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I can already imagine the meeting that will take place around May or June of this year with a cast featuring senior executive members of the Motion Picture Academy and ABC. Following a dull PowerPoint presentation on Academy reputation perception, a network exec stands up and spins how the dismal ratings for the 2023 Oscars — the third lowest since Nielsen started tracking — were actually up two million viewers from the previous year (the year of “the slap”) to a total 18.8 million viewers. They brag about the 13% uptick before launching into how (and I’m guessing here), somewhere in Idaho, six 17-year-olds watched the show for an average of two minutes, which resulted in the audience being 0.25% younger. Champagne is served.

It all reminds me of my late friend, the iconic producer David Brown, who said to me, “My boy, Hollywood is the only place in the world where you can die of encouragement.

Back in the early 1970s, while George Lucas was immortalizing the “cruising” culture of teens and their cars in “American Graffiti,” his future frequent collaborator Steven Spielberg was exploring a different kind. Nearly a decade before director William Friedkin created a scandal with the Al Pacino-starring “Cruising” (released 37 years ago today), the wunderkind filmmaker—who has won over generations of audiences by evoking a childlike sense of wonder—almost made his leap from TV to features with the most adult-themed project imaginable.

It all started with producer Philip D’Antoni, who had won an Oscar for the 1971 drug-bust saga “The French Connection” and was looking for a filmmaker to helm another New York City-set crime project. He had just bought the rights to the novel “Cruising,” written by The New York Times feature writer Gerald Walker, in which an undercover cop descends into the leather bars of Greenwich Village as he tracks a homosexual murderer.

By Darren Allison

I’ve always viewed “Cocoon” as the type of film that Steven Spielberg would have been very happy to have made. It has all the hallmarks of a Spielberg movie: a light hearted, warm, science fiction fantasy that is also extremely enjoyable and a perfect piece of innocent entertainment. It was, of course, Ron Howard who picked up the project, a relative newcomer in directorial terms. However, his stock was rising based on the very popular romantic comedy/fantasy “Splash” (1984) with Tom Hanks and Daryl Hannah. It was certainly enough to attract the attention of producers Richard Zanuck and David Brown at 20th Century Fox who were happy to take on the ambitious Howard and his vision for the film.

Given that the film was targeted at teenage audiences amid the mid-80s trend for special effects- laden spectacles, “Cocoon” managed to capture the imagination of a much wider audience.

While Paramount is currently in production on the next installment of its Transformers franchise with Transformers: The Last Knight, the studio is planning on launching a much different franchise. The studio has acquired the rights to Leslie Charteris' long-running book series The Saint for a new movie reboot. The studio previously distributed the 1997 version of The Saint, which starred Val Kilmer and Elizabeth Shue.

Leslie Charteris original book series, which ran from 1928 to 1963, followed Simon Templar, a thief who would pull off elaborate heists, stealing from corrupt politicians, drug dealers and other criminals and spread their wealth among the less fortunate. The books were adapted into a 1960s British TV series which starred Roger Moore as Simon Templar. There was also a recent attempt to revitalize the property as an American TV series, which will now be released as a TV movie later this year, starring Adam Rayner (Tyrant) as Simon Templar,...

Exclusive: The last time I wrote about The Saint, Mace Neufeld, Bill McDonald, Robert Evans, and David Brown were producing it with Val Kilmer. As we know in Hollywood, everything old is new (re-imagined, remade, revamped, rebooted) again and so it goes with the espionage thriller The Saint, for which Paramount has just secured the book series rights. Producing deals are being closed now, but it’s likely that Lorenzo di Bonaventura, Brad Krevoy and Robert Evans will be…...

