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Douglas Kenney

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Douglas Kenney

10 Best Movies Like ‘Happy Gilmore 2’ To Watch If You Love the Film
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Happy Gilmore 2 is a sports comedy film directed by Kyle Newacheck from a screenplay co-written by Tim Herlihy and Adam Sandler. The 2025 legacy sequel film picks up the story of Happy Gilmore as he has given up golf after a tragedy and taken up excessive drinking instead. Due to his alcoholism, Happy loses everything from his fortune to his house, and when his daughter wants to go to an elite ballet school, he must return to the golf course to earn the money. Happy Gilmore 2 stars Adam Sandler, Julie Bowen, Christopher McDonald, Benny Safdie, Bad Bunny, Ben Stiller, and Margaret Qualley. So, if you loved the bonkers story, hilarious comedy, and entertaining characters in Happy Gilmore 2, here are some similar movies you should check out next.

Happy Gilmore (Starz) Credit – Universal Pictures

Happy Gilmore is...
See full article at Cinema Blind
  • 8/2/2025
  • by Kulwant Singh
  • Cinema Blind
7 Best Movies Coming to Peacock in August 2025 (With 90% or Higher Rotten Tomatoes Score)
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This August, Peacock is bringing you a lot of entertainment, from the highly anticipated release of the legal drama series, The Rainmaker, to the streaming release of Jimmy Warden‘s dark comedy thriller film Borderline. However, for the purposes of this article, we are only including the films that are coming to Peacock next month and have a 90% or higher Rotten Tomatoes score. So, check out the seven best films that are coming to Peacock in August 2025 with a 90% or higher Rotten Tomatoes score.

Argo (August 1) Rt Score: 96% Credit – Warner Bros.

Argo is a historical espionage thriller drama film directed by Ben Affleck from a screenplay by Chris Terrio. Based on the 1999 memoir by Antonio J. Mendez and a 2007 Wired article by Joshuah Bearman, the 2012 film is set in 1979 and it follows Tony Mendez, a CIA operative, as...
See full article at Cinema Blind
  • 7/29/2025
  • by Kulwant Singh
  • Cinema Blind
‘Animal House’ Legacy: Togas, Chaos & Enduring Comedy
Animal House (2015)
Image Source: Universal Pictures Home Entertainment

When National Lampoon’s Animal House hit theaters in 1978, it didn’t just launch John Belushi into comedy legend, it detonated a seismic shift in college comedies that reverberates to this day. With its toga parties, deadpan rebellion, and chaotic charm, the film didn’t so much depict college life as it rewrote the mythos altogether. This enduring Animal House legacy reshaped the very idea of a college comedy.

Directed by John Landis and scripted by Harold Ramis, Douglas Kenney, and Chris Miller, the story follows the misfit Delta Tau Chi fraternity at fictional Faber College as they wage war against the establishment. This specific college comedy narrative became instantly iconic. But beneath the slapstick and spectacle lies a surprisingly sharp cultural snapshot of late ’70s America, one that laughs through its teeth while flipping off authority.

Fun and Furious Facts:

Discover more about...
See full article at HollywoodOutbreak.com
  • 7/28/2025
  • by A.C.
  • HollywoodOutbreak.com
Netflix to celebrate comedy legends this July with movie collections featuring Tine Fey, Adam Sandler, Mike Myers, and more
Adam Sandler in Saturday Night Live (1975)
This July, Netflix wants to help you beat the heat by giving you plenty of reasons to stay in the air conditioning while crying tears of laughter! Get ready for the streaming network’s Summer of Comedy movie collection, an event honoring actors and comedians who made their mark on entertainment over the past 50 years!

Per Netflix’s press release:

The Netflix collection features a lineup of fan-favorite movies, many of which feature SNL alumni, including Tina Fey (Baby Mama), Adam Sandler (Happy Gilmore), Will Ferrell (Old School), John Belushi (National Lampoon’s Animal House), Eddie Murphy (The Nutty Professor), Ben Stiller (Zoolander), Amy Poehler (Blades of Glory), Mike Myers (Wayne’s World), Kenan Thompson (Good Burger), Dan Aykroyd (Coneheads), Kristen Wiig (MacGruber), Chris Farley (Tommy Boy), Molly Shannon (Superstar), Dan Aykroyd (The Blues Brothers), and many more.

In addition to a collection in your Netflix Queue, the Paris Theater in New...
See full article at JoBlo.com
  • 6/30/2025
  • by Steve Seigh
  • JoBlo.com
7 Best Movies Coming to Prime Video in May 2025 (With Above 90% or Rotten Tomatoes Scores)
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This May, Prime Video is bringing you a lot of entertainment, from the much-anticipated sequel of A Simple Favor to the release of the raunchy comedy-drama series Overcompensating. However, for the purposes of this article, we are only including the films that are coming to Prime Video this month and have a 90% or higher Rotten Tomatoes score. So, check out the 7 best films that are coming to Prime Video in May 2025 with a 90% or higher Rotten Tomatoes score.

All Quiet on the Western Front (May 1) Rotten Tomatoes Score: 98% Credit – Universal Pictures

All Quiet on the Western Front is a pre-Code anti-war film directed by Lewis Milestone. Based on the 1929 novel of the same name by German author Erich Maria Remarque, the 1930 film follows a naive soldier who enlists to fight in World War I and soon comes face-to-face with the horror of war,...
See full article at Cinema Blind
  • 5/1/2025
  • by Kulwant Singh
  • Cinema Blind
Samuel L. Jackson in Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist (2024)
5 Best Movies Coming to Peacock in September 2024 (With Above 90% Rotten Tomatoes Score)
Samuel L. Jackson in Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist (2024)
This September, Peacock is bringing you a ton of entertainment with the highly anticipated crime drama series Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist starring Kevin Hart and all of the seasons of Fox’s comedy series Martin. However, for the purposes of this article, we are only including the films that are coming to Peacock this month and have a 90% or higher Rotten Tomatoes score. So, check out the 5 best films coming to Peacock in September 2024 with a 90% or higher Rotten Tomatoes score.

