years of Doc Savage
10:00-11:00 Kings: Exclusive Sneak Peek Screening and Q&A
10:00-11:00 Fans’ Guide to Comic-Con
10:00-11:00 The Gene Roddenberry Legacy
10:00-11:00 How new media have affected moviemaking
10:30-11:30 Tripwire Annual 2008 and the future of genre fiction.
10:30-11:30 DC Comics Talent Search Orientation
10:30-11:30 Warner Home Video's Tiny Toon Adventures and Freakazoid
10:30-11:30 Noel Neill celebrating her 60th anniversary
10:30-11:30 The Politics of Representing War in Film and Comics
10:30-12:00 Comic Book Law School 101
10:45-11:45 Stan Lee and Grant Morrison Talk Virgin Comics
11:00-12:00 Indies in comics
11:00-12:00 Professional Writing: Threat or Menace?
11:00-12:00 The Comic Art of J. G. Jones
11:00-12:00 LGBT Portrayals in Comics
11:00-12:00 The Disney Animation Story Process
11:15-12:15 30th Anniversary Battlestar Galactica Panel
11:30-12:30 Spotlight on Neil Googe
11:30-12:30 From the K Chronicles to The Knight Life: Keith Knight
11:30-12:30 SPORE: One-on-One with Will Wright
11:30-12:30 Hasbro: GI Joe, the summer 2009 blockbuster movie release
11:30-1:00 Comics Arts Conference Session #2: Comics Pedagogy
11:30-1:00 20th Century Fox: The Day The Earth Stood Still and Max Payne
11:45-12:45 Knight Rider: First Look at the New Series and Q&A
12:00-1:00 Sideshow Collectibles
12:00-1:00 The New Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D’s: English-Language World Premiere
12:00-1:00 Spotlight on Paul Gulacy
12:00-1:00 How Not to Break into Comics
12:00-1:00 Doctor Who
12:00-1:00 Comics Experience: How to Build a Comic Book Art Portfolio
12:00-1:00 Classics Illustrated
12:30-1:30 Spotlight on Eddie Campbell
12:30-1:15 Humor in Science Fiction
12:30-1:30 DC: Superman: Man of Tomorrow
12:30-1:30 William Katt: Greatest American Hero Comic
1:00-2:00 Spotlight on Steve Purcell
1:00-2:00 Modern Masters: Live
1:00-2:00 Activision with Stan Lee
1:00-2:00 Mark and Sergio
1:00-2:00 Bongo
Given that Grand Theft Auto IV blew away the global retail sales record, a day doesn't go by that I'm not asked about when it's going to be made into a movie. Of course, that happens with every best-selling video game. But this isn't a case of the project veering horribly off track like, say, Halo. Nah, this is something altogether different. I've learned that Fox Atomic owns the rights to Grand Theft Auto. But to the movie title, not the game. It was, of course, Ron Howard who wrote and directed and starred in the little pic Grand Theft Auto back in 1977 for Roger Corman. So Fox optioned the rights for the Howard/Corman movie title a while back. A studio insider clarifies for me: "Yes, Fox owns the Corman movie. Yes, it has been one of 400 development projects for several years. But they are nowhere on the script. It has certainly not been a front-burner project." Strangely, the success of the video game hasn't put any new impetus on the studio to formulate a plan. And it doesn't matter that a supposed legal settlement over the game/movie/title dictates that Rockstar can't make a Grand Theft Auto movie or Corman/Howard/Fox a video game out of the title. C'mon, the movie can still shrewdly piggyback off the game's global branding. Here's my idea: Fox for old times sake should offer the project to Ron Howard since GTA jump-started his directorial career. Then let him incubate as a producer a new ... Read More »
Back in January during the writers strike, Jimmy Kimmel made news when he went from host of his own show to guest on Jay Leno, and vice versa. Now Kimmel will be sitting with David Letterman this coming Monday (but I don't think Dave will return the favor anytime soon). I'm told it's rare for the Los Angeles-based ABC talk show host to get to NYC, so that's why Jimmy is making the rounds: May 12th guesting first on Good MorningAmerica, and then appearing on Howard Stern, before filling in for Regis Philbin. It all leads up to May 13th when Kimmel will do his annual send-up at the ABC upfront. So, with all this talk about Leno possibly moving to ABC (and, of course, Fox), I have to wonder: Does ABC realize what it's already got in Kimmel? Especially factoring in how he and girlfriend Sarah Silverman are definitely the "it" couple media-wise right now.