Robert Altman's murder tale reeks of insider access and Hollywood hipster Bs; its main claim to greatness is its fifty-plus star cameos. It may no longer seem as smart as it looked in 1992, but they don't make 'em any slicker than this. The Player Blu-ray The Criterion Collection 812 1992 / Color /1:85 widescreen / 124 min. / Available through The Criterion Collection / Street Date May 24, 2016 / 39.95 Starring Tim Robbins, Greta Scacchi, Fred Ward, Whoopi Goldberg, Peter Gallagher, Brion James, Cynthia Stevenson, Vincent D'Onofrio, Lyle Lovett. Cinematography Jean Lépine Original Music Thomas Newman Written by Michael Tolkin from his novel Produced by David Brown, Michael Tolkin, Nick Wechsler Directed by Robert Altman

Reviewed by Glenn Erickson

Robert Altman's filmography is undergoing what looks like a full retrospective through Criterion; even the 1975 title Nashville came out not long ago. This very successful later picture marks a revitalization of the director's career. It's sort of a Kafkaesque spin on Hail,...

Bernard Kowalski’s Ssssssss joins 1954’s Phffft and Roger Corman’s Gas-s-s-s in the Onomatopoeic Movie Title Club. An unofficial remake of 1959’s The Alligator People, this 1973 shocker features mad doctor Strother Martin experimenting with a serum capable of turning men into snakes. Two years later producers Richard Zanuck and David Brown worked on another thriller with a bit more bite, Jaws.

The Revenant is now out on 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray, and DVD from Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment, and we’ve been provided with one Blu-ray copy to give away. Also: not long now “Dreadfuls”, Penny Dreadful Season 3 premieres on May 1st and to celebrate the show’s third season, Showtime has launched a fan art contest. Read on for more information on that as well as The Harvesters Kickstarter, the short film Scythe, and a trailer for Betrothed.

The Revenant Blu-ray Contest – Prize Details: (1) Winner will receive (1) Blu-ray copy of The Revenant.

How to Enter: For a chance to win, email contest@dailydead.com with the subject “The Revenant Contest”. Be sure to include your name and mailing address.

Entry Details: The contest will end at 12:01am Est on April 25th. This contest is only open to those who are eighteen years of age or older that live in the United States.

"When I think of 'Jaws' I think about courage and stupidity. And I think of both of those things existing underwater." That's a quote from Steven Spielberg on his time directing the 1975 horror classic, which turns 40 this Saturday. Proving that sometimes greatness can spring from unimaginable misery, the film was famously a nightmare to shoot, with numerous production problems including the frequent malfunctioning of "Bruce," the collective name given to the film's trio of animatronic sharks. But don't take my word for it. Below are ten hellish behind-the-scenes straight from the mouths of those involved that will make you wonder how they managed to finish the film at all. 1. This is what happens when you hire a stuntman with no diving experience When husband-and-wife shark experts Ron and Valerie Taylor were commissioned to get footage of actual Great Whites attacking a cage (for the famous Richard Dreyfuss underwater sequence), the...

The true meaning of Jaws has been picked over by critics and academics ever since its release in June 1975, and even its status as the first summer blockbuster has been questioned. But isn’t it just about a killer shark?

First things first; Jaws is not about a shark. It may have a shark in it – and indeed all over the poster, the soundtrack album, the paperback jacket and so on. It may have scared a generation of cinemagoers out of the water for fear of being bitten in half by the “teeth of the sea”. But the underlying story of Jaws is more complex than the simple terror of being eaten by a very big fish. As a novel, it reads like a morality tale about the dangers of extramarital sex and the inability of a weak father to control his family and his community. As a film, it...

Jaws © 1975 Universal Studios. All Rights Reserved.

You’re gonna need a bigger boat this June when “TCM Presents: Jaws 40th Anniversary” comes to select U.S. cinemas, presented by Fathom Events, Turner Classic Movies (TCM) and Universal Pictures Home Entertainment.

Originally released in 1975 and celebrating its 40th anniversary, this action-packed event will screen at 2:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. on both Sunday, June 21 and Wednesday, June 24 for a second showing.