Get Out (September 1)

Rotten Tomatoes Score: 98%

Get Out is a psychological horror thriller film written and directed by Jordan Peele. The 2017 film revolves around Chris, an African-American man as he decides to visit his white girlfriend’s parents during a weekend getaway but when he gets there he finds himself in several strange situations but the real horror hasn’t even begun yet. Get Out stars Daniel Kaluuya...
See full article at Cinema Blind
  • 9/2/2024
  • by Kulwant Singh
  • Cinema Blind
Dave Bautista and Chloe Coleman in My Spy (2020)
7 Best Movies Coming To Prime Video in July 2024 (With Above 90% Rotten Tomatoes Score)
Dave Bautista and Chloe Coleman in My Spy (2020)
This July, Prime Video is bringing you a lot of entertainment with a sequel of a beloved film like My Spy titled The Eternal City and an animated sequel series to the comedy gold, which was the Sausage Party film titled Foodtopia. However, for the purposes of this article, we are only including the films that are coming to Prime Video this month and have a 90% or higher Rotten Tomatoes score. So, check out the 7 best films that are coming to Prime Video in July 2024 with a 90% or higher Rotten Tomatoes score.

Animal House (July 1)

Rotten Tomatoes Score: 91%

National Lampoon’s Animal House is a classic comedy-drama film directed by John Landis from a screenplay co-written by Harold Ramis, Douglas Kenney, and Chris Miller. Inspired by National Lampoon stories written by Matty Simmons and Ivan Reitman, the 1978 film follows the story of freshmen Larry and Kent as they join a troublemaking...
See full article at Cinema Blind
  • 7/5/2024
  • by Kulwant Singh
  • Cinema Blind
This Is the Most Underrated National Lampoon Movie
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National Lampoon has become synonymous with comedy for as long as moviegoers can remember. The production house, which began as a satirical magazine created by Douglas Kenney, Henry Beard, and Robert Hoffman, grabbed attention from those seeking a comedic outlet with its publication in the 1970s. Taking a step-up with commentary and sophistication from comedy publication competitors like Mad Magazine and Cracked, the publishers realized they were developing a fanbase, most of whom were starved for comedy options that stepped outside the norm. That was when National Lampoon dipped its toes into the movie-making pool.
See full article at Collider.com
  • 7/29/2023
  • by Jason Shomer
  • Collider.com
Not Everyone At The National Lampoon Was Happy With The Success Of Animal House
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"Animal House" was the first movie ever created under the name of National Lampoon. It made the humor magazine a household name, but not everybody on the staff was interested in venturing into the movie business. In fact, some of the writers and editors at the magazine felt that the film brought on an unwelcome shift that would eventually render them obsolete.

The film arrived in 1978, eight years after National Lampoon was founded, and achieved instant success. The magazine went on to attach its name to a number of other films, including 1983's "Vacation," which was so popular it exploded into its own movie franchise.

The success of "Animal House" brought a lot of new readers to the magazine, and it also brought a lot of the magazine's writers into the entertainment business. One of the magazine's founders, Henry Beard, had warned the staff against going into film and television before he moved on.
See full article at Slash Film
  • 2/13/2023
  • by Shae Sennett
  • Slash Film
The First Draft Of Animal House Apparently Read Like 'War And Peace On Speed'
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Long before the success of "National Lampoon's Animal House" launched careers and a renewed interest in Greek fraternities, it had to get sold as a story. After multiple directors passed on it, John Landis would eventually come on board, telling Indiewire that he "was hired to develop it, basically to supervise the rewrite." The screenplay was a collaborative effort, the work of "The National Lampoon Show" star and writer Harold Ramis, "National Lampoon Magazine" co-founder Douglas Kenney, and Chris Miller, whose "The Night of the Seven Fires" story served as a springboard for what would become the sordid saga of Faber College's Delta Tau Chi house. Early drafts were going long on absurd concepts; one seedling of a story focused on cult leader Charles Manson as he navigated high school.

In Matty Simmons' book "Fat, Drunk, and Stupid," the producer looks back on the writing process for "Animal House," which...
See full article at Slash Film
  • 1/26/2023
  • by Anya Stanley
  • Slash Film
How A Clint Eastwood Western Landed John Vernon The Role Of The Dean In Animal House
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When your students are tanking their classes (if they attend at all) and dumping Fizzies tablets onto the varsity swim meet, you can't be a soft school administrator. That said, Dean Wormer would run Faber College more like Rikers if he had the opportunity. The gruff villain (played by John Vernon) is just one of the highlights of "National Lampoon's Animal House," John Landis' 1978 frat comedy, as the biggest authority standing in the way of Delta House's good time. The movie was penned by Harold Ramis, Douglas Kenney, and Chris Miller, pulling from their respective experiences in higher education. It was "National Lampoon Magazine" editor-in-chief and writer Kenney who came up with the Dean years before the movie, as the satirical "National Lampoon's High School Yearbook" featured Wormer as a civics teacher and coach. On the big screen, Wormer doesn't suffer fools or twerps, and he's as rigid about...
See full article at Slash Film
  • 1/25/2023
  • by Anya Stanley
  • Slash Film
National Lampoon's Animal House Was Offered To Some Of Hollywood's Finest Directors
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John Landis' 1978 comedy "Animal House" would change the game for many; not only was the college campus laugh-fest a launchpad for several of its stars — including the already famous "SNL" star John Belushi, who would soon get a call from Steven Spielberg about an upcoming comedy project — but it also heralded a new age of irreverent comedy, one that celebrated contemporary filmmakers didn't quite see at the time.