It's certainly in demand: tonight, before Rockstar's creation hits store shelves, a few UPS workers were fired for stealing pre-ordered copies of Grand Theft Auto IV. There's no doubt it's going to set a new sales record for entertainment product starting tomorrow -- perhaps $400 mil and 6 mil copies because it plays on both Microsoft's Xbox 360 as well as Sony's Playstation 3, way beyond the previous record-holderHalo 3. In fact U.S. retail sales of video games jumped 57% in March, and analysts predict increased hardware sales due to the new game release. So on the eve of GTA IV's release, I turned to my video game guru Keith Boesky, whose company is responsible for selling the most intellectual property and developers into the game business and who has opined on video game violence here as well as on video games versus movies here. Now he analyzes whether GTA IV has really got game:
"To put it lightly, if the other things made for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 are called 'games', we have to come up with a new word for GTA IV. I think the word is 'platform'. By every measure, GTA IV is orders of magnitude larger than anything else on the market, including with the critical scores. The fact you are reading this and know what I am talking about is already an indication of the scale. How many of you knew the second largest game on the Playstation, Gran Turismo: Prologue came out a
I'm going to keep a spotlight on video games over the next days because of all the hype surrounding the April 29th release of Grand Theft Auto IV which is going to set a new sales record for entertainment product (perhaps $400 mil, way beyond the previous record-holderHalo 3). Again, I look to my video game guru Keith Boesky, whose company is responsible for selling the most intellectual property and developers into the game business, to answer the oft-asked question: is there more violence in video games than movies? Keith takes issue with my recent description of GTA IV as "loathsome" and compares the game's content to past and present violent Hollywood films and TV:
"I love Nikki, I love GTA, so I have to address the adjective. I could think of a lot of ways to describe GTA IV. Perhaps 'mind boggling in scope,' 'unbelievable achievement in game making,' 'more technologically complex than the NASA systems that put a man on the moon,' or just 'beautiful.' ...GTA IV is an 'M' rated game -- the industry equivalent to the MPAA's "R" rating -- and will not be sold to anyone under 17. The GTA series drives its medium forward and takes us where we’ve gone in films like The Godfather, Scarface, or more recently, The Sopranos.
"Isn’t the most troubling part of watching those movies feeling like you might do the same thing in the same situation? In GTA, you don't feel it, you do it. In each
With all the hype about how the loathesome Grand Theft Auto IV is going to set a new sales record April 29th for entertainment product (perhaps $400 mil, way beyond the previous record-holderHalo 3), I look to my video game guru Keith Boesky, whose company is responsible for selling the most intellectual property and developers into the game business, to answer the oft-asked question: are games bigger than movies?
"At this year's Game Developers Conference, a Microsoft executive proclaimed not only is the game business bigger than the movie business, but it is bigger than music. This statement was made last month, but we are about to see this repeated a whole lot more. Some stories were triggered by the annual NPD report on industry growth, others will be triggered by the launch of Grand Theft Auto IV. The articles are complete and utter bullshit on so many levels.
"We can look from the standpoint of mild deception. Game revenues are in fact larger, but they are only larger because we charge 6 times as much per consumer. The elephant standing in the room next to this statement is the actual market is significantly smaller. Especially when you consider NPD's number includes hardware sales which are between $250 and $600 per box. This would be the same as counting DVD players in home video sales - which, incidentally, without DVD players are larger than the game market.
What an incredible list of petty, mean-spirited and just spiteful behavior the Hollywood CEOs are compiling for themselves. Really, they're never going to be able to explain away this stuff when the strike eventually ends and they're held accountable by everyone else. I've been confirming episode after episode of the AMPTP's giant multimedia members retaliating in every way possible against anyone in Hollywood helping the WGA's side in this strike dragging on and on. I'll keep updating as more instances come in to me (so keep refreshing for the latest):
-->The latest is that Disney/ABC has rescinded offers to pay for tickets for TV show executive producers going to the SAG awards -- just two days after sending them emails saying ABC would provide four tickets per show. The exec producers are often hyphenates who also belong to the WGA.