In addition to the feature, audiences will be treated to a special introduction by TCM host Ben Mankiewicz.

Tickets for the “TCM Presents: Jaws 40th Anniversary” can be purchased online by visiting www.FathomEvents.com, or at participating theater box offices. Fans throughout the U.S. will be able to enjoy the event in nearly 500 movie theaters through Fathom’s Digital Broadcast Network. For a complete list of theater locations visit the Fathom Events website (theaters and participants...

Milos Forman was looking for the best writer to adapt the hippie anti-war musical Hair for the big screen. The Czech filmmaker already had a growing U.S. following in the wake of The Firemen’s Ball and Taking Off when 1975’s One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest took home five Oscars including best film and best director. And while Michael Weller had zero experience as a screenwriter, he did have a reputation for plays that cast a gimlet eye on the generation that came of age in the era of protest against the Vietnam War and for civil rights. His works included Moonchildren (1971), Loose Ends (1979) and Spoils Of War (1988), which interwove the intensely felt political and personal obsessions of Baby Boomers on the cusp of adulthood.

For Forman, Weller would write two of the most underrated films of their time, Hair (1979) and, two years later, Ragtime. Like his...

Philadelphia Orchestra/Sergei Rachmaninoff Rachmaninoff: Symphony No. 3/Isle of the Dead/Vocalise (RCA Gold Seal)

During most of his life, Sergei Rachmaninoff (1873-1943) was best known as a pianist and composer. He only took up conducting through an odd set of circumstances. The premiere of his First Symphony in 1897 was seriously marred by the inept conducting of Glazunov, who was reputedly drunk. Not only did this impress on the young Rachmaninoff how crucial a good conductor was to the success of his music, the critical rejection of his First Symphony on the basis of that performance sent him into a depression and caused a mental block against composing.

The mental block was eventually overcome through hypnosis, but in the meantime, business magnate Savva Mamontov somewhat charitably hired Rachmaninoff to conduct his Moscow Private Russian Opera Company, overlooking the composer's lack of experience in that role. He quickly became a fine baton-wielder,...

Exclusive: Fox 2000 will tell the story of the trailblazing rise of Helen Gurley Brown, who became one of the first female editors of a national magazine when she took the reins at Cosmopolitan in 1965. The studio has optioned Enter Helen: The Rise And Reign Of The Original Cosmo Girl, the upcoming book by Brooke Hauser that HarperCollins will publish next year. Chernin Entertainment will produce, and Marisa Paiva is overseeing for the studio.

I’m picturing Mad Men, except with a ballsy woman who thrives in a male-dominated world, her currency a legion of women ready to rebel against the housewife stereotype in search of careers and sexual freedom. The story begins in the early ’60s when she wrote the blockbuster book Sex And The Single Girl and then took the top job at the then-floundering Cosmo. She remade the magazine, and in doing so, helped changed the perception to...

Steven Awalt – author interviewed by Todd Garbarini

“Well, it’s about time, Charlie!”

Dennis Weaver utters these words in my favorite Steven Spielberg film, Duel, a production that was originally commissioned by Universal Pictures as an Mow, industry shorthand for “movie of the week”, which aired on Saturday, November 13, 1971. The reviews were glowing; the film’s admirers greatly outweighed its detractors and it put Mr. Spielberg, arguably the most phenomenally successful director in the history of the medium, on a path to a career that would make any contemporary director green with envy. Followed by a spate of contractually obligated television outings, Duel would prove to be the springboard that would catapult Mr. Spielberg into the realm that he was shooting for since his youth: that of feature film directing. Duel would also land him in the court of Hollywood producers David Brown and Richard Zanuck and get him his...