In Mick de Semlyen's book "Wild and Crazy Guys," producer Ivan Reitman reasoned:

"Before 'Animal House' they were all watching Bob Hope and Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis ... and then this was the first film really made by kids who were postwar and in their early twenties, with a different way of expressing what's funny."

That expression would see the story's central troupe of "fat, drunk, and stupid" college students launching food fights, thumbing their noses at authority, frightening a...
See full article at Slash Film
  • 1/17/2023
  • by Anya Stanley
  • Slash Film
How The Cast Of National Lampoon's Animal House Found Themselves In An Actual Frat House Brawl
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Many consider their time spent at college as the best years of their lives. For a number of people, that's their first taste of independence as they're the ones who pick their classes, figure out what to eat for dinner, and determine when it's a good time to go to bed. And when theses kids decide to make all those decisions by picking all the wrong answers, it certainly makes for a wild time, which is essentially what "Animal House" is all about.

A pioneer of the boundary-pushing sex comedy, the 1978 film from director John Landis, producer Ivan Reitman, and writers Douglas Kenney, Chris Miller, and Harold Ramis planted the seeds for generations of Greek life antics and alcohol-fueled hijinks. Even my peers, who became college freshmen 30 years after the Universal Pictures classic premiered, were taking part in toga parties and getting a little bit louder now with Otis Day and the Knights.
See full article at Slash Film
  • 1/16/2023
  • by Ben F. Silverio
  • Slash Film
Harold Ramis
Writing Was Only Part Of Harold Ramis' Animal House Ambitions
Harold Ramis
We're well aware now that Harold Ramis was a creative quadruple-threat as a writer, director, producer and actor, but Hollywood didn't quite see it that way initially. Having written for National Lampoon's pivotal 1973 stage show "Lemmings" and performing in its follow-up, "The National Lampoon Show," Ramis believed he was every bit as ready to pop as his co-stars Gilda Radner, John Belushi, Bill Murray, Joe Flaherty, and Christopher Guest. 

So when Universal Pictures greenlit "Animal House," which he'd co-written with Lampoon chums Douglas Kenney and Chris Miller, the up-and-coming comedic dynamo figured he'd up and come.

Unfortunately, he was a bit ahead of...

The post Writing Was Only Part Of Harold Ramis' Animal House Ambitions appeared first on /Film.
See full article at Slash Film
  • 6/18/2022
  • by Jeremy Smith
  • Slash Film
Netflix films: 50 best original movies to watch, ranked
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Having initially established itself as a power-house of binge TV, in more recent years Netflix has turned its attention to movies.

But with dozens of Netflix original films to chose from, how to sort the gold from the feature-length dross?

To help you make sense of the service’s mind-boggling viewing options here’s a countdown of the best original movies available to stream on Netflix UK.

We may earn commission from some of the links in this article, but we never allow this to influence our content.

If you are looking for a streaming platform alternative, you can access unlimited movies and TV shows on Amazon Prime Video. Click here to sign up for a 30-day free trial.

50. Rebecca

The ultimate hate-watch or game attempt at reinventing a classic thriller? Opinions are divided on Ben Wheatley’s adaptation of the Daphne du Maurier novel already immortalised by Hitchcock. Lily James...
See full article at The Independent - Film
  • 2/27/2022
  • by Ed Power
  • The Independent - Film
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P.J. O’Rourke, Celebrated Journalist and Conservative Satirist, Dead at 74
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P.J. O’Rourke, the political satirist and journalist who served as foreign-affairs desk chief at Rolling Stone until 2005 and wrote for numerous publications, has died. He was 74. His death was confirmed by NBC News.

“Our dear friend and cherished Grove Atlantic author P.J. O’Rourke passed away this morning from complications of lung cancer,” Deb Seager, a vice president and spokeswoman at his publisher Grove Atlantic, said in a statement to NBC.

Respected for his wit and storytelling by people across the political spectrum, O’Rourke’s early essays suggested...
See full article at Rollingstone.com
  • 2/15/2022
  • by Althea Legaspi
  • Rollingstone.com
Bill Murray at an event for Broken Flowers (2005)
Ed Murray, Who Inspired Brother Bill Murray’s Hit ‘Caddyshack,’ Dies at 67
Bill Murray at an event for Broken Flowers (2005)
Ed Murray, whose boyhood job as a caddy at a Chicago-area golf course inspired his actor brother Bill Murray’s hit 1980 film “Caddyshack,” has died at age 67.

William Murray Golf, the clothing company launched by the Murray brothers, announced Ed’s death via Instagram on Monday.

“It’s with the heaviest of hearts that we announce the passing of the legend Ed Murray,” the post began. “Named after the family patriarch, it was Ed who introduced the Murray family to this wonderful game of golf — by way of caddying at Indian Hills Country Club — at the age of 10, no less. (They don’t make ‘em like that anymore.)”

In 1963, Ed Murray earned an Evans Scholarship to attend Northwestern University — an event that inspired the Michael O’Keefe’s Danny Noonan character in Bill Murray’s hit 1980 comedy “Caddyshack” — which was co-written by brother Brian Doyle-Murray (along with Douglas Kenney and director...
See full article at The Wrap
  • 11/25/2020
  • by Thom Geier
  • The Wrap
National Lampoon's Animal House (1978)
Matty Simmons, ‘Animal House’ and ‘Vacation’ Producer, Dies at 93
National Lampoon's Animal House (1978)
Media executive Matty Simmons, a producer of the influential “National Lampoon’s Animal House” and “National Lampoon’s Vacation” comedy movies, died Wednesday in Los Angeles. He was 93.