-->Disney/ABC has decided not to pay for hair and make-up and even cars for its stars going to the SAG awards, something the studios and networks always do, since the actors have aligned themselves with the WGA and the SAG show received a Writers Guild waiver while it's increasingly unlikely that the Oscars televised by ABC will. "Their reasoning is that they don't want to pay for SAG actors to get all dressed up only to bad-mouth the studio on the Red Carpet," a source told me. Oh, like that couldn't happen at the Academy Awards, too, although ABC wouldn't air it.
-->Harvey Weinstein received a number of phone calls from the moguls warning him "You shouldn't do it," and "We can get this done with the DGA," when ... Read More »
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First, the Avatar movie website crashes. Then Fox shows footage to those media who didn't attend Comic-Con. Now, Friday will be "Avatar Day" when audiences worldwide get their first look at selected scenes in 3-D at select cinemas and IMAX theaters as well as the film's trailer. Fox also will take the wraps off its special “3-D”/lenticular one-sheet posters for the film, and Ubisoft will unveil the trailer for their videogame James Cameron’s Avatar: The Game, while Mattel will reveal the action figures for the film’s Avatar and alien Na’vi characters. The extended look at Avatar will unspool for two showings only on the evening of August 21. Information on reserving tickets for these very limited showings will be available are at 
When it rains, it pours, especially if you're over-leveraged Sumner Redstone. Despite Monday's stock market rally, the share price for his videogame publisher Midway Games hit the skids and lost a whopping 12% of its market value. The maker of titles Unreal Tournament 3 and Mortal Kombat fell 15 cents to close at $1.10. That's down 67.1% from its year-ago price. As Forbes.com 
in talks with bankers to renegotiate terms on $1.6 billion in debt because of the losses in value of his contrlling shares of CBS and Viacom used as collateral. Geez, it wasn't long ago that other media moguls were envious of Redstone for having the foresight to invest in videogames -- which he once boasted were "the hottest part of the entertainment industry” -- not for Viacom but for his personal portfolio. Are they feeling sorry for Sumner now? Anyone? Anyone?
Look, I've always thought that Leno and ABC were a logical fit when he leaves NBC (notice I don't say if he leaves NBC) next year. Yes, Fox gets more ink as his possible next home. But ABC doesn't seem to want edgy programming, so Leno's exaggerated mainstream appeal makes sense for the network -- even if his advanced age doesn't. Here's the problem with both Fox and ABC for Jay: he wants to go head to head with Conan and Letterman. So Nightline would be history.
Then, in 2004, Iger sought again to steal a late night host -- this time, Conan. That was when Zucker, in order to keep O'Brien at NBC, promised to make Conan host of The Tonight Show in 2009 -- thus explaining ... 
I've learned that Fox Atomic owns the rights to Grand Theft Auto. But to the movie title, not the game. It was, of course, Ron Howard who wrote and directed and starred in the little pic Grand Theft Auto back in 1977 for Roger Corman. So Fox optioned the rights for the Howard/Corman movie title a while back. A studio insider clarifies for me: "Yes, Fox owns the Corman movie. Yes, it has been one of 400 development projects for several years. But they are nowhere on the script. It has certainly not been a front-burner project." Strangely, the success of the video game hasn't put any new impetus on the studio to formulate a plan. And it doesn't matter that a supposed legal settlement over the game/movie/title dictates that Rockstar can't make a Grand Theft Auto movie or Corman/Howard/Fox a video game out of the title. C'mon, the movie can still shrewdly piggyback off the game's global branding. Here's my idea: Fox for old times sake should offer the project to Ron Howard since GTA jump-started his directorial career. Then let him incubate as a producer a new ... 
Back in January during the writers strike, Jimmy Kimmel made news when he went from host of his own show to guest on Jay Leno, and vice versa. Now Kimmel will be sitting with David Letterman this coming Monday (but I don't think Dave will return the favor anytime soon). I'm told it's rare for the Los Angeles-based ABC talk show host to get to NYC, so that's why Jimmy is making the rounds: May 12th guesting first on Good Morning America, and then appearing on Howard Stern, before filling in for Regis Philbin. It all leads up to May 13th when Kimmel will do his annual send-up at the ABC upfront. So, with all this talk about Leno possibly moving to ABC (and, of course, Fox), I have to wonder: Does ABC realize what it's already got in Kimmel? Especially factoring in how he and girlfriend Sarah Silverman are definitely the "it" couple media-wise right now. 
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