A must-see for students of Hollywood and would-be producers, Laurent Bouzereau’s inside-the-movie-biz documentary “Don’t Say No Until I Finish Talking: The Story of Richard D. Zanuck,” will be released on DVD this September, via Turner Classic Movies. Zanuck, the son of legendary 20th Century Fox co-founder and executive Darryl F. Zanuck, produced his first film, “Compulsion,” before he turned 25. He became president of a struggling Fox a few years later, only to be fired by his father, which led the younger Zanuck to jump to rival Warner Bros. as Executive Vice President. Richard Zanuck was the subject early in his career of one of the best Hollywood books ever written, John Gregory Dunne's "The Studio." (Read Anne Thompson's New York Times interview with Zanuck here.) Richard Zanuck later joined with the late David Brown to produce many of Steven Spielberg’s early movies, such as “The Sugarland Express” and “Jaws,...

Enjoying a night out to show off her latest work, America Ferrera walked the red carpet at the premiere of "X/Y" on Saturday (April 19) in New York City.

The "Ugly Betty" actress looked lovely in a white skirt topped with a navy blue sleeveless shirt as she posed for waiting shutterbugs.

Written and directed by Ryan Piers Williams, the drama also stars David Brown, Common and Melonie Diaz.

Per the synopis, "X/Y" is: "a look at the lives and interactions of a group of friends living in New York."...

I didn’t know that writer blockitis was catching, but it must be, because just like my buddy and fellow columnist John Ostrander, I seem to be suffering from the same ailment today.

Signs and symptoms include sluggishness, an inability to form ideas, a lack of imagination, a desire to smash the computer, great interest in infomercials, and reading the Sunday New York Times.

Oh. Wait. Here’s something.

It’s an article by Brooke Barnes in the Arts & Leisure section, and it’s called “Save My Blockbuster!” Considering all the words and thoughts that have gone into discussing Man Of Steel by the columnists (including me) here at ComicMix since its opening on June 14, as well as the other comics, science fiction, and pop culture cinematic adventures that have already hit the screen (Iron Man 3, Star Trek: Into Darkness, World War Z) or are still to come (The Lone Ranger,...

Richard D. Zanuck's life is the tale of one man, but it's also a story of fathers and sons, of personal and professional ups and downs, and most certainly of Hollywood then and now.

Ten months after his death, the one-time 20th Century Fox president (who worked there for his father, legendary movie mogul Darryl F. Zanuck) and Oscar-winning producer of such classics as "Jaws" and "Driving Miss Daisy" is recalled in the new Turner Classic Movies special "Don't Say No Until I Finish Talking: The Story of Richard D. Zanuck" Wednesday, May 8.

Many of its remarks come from Zanuck himself, via an interview conducted for the program by producer-director Laurent Bouzereau, maker of many "making-of" documentaries featured on home video releases ... including, very recently, Steven Spielberg's "Lincoln." Spielberg, whose career effectively was launched by Zanuck and longtime producing partner David Brown when they hired him to direct...

Ddb Group Melbourne’s below-the-line offering Rapp has merged with boutique integrated agency Crawford Brown, and relaunched as a digital, data and analytics business.

The move sees Crawford Brown’s David Brown take over the combined entity as managing director and Rapp Melbourne’s MD Tess Doughty assume the role of managing partner.

Brown said in a statement: “Crawford Brown becoming part of Rapp Melbourne makes perfect sense given where the industry is heading. Tess and I have enjoyed a professional relationship for nearly 10 years and look forward to leading the business with her.”

“The new Rapp Melbourne takes the best of both businesses and packages them into a strong data driven integrated agency offering with senior firepower. Whilst data will be at the heart of everything we do it still needs to be expressed creatively and that will be an integral part of our vision going forward.”

Doughty added:...

Hendersonville, N.C. — Thousands of people are still coming to visit the western North Carolina forest where the movie "The Hunger Games" was filmed.

The Times-News of Hendersonville reported ( ) the number of visitors this year to DuPont State Recreational Forest reached 327,000 by the end of October. Attendance last year was about 250,000. http://bit.ly/SjO33X

Forest officials say there are no signs the surge of visitors will end anytime soon.