His daughter, Kate Simmons, announced the news on her Instagram account on Thursday.

“Yesterday I lost my hero,” she wrote, in part. “My dad had gone from the sharpest, healthiest 93 year old most people have encountered to abruptly having every imaginable issue except corona. What he did in a lifetime was legendary.”

Matty Simmons was a Brooklyn native and an executive VP at the Diners Club credit card company. He founded Twenty First Century Communications in 1967 with Len Mogel to publish countercultural magazine Cheetah, then went on to publish Weight Watchers and National Lampoon magazines.

The National Lampoon launched in 1970 as a spinoff of the Harvard Lampoon humor magazine, which led to the 1972 stage show “Lemmings” and “The National Lampoon Radio Hour.” Performers included...
See full article at Variety Film + TV
  • 5/1/2020
  • by Dave McNary
  • Variety Film + TV
National Lampoon's Animal House (1978)
Matty Simmons Dies: National Lampoon Co-Founder & ‘Animal House’, ‘Vacation’ Producer Was 93
National Lampoon's Animal House (1978)
Matty Simmons, a founder of the Diners Club credit card and Weight Watchers magazine who found his highest profile success after co-founding National Lampoon magazine and producing film offshoots including Animal House and the Vacation franchise, died Wednesday in Los Angeles following a brief, non-coronavirus-related illness. He was 93.

Simmons death was announced by his daughter Kate Simmons.

More from DeadlineJun Maeda Dies Of Covid-19: Obie Award-Winning Theater Set Designer Was 79Veteran Casting Director Cis Corman Remembered By "Best Friend" Barbra StreisandPeter H. Hunt Dies: Tony Award-Winning '1776' Director, Uncle Of Actress Helen Hunt Was 81

“Yesterday I lost my hero,” Kate Simmons wrote on Instagram. “My dad had gone from the sharpest, healthiest 93 year old most people have encountered to abruptly having every imaginable issue except corona.”

An author of nine books including the 2012 memoir Fat, Drunk, and Stupid: The Making of Animal House (St. Martins Press), Simmons made...
See full article at Deadline Film + TV
  • 5/1/2020
  • by Greg Evans
  • Deadline Film + TV
So What? So Let's Dance!: 10 Behind-The-Scenes Facts About Caddyshack
Named by ESPN as “perhaps the funniest sports movie ever made,” Harold Ramis’ Caddyshack is one of the most beloved comedy classics of all time. Drawn from a 250-page script by Ramis, Douglas Kenney, and Brian Doyle-Murray and shaped by hours of improvisation by a talented cast including Bill Murray, Chevy Chase, and Rodney Dangerfield, Caddyshack has a rapid-fire gag rate that doesn’t give you a second to breathe before bringing on more laughs.

Related: The 10 Best Caddyshack Quotes That’ll Have You Laughing

A National Lampoon movie in all but name, Caddyshack had a lengthy, troubled production process filled with obstacles. So, here are 10 Behind-The-Scenes Facts About Caddyshack.
See full article at ScreenRant
  • 1/27/2020
  • ScreenRant
Matt Walsh & Thomas Lennon on the Peculiar State of Comedy, Their 20-Year History, and Auditioning for Clint Eastwood
Neither a pun-based title or hagiography, A Futile and Stupid Gesture follows the caustic rise of National Lampoon from Harvard to newspaper stands to radio, TV, and film. Henry Beard (Domhnall Gleeson) and Douglas Kenney (Will Forte) nurtured a new generation of comedians who found their way to Saturday Night Live, including Michael O’Donoghue (Thomas Lennon), the show’s first head writer. The Lampoon’s shenanigans were bankrolled by Matty Simmons (Matt Walsh), the American entrepreneur behind Weight Watchers.

We spoke Lennon and Walsh during this year’s Sundance Film Festival where the film debuted. The actors talk about competition between their comedy groups (Lennon was in The State and Walsh in the Upright Citizens Brigade), Walsh’s SAG awards speech for Veep and capturing the essence of O’Donoghue and Simmons.

For a majority of the conversation, the pair tackle National Lampoon’s un-p.C. humor and why...
See full article at The Film Stage
  • 2/1/2018
  • by The Film Stage
  • The Film Stage
‘A Futile and Stupid Gesture’ Film Review: National Lampoon Biopic Gently Celebrates Anarchy
Bartenders Steve Schneider and Steve 'Carpi' Carpentieri, director Douglas Tirola and bartender Dushan Zaric attend the screening of "Hey Bartender" during the 2013 SXSW Music, Film + Interactive Festival at Stateside Theater on March 9, 2013 in Austin, Texas.
It’s hard to overstate the impact of National Lampoon magazine, but director Douglas Tirola tried anyway in 2015 with “Drunk Stoned Brilliant Dead,” a documentary examining its history and legacy. As much as David Wain’s “A Futile And Stupid Gesture” (premiering on Netflix January 26) might feel like a retread of its buoyant history lesson, his adaptation of Josh Karp’s book of the same name focuses primarily on the exploits of Lampoon co-founder Douglas Kenney, filtering the publication’s incendiary accomplishments through his suitably troubled personal history while assembling an impressive cast of contemporary comedy stars to provide some occasionally wildly...
See full article at The Wrap
  • 1/25/2018
  • by Todd Gilchrist
  • The Wrap
17 Netflix Original Movies Coming in 2018
Netflix announced late last year that they have no less than 80 new projects in the pipeline for release this year, and a huge amount of those will be original movies. It's hard enough keeping up with everything at the multiplex, but now it's getting even harder to discover which, of the many movies, we need to watch on Netflix streaming. Don't worry. We have you covered.

Love Netflix? Hate Netflix? You can't argue that they are an entertainment juggernaut. It would be enough if they were simply the company who made streaming viable. However, what they have become as a production/distribution powerhouse just about thwarts all of that. Making this even more impressive is the litany of content that Netflix continues to produce. Whether it is the animal conscious Okja, or the Training Day meets Alienation mash-up Bright, or the litany of documentary or TV shows (Orange Is the New Black,...
See full article at MovieWeb
  • 1/14/2018
  • by MovieWeb
  • MovieWeb
Bill Murray, Chevy Chase, Rodney Dangerfield, and Ted Knight in Caddyshack (1980)
Bill Murray Is Opening a Caddyshack Bar Near Chicago
Bill Murray, Chevy Chase, Rodney Dangerfield, and Ted Knight in Caddyshack (1980)
Movie and TV show themed restaurants have really hit their stride over the last couple of years, but these fine dining establishments are usually set up by fans or corporations associated with the studio responsible for said movie or TV show. Now, one comedy legend is getting in on the act with his own restaurant and bar, and it will pay homage to what some consider his greatest comedic creation.

Yes, it's true. Bill Murray and his less famous brothers have united to open a Caddyshack themed bar and restaurant just north of Chicago, birthplace of Murray as a comedian. Murray's role in Caddyshack was one of his first, and now he is paying tribute to his memorable groundskeeper with this fine dining establishment.

Murray is opening the eatery alongside one of his many brothers, Brain Doyle Murray, who co-wrote Caddyshack along with Harold Ramis and National Lampoon writer Douglas Kenney.
See full article at MovieWeb
  • 12/23/2016
  • by MovieWeb
  • MovieWeb
Newswire: Chevy Chase checks himself into rehab
As reported by ABC News, Chevy Chase has recently checked into rehab for “an alcohol-related issue.” He’ll be at the Hazelden Addiction Treatment Center in Minnesota for what a rep is calling a “tune-up,” with a TMZ report adding that Chase “wants to be the best that he can be.” Chase previously underwent a rehab stint back in the ‘80s, checking into the famous Betty Ford Clinic to recover from a painkiller addiction.

Chase has two movies in the works, Dog Years and The Christmas Apprentice, with IMDb saying that the former is still filming. Also, a bit of Chase’s backstory will be explored in director David Wain’s A Futile And Stupid Gesture, which is a biopic about National Lampoon co-founder Douglas Kenney. Chase will be played by his old Community co-star Joel McHale, and he’s surprisingly fine with it.
See full article at avclub.com
  • 9/6/2016
  • by Sam Barsanti
  • avclub.com
Newswire: Joel McHale got Chevy Chase’s blessing to play him in the National Lampoon movie
It’s probably somewhat difficult to spend four years working on 84 episodes of a TV show with someone without acquiring a certain respect, or at least fondness, for that person—even if that person is the notoriously difficult-to-work-with comedian Chevy Chase. So when Joel McHale was invited to play a younger version of Chase in A Futile And Stupid Gesture—David Wain’s upcoming biopic on National Lampoon co-founder Douglas Kenney—the 44-year-old actor felt like he owed it to his old Community co-star to get his blessing.

“I called Chevy to let him know,” McHale revealed to /Film in a recent interview. “I was like, ‘Hey, do you mind if I play…?’ And then we talked a lot about Doug Kenny on the phone call. The movie’s not a joke. ... I’m not playing Chevy as a caricature. I am playing him as the white-hot superstar that ...
See full article at avclub.com
  • 8/11/2016
  • by Dennis DiClaudio
  • avclub.com
Will Forte at an event for Nebraska (2013)
Will Forte Doesn’t Want to Pull Any Punches With ‘A Stupid and Futile Gesture’
Will Forte at an event for Nebraska (2013)
Almost two weeks ago, principal photography began on David Wain‘s (Wet Hot American Summer) adaptation of A Stupid and Futile Gesture. Based on Josh Karp‘s best-selling book, the story follows National Lampoon co-founder Douglas Kenney, who’s played by Will Forte (MacGruber) in the biopic. Forte is surrounded by nothing but talent in this true-life story, which, according to him, we shouldn’t expect […]

The post Will Forte Doesn’t Want to Pull Any Punches With ‘A Stupid and Futile Gesture’ appeared first on /Film.
See full article at Slash Film
  • 4/25/2016
  • by Jack Giroux
  • Slash Film
Joel McHale to play Chevy Chase in National Lampoon origin film
Just last year a documentary about National Lampoon, Drunk Stoned Brilliant Dead: The Story Of The National Lampoon, delved into how the magazine and its cinematic output helped to shape the course of American humour. Now, the tragic story of National Lampoon's co-founder Douglas Kenney is set for the biopic treatment. David Wain (Wet Hot American Summer) will direct the film... Read More...
See full article at JoBlo.com
  • 4/6/2016
  • by Kevin Fraser
  • JoBlo.com
National Lampoon Drama Taps Joel McHale As Chevy Chase
Mere hours after Domnhall Gleeson enlisted for Netflix’s original drama, The Hollywood Reporter brings word that Joel McHale has been added to National Lampoon origins movie A Futile and Stupid Gesture as Chevy Chase.

It’s a casting coup that’s enough to send Troy and Abed into a tizzy, now that McHale has been set to portray his former Community co-star. Centering on National Lampoon co-founder Douglas Kenney (Will Forte), the feature film will chart the magazine’s meteoric rise to prominence in the early 70s when it became a comedic mainstay. Then, Kenney and Henry Beard (Gleeson) formed a creative team with fellow Harvard student Robert Hoffman, working on the likes of Caddyshack and Animal House in the years that followed.