Supervisor David Brown says attendance in November has been steady, except on the coldest days.

The film premiered in March. Crowds have traveled to see where Jennifer Lawrence, who played the lead character Katniss, crossed Triple Falls and plunged into a pool below Bridal Veil Falls.

Hunger Games Fan Tours of Brevard sold out its main-season events and has started booking for next year.

Oscar Horrors looks at nominated contributions to this non-Oscar bait genre. Here's Craig on Jaws.

Here Lies... a beautifully cut shark by the name of Bruce. Oscar-winning editor Verna Fields did the celluloid slicing and dicing...

Spielberg made it a star of fearful proportions. John Williams gave it an iconic theme tune. Roy Scheider, Richard Dreyfuss and Robert Shaw obsessively stalked it. And Richard D. Zanuck and David Brown looked on, clutching the purse strings, as they all went about their blockbusting business. But the person who gave Amity Island’s Great White unwanted visitor fierce presence and a sinister personality most could arguably be the editor Verna Fields. Alongside Spielberg and Co. she was instrumental in terrorizing the world with Jaws, summer 1975’s maiden blockbuster movie. She manoeuvred the shark’s arrival and departure – in tandem, of course, with Williams’ score – helping to create cinema’s scariest PG-rated, non-human villain.

With all the talk of the original Jaws buzzing around the internet due to the awesome new Blu-ray that’s just been released, I thought it might be an idea to take a look at the Jaws sequel, which despite not being as good as the original is still quite a solid attempt at recreating the tension, action and shark bites of the original classic.

Released in 1978, Jaws 2 was on the cards at Universal before the original Jaws even finished its theatrical run. Spielberg was out, but producers Richard D. Zanuck and David Brown were in. Back in the late seventies, sequels were pretty much frowned upon but after Jaws took the box office by storm it was a no brainer that Universal wanted to try and recreate the magic with another shark finding its way to Amity Island.

Set four years after the events of the original, Brody...

Jaws – the landmark motion picture that still makes audiences afraid to go in the water – comes to Blu-rayTM for the first time ever on 3rd September 2012. Featuring an all-new, digitally remastered and fully restored picture, as well as 7.1 surround sound, the Jaws Blu-rayTM with Digital Copy and UltraVioletTM gives fans the ultimate way to watch the breathtaking and terrifying action-thriller.

One of the most influential motion pictures of all time and nominated for a Best Picture Academy Award®, Jaws stars Oscar® winner Richard Dreyfuss and Oscar® nominees Roy Scheider and Robert Shaw. Produced by legendary filmmakers Richard D. Zanuck and David Brown, the film earned an Oscar® for composer John Williams’ instantly recognisable minimalist score, as well as Oscars® for Best Editing and Best Sound. When it was first released in 1975, Jaws smashed box-office records and became the highest-grossing film of its era, earning Spielberg a reputation as a Hollywood visionary.

Jaws – the landmark motion picture that still makes audiences afraid to go in the water – comes to Blu-rayTM for the first time ever on 3rd September 2012. Featuring an all-new, digitally remastered and fully restored picture, as well as 7.1 surround sound, the Jaws Blu-rayTM with Digital Copy and UltraVioletTM gives fans the ultimate way to watch the breathtaking and terrifying action-thriller.

One of the most influential motion pictures of all time and nominated for a Best Picture Academy Award®, Jaws stars Oscar® winner Richard Dreyfuss and Oscar® nominees Roy Scheider and Robert Shaw. Produced by legendary filmmakers Richard D. Zanuck and David Brown, the film earned an Oscar® for composer John Williams’ instantly recognisable minimalist score, as well as Oscars® for Best Editing and Best Sound. When it was first released in 1975, Jaws smashed box-office records and became the highest-grossing film of its era, earning Spielberg a reputation as a Hollywood visionary.

Still afraid to go back into the water? Have we got a contest for you!