But when Kenney uprooted to move to Hollywood, the success story was blighted by tragedy, after the creator succumbed to crippling depression. Soon thereafter, he was...
See full article at We Got This Covered
  • 4/5/2016
  • by Michael Briers
  • We Got This Covered
Netflix's National Lampoon Movie Just Found The Perfect Actor To Play Chevy Chase
Casting an actor in a biopic is never easy; the actor not only has to look like the subject he or she is portraying, but they also have to inhabit that person.s spirit. Sometimes Hollywood gets this right, other times they get it so wrong. The upcoming Netflix movie centering on the founding of National Lampoon has thus far nailed its casting. That trend has most definitely continued, as we.ve just learned that Joel McHale has been cast to portray comedian Chevy Chase. According to a brand new report from THR, David Wain.s upcoming National Lampoon biopic, A Futile and Stupid Gesture, has enlisted none other than Joel McHale to portray comedy icon Chevy Chase. Chase played an integral role in the early successes of the National Lampoon movies, and McHale will play him as a close friend of the movie.s troubled protagonist, Douglas Kenney. Chase...
See full article at cinemablend.com
  • 4/5/2016
  • cinemablend.com
Joel McHale to Play Chevy Chase in Netflix's Movie About The Origins of National Lampoon
Netflix is making a film called A Futile and Stupid Gesture that's about the origins of National Lampoon, and THR reports that Joel McHale has been hired to play Chevy Chase. This should be especially interesting to those who watched Community, NBC's comedy series on which McHale co-starred with Chase. Over the years, McHale hasn't been afraid to riff about Chase's dickish actions and gruff personality, but it seems like his own acerbic wit and penchant for sarcastic delivery was probably influenced by Chase's early career, so there's a nice ironic touch to this casting.

A Futile and Stupid Gesture stars Will Forte as National Lampoon co-founder Douglas Kenney and Domhnall Gleeson as co-founder Henry Beard, and it's being directed by Wet Hot American Summer's David Wain.

Kenney was the editor of the Harvard Lampoon when he met Henry Beard and Robert Hoffman, which, soon after graduation, resulted in the creation of National Lampoon,...
See full article at GeekTyrant
  • 4/5/2016
  • by Ben Pearson
  • GeekTyrant
Joel McHale in Earth to Ned (2020)
Joel McHale to Portray Chevy Chase in Netflix's National Lampoon Origins Movie (Exclusive)
Joel McHale in Earth to Ned (2020)
Joel McHale is in final negotiations to portray Chevy Chase, with whom he starred in NBC’s Community, in Netflix’s tragic story of National Lampoon co-founder Douglas Kenney, A Futile and Stupid Gesture, Will Forte is starring as Kenney with Domnhall Gleeson as fellow co-founder Henry Beard in the feature being directed by David Wain, the co-creator of Wet Hot American Summer. Kenney was the editor of the Harvard Lampoon when he met Henry Beard and Robert Hoffman, which, soon after graduation, resulted in the creation of National Lampoon, the humor magazine that became a major force

read more...
See full article at The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
  • 4/5/2016
  • by Borys Kit
  • The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Joel McHale To Play Chevy Chase For Netflix
Joel McHale has signed on to play legendary comedian and his former "Community" co-star Chevy Chase in the Netflix original film "A Futile and Stupid Gesture".

The David Wain-helmed biopic follows National Lampoon co-founders Douglas Kenney (Will Forte) and Henry Beard (Domhnall Gleeson) and how they turned their humor magazine into a major force and brand in 1970s comedy.

Chase was a close friend of Kenney and also starred in the Kenney-penned "Caddyshack" and Nl's "Vacation" franchise. Chase was with Kenney in Hawaii prior to his death in Hawaii. The $15-20 million film aims to begin shooting later this month. Peter Principato and Jonathan Stern are producing.

Source: THR...
See full article at Dark Horizons
  • 4/5/2016
  • by Garth Franklin
  • Dark Horizons
‘Drunk Stoned Brilliant Dead’ is vivacious and acerbic
Drunk Stoned Brilliant Dead: The Story of the National Lampoon

Directed by Douglas Tirola

United States, 2015

The words “National Lampoon” might mean different things depending on your generation: a magazine, Animal House, Saturday Night Live, a still-ongoing spate of raunchy films, that publication that you always get confused with Mad Magazine.

Douglas Tirola’s vivacious documentary neatly puts that history into perspective, in a fast-paced paean that celebrates the magazines vulgarity.

Tracing the history from its founding at Harvard, through the golden years, and into a mostly dismal, occasionally tragic ending, Tirola’s film uses a whole lot of comics straight from the magazine, sometimes in animated form, to punctuate and, effectively, illustrate the rise and fall of a mini-empire. Drunk Stoned Brilliant Dead is often hilarious, if for no other reason then just from the old drawings themselves, which have remarkable staying power and prescience.

Part of the point...
See full article at SoundOnSight
  • 10/13/2015
  • by Neal Dhand
  • SoundOnSight
Review: 'Drunk Stoned Brilliant Dead: The Story of the National Lampoon' Captures The irreverent Spirit Of A Comedy Institution
While it’s likely known now to younger generations as a brand that launched some classic ‘80s movies, once upon a time the savagely pointed satirical magazine National Lampoon was the voice of comedy in the United States. Founded by Harvard humorists Douglas Kenney and Henry Beard, the naughty and provocative creators of National Lampoon slid their sneaky fingers under the bra strap of cultural gatekeepers, and after some heavy petting, rested it right on the pulse of the zeitgeist. Founded in the 1970s, as the flower power ideals curdled into the cynical and angry era of Watergate and Vietnam, National Lampoon’s establishment-challenging irreverence and taboo-breaking gallows humor mainlined right into the darker countercultural current. A product of their less-idealistic generation, these outsiders’ incisive wit, ballsy hilarity, and transgressive political, social, and sexual views arrived just when the nation was at its most desperate need for a laugh. Eventually veering.
See full article at The Playlist
  • 9/25/2015
  • by Rodrigo Perez
  • The Playlist
Wamg’s 2015 Fall Movie Preview
As the days get darker and the cold winds of Autumn approach, it’s time to look ahead at the upcoming movies set to hit cinemas this Fall.

The huge slate includes the return of the Jedis, the rebirth of Frankenstein and a new age of Good Dinosaurs. These movies will take audiences to a Galaxy Far, Far Away, on a voyage to Mars and to the summit of the world’s highest mountain, Everest.

Here’s our list of the 2015 Fall movies that we can’t wait to see!

September

The Visit (Sept 11)

Writer/director/producer M. Night Shyamalan (The Sixth Sense, Signs, Unbreakable) and producer Jason Blum (Paranormal Activity, The Purge and Insidious series) welcome you to Universal Pictures’ The Visit. Shyamalan returns to his roots with the terrifying story of a brother and sister who are sent to their grandparents’ remote Pennsylvania farm for a weeklong trip.
See full article at WeAreMovieGeeks.com
  • 9/3/2015
  • by Movie Geeks
  • WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Tribeca Review: Documentary ‘Drunk, Stoned, Brilliant, Dead: The Story Of The National Lampoon’
While it’s likely known now to younger generations as a brand that launched some classic ‘80s movies, once upon a time the savagely pointed satirical magazine National Lampoon was the voice of comedy in the United States. Founded by Harvard humorists Douglas Kenney and Henry Beard, the naughty and provocative creators of National Lampoon slid their sneaky fingers under the bra strap of culture gatekeepers, and after some heavy petting, rested it right on the pulse of the zeitgeist. Founded in the 1970s, as the flower power ideals curdled into the cynical and angry era of Watergate and Vietnam, National Lampoon’s establishment-challenging irreverence and taboo-breaking gallows humor mainlined right into the darker countercultural current. A product of their less-idealistic generation, these outsiders’ incisive wit, ballsy hilarity, and transgressive political, social, and sexual views arrived just when the nation was at its most desperate need for a laugh. Eventually veering.
See full article at The Playlist
  • 4/17/2015
  • by Rodrigo Perez
  • The Playlist
Harold Ramis
Wgaw To Honor The Late Harold Ramis With Screen Laurel Award
Harold Ramis
The Writers Guild of America, West has chosen late screenwriter-director-actor-producer Harold Ramis to receive its Laurel Award for Screenwriting Achievement, awarded to a Writers Guild member who has advanced the literature of motion pictures and made outstanding contributions to the profession of the screenwriter. Erica Mann Ramis and family will accept the award on Ramis’ behalf at the Writers Guild Awards ceremony on Saturday, February 14. Harold Ramis passed away on February 24, 2014 at the age of 69. From today’s announcement:

“Harold Ramis changed the face of comedy. His death last year deprived us of his unique way of seeing the world, at once hilarious and wise. From his early work with National Lampoon and Sctv through Animal House, Meatballs, Caddyshack, and Ghostbusters, Ramis’ voice was strong, clear, outrageous in all the best ways. His unrealized projects – an adaptation of Confederacy of Dunces, a biopic about Emma Goldman – leave us aching with...
See full article at Deadline
  • 1/13/2015
  • by Denise Petski
  • Deadline
National Lampoon's Animal House (1978)
The 20 Best Summer Blockbusters of All Time: 'Animal House'
National Lampoon's Animal House (1978)
Fat, drunk, and stupid may not be the best way to go through life, but it sure does create one memorable film character!

Movies have often been set in and around college campuses, but none quite like Animal House. From toga parties to food fights, the film not only introduced us to many collegiate cinematic clichés, but pretty much reinvented the entire genre. When you think of a college movie, you think of Animal House.

John Belushi made a huge leap from TV onto the big screen as Bluto, the exact opposite of what you think a fraternity boy would...
See full article at EW.com - PopWatch
  • 4/17/2014
  • by Jake Perlman
  • EW.com - PopWatch
Bill Murray at an event for Broken Flowers (2005)
Harold Ramis: 6 of his greatest comedies from Caddyshack to Groundhog Day
Bill Murray at an event for Broken Flowers (2005)
Harold Ramis has passed away at the age of 69.

Tributes have poured in for the veteran writer-director and actor, whose credits spanned from early '80s classics Caddyshack and Stripes to recent comedies including Knocked Up and Year One.

Digital Spy takes a look back at six great comedies in which Ramis played a key role.

Animal House (1978)

Ramis's first feature writing credit turned out to be on one of the most influential (and profitable) comedies of all time. Working from a series of stories published in National Lampoon magazine and using many of their own fraternity experiences as inspiration, Ramis, Douglas Kenney and original author Chris Miller dreamt up the ribald story of two freshmen who, having been rejected from the major college fraternity, defect to anti-establishment alternative Delta House.

Caddyshack (1980)

Ramis's directorial debut was a game-changer, launching Bill Murray into the big time on the big screen (all...
See full article at Digital Spy
  • 2/25/2014
  • Digital Spy
Harold Ramis: 1944-2014
Who you gonna call? pic.twitter.com/XOfCjte7qp

— Paolo Rivera (@PaoloMRivera) February 24, 2014

Actor, writer, producer and director Harold Ramis, who made many of the most iconic comedy hits of the 1980s and 1990s, died today at his home in Chicago. He was 69. The award-winning comedy filmmaker who co-starred in and co-wrote Ghostbusters, Ghostbusters II, and Stripes passed away from complications related to auto-immune inflammatory vasculitis which he’d battled for four years.

Chicago native Ramis graduated from Washington University in St. Louis, Mo and worked as a joke editor for Playboy Magazine before launching his career as a writer for The National Lampoon Radio Hour, the radio show that was a launching pad for a who’s who of future comedy stars and collaborators including Chevy Chase, John Belushi, Richard Belzer, Bill Murray, and Gilda Radner. Rising alongside his peers in the late-’70s comedy scene, Ramis came up...
See full article at Comicmix.com
  • 2/24/2014
  • by Glenn Hauman
  • Comicmix.com
Cs Video Spotlight on Actor Ethan Hawke
Anyone who saw Pawel Pawlikowski's 2004 movie My Summer of Love was generally impressed with many accolades given to the performances by Nathalie Press and the then unknown Emily Blunt, making the Poland-born Pawlkowski one of England's more respected filmmakers. It's surprising how long it's taken for him to return to filmmaking and his latest movie The Woman in the Fifth , based on the book by Douglas Kenney, stars Ethan Hawke as writer Tom Ricks, who travels to Paris to try to reconnect with his estranged wife and daughter. When that doesn't work out, he decides to stay in Paris, staying at a cheap hotel filled with dangerous individuals, and he only finds solace in a tryst he has with a mysterious woman named Margit, played by Kristin Scott Thomas. It's been quite some...
See full article at Comingsoon.net
  • 6/13/2012
  • Comingsoon.net
National Lampoon's Animal House (1978)
'Animal House' Musical Heads to Broadway With Barenaked Ladies
National Lampoon's Animal House (1978)
It's toga-party time on Broadway. A classic of the gross-out comedy genre, the 1978 John Landis feature, National Lampoon's Animal House, will join the long list of movie hits being retooled as theatrical musicals. Universal Pictures Stage Productions announced development of the project on Monday. The show will have an original score by Canadian alt-rockers Barenaked Ladies and a book by playwright Michael Mitnick, based on the screenplay by Harold Ramis, Douglas Kenney and Chris Miller. Casey Nicholaw, a Tony Award winner for The Book of Mormon, has signed on as director and choreographer. Universal has had

read more...
See full article at The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
  • 3/5/2012
  • by David Rooney
  • The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
National Lampoon's Animal House (1978)
That's what "Animal House" was missing: a laugh track!
National Lampoon's Animal House (1978)
This week's installment in The A.V. Club's always essential Inventory column is called "Of '30 Rock's and 'Studio 60's: 38 TV Doppelgängers;" television series that premiered alongside a nearly identical twin -- "ER" and "Chicago Hope," "Transformers" and "Challenge of the Go-Bots," and so on. It's a great list across the board, but the entry that really blew my mind was the one about "Delta House," the little-seen TV spinoff of "National Lampoon's Animal House," that aired on for one season on ABC.

"Delta House" is one of the most notoriously bad movie-to-tv adaptations of all time, but I'd never seen any of it until today. The Inventory piece included this embedded video clip which completely blew my mind. Why? There's John Vernon -- a.k.a. Dean Wormer -- sitting in his office, talking to some Rotc flunky, while from some distance plane of the space-time continuum,...
See full article at ifc.com
  • 9/12/2011
  • by Matt Singer
  • ifc.com
Blu-Ray Review: Still-Hilarious ‘Caddyshack’ a Perfect Father’s Day Gift
Chicago – The best comedies are just as funny decades after they were released as the day they come out. Watch “Blazing Saddles” for the perfect example. Or “Young Frankenstein”. Or even “Caddyshack,” a film that’s not in the league of the absolute best but is still hysterically funny three decades after its release, a fact made clear by a fantastic Blu-ray release hitting stores just in time for Father’s Day.

Blu-Ray Rating: 4.5/5.0

What more could possibly be written about “Caddyshack” that hasn’t already been since its 1980 release? The film is the perfect example of the right group of people getting together at just the right time and finding comedy gold in their chemistry. Veterans like Ted Knight and Rodney Dangerfield blending with the new stars of the day like Chevy Chase and Bill Murray with a crew of talented young actors and actresses. “Caddyshack” is proof that...
See full article at HollywoodChicago.com
  • 6/11/2010
  • by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
  • HollywoodChicago.com
Bill Murray, Chevy Chase, Rodney Dangerfield, and Ted Knight in Caddyshack (1980)
'Caddyshack' Soundtrack 'American Idol' Appearance Calls For A Shiny, New Sick Day Stash
Bill Murray, Chevy Chase, Rodney Dangerfield, and Ted Knight in Caddyshack (1980)
Call them "cult classics." "Guilty pleasures." "Comfort movies." We all have a mental rolodex of flicks that may not be terribly popular but, for one reason or another, they resonate in a very special way. Maybe you saw it at the right moment. Maybe you just see gold where everyone else sees feces. Whatever the case, these are the special favorites that you keep stashed away for sick days. Here are some of ours.

Last night on "American Idol," finalist Crystal Bowersox sang her heart out on a cover of Kenny Loggins' "I'm Alright." I'll admit that I don't follow the show very closely, but when I heard the news of what song Bowersox chose to sing, my response was immediate. "She wins. She's the new American Idol." For you see, "I'm Alright" is the song that opens one of the greatest sports comedies in the long history of movies: "Caddyshack.
See full article at MTV Movies Blog
  • 5/12/2010
  • by Adam Rosenberg
  • MTV Movies Blog
Image
John Belushi: Son of Samurai
Image
I feel really weird opening up my personal life this way,” says John Belushi. “But what is there to see? Just a lot of old boxes.” Hoisting one on my shoulder, I walk downstairs from his Greenwich Village apartment and dump it in the trunk of the Bluesmobile, a 1967 Dodge Monaco with a fresh coat of jet-black paint. Belushi has discovered a unique way of making reporters useful: if they must ask nosy questions, the least they can do is save you some bucks in moving expenses. Actually, there is...
See full article at Rollingstone.com
  • 8/10/1978
  • by Charles M. Young
  • Rollingstone.com
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