Wamg is giving away 100 bottle openers to celebrate the August 14th DVD/Blu-ray release of Academy Award® Winner Steven Spielberg.s Iconic Summer Classic, Jaws and the 100th Anniversary of Universal Studios!

10 lucky readers will receive 10 Jaws keychains. “Bruce” never looked so good! Share them with your friends to help remind them Not to go into the water!

Official Rules: 1. You Must Be A Us Resident. Prize Will Only Be Shipped To Us Addresses. No P.O. Boxes 2. Fill Out Your Real Name (First And Last) And Email Address Below. Fake names will be discarded. 3. Tell us the name of Quint’s boat.

Winners Will Be Chosen Through A Random Drawing Of Qualifying Contestants. No Purchase Necessary. Prizes Will Not Be Substituted Or Exchanged.

Jaws . the landmark motion picture that still makes audiences afraid to...

Jaws . the landmark motion picture that still makes audiences afraid to go in the water . comes to Blu-rayTM for the first time ever on August 14th, 2012. Featuring an all-new, digitally remastered and fully restored picture, as well as 7.1 surround sound, the Jaws Blu-rayTM Combo Pack with DVD, Digital Copy and UltraVioletTM gives fans the ultimate way to watch the breathtaking and terrifying action-thriller.

One of the most influential motion pictures of all time and nominated for a Best Picture Academy Award®, Jaws stars Oscar® winner Richard Dreyfuss and Oscar® nominees Roy Scheider and Robert Shaw. Produced by legendary filmmakers Richard D. Zanuck and David Brown, the film earned an Oscar® for composer John Williams. instantly recognizable minimalist score, as well as Oscars® for Best Editing and Best Sound. When it was first released in 1975, Jaws smashed box-office records and became the highest-grossing film of its era, earning Spielberg a reputation as a Hollywood visionary.

By Joe Vanourney

Just when you thought it was safe to turn off your Blu-Ray player, Universal Studios Home Entertainment has released an all-new digitally remastered and fully restored version, complete with 7.1 surround sound, of its classic Jaws in a Blu-Ray-DVD Combo Pack along with Digital Copy and UltraViolet.

Jaws, released in 1975, nominated for Best Picture and winner of three Oscars (Best Film Editing, Best Original Score, and Best Sound), is one of the most successful and influential films in the history of the medium, and Universal has chosen to restore it as part of their 100th Anniversary celebration.

They deliver. This is hands-down, one of the must-own Blu-Rays of the year and a standard for how to present a catalog title on home video both in terms of presentation and also bonus features.

Let.s start with the presentation. Jaws has never looked or sounded better.

Jaws. The first summer blockbuster. The first film to reap the benefits of a massive 400 theater opening weekend release. The first film to really set television into action as a home invading movie advertisement machine. The film that proved Steven Spielberg to be a true craftsmen at the helm of a major studio funded motion feature. The film that inadvertently closed the curtain on an era of unfathomable creative freedom by proving you could make insane amounts of money if a film can be marketed to every living person on the planet. And though in its wake major studio film culture has become synonymous with cheap popcorn thrills and overblown studio expenditures, Jaws remains a classic not just for how it changed the film industry, but because it is an exquisitely made monster movie that tapped into universal human fears and did so with iconic style.

The story is simple...

Jaws, the landmark motion picture that still makes audiences afraid to go in the water comes to Blu-ray for the first time ever on August 14th, 2012. To celebrate, Wamg got to sit down with Joe Alves (Jaws production designer), Carl Gottlieb (Played “Meadows”. and co-wrote Jaws), and J. Michael Roddy (Producer, The Shark Is Still Working) and talk about the film, and it’s continued impact on film lovers everywhere.

The best part is that all of the interviews were shot at Jaws Lake at Universal Studios Hollywood, so occasionally you might see something in the water.

Carl Gottlieb (Played “Meadows” and co-wrote Jaws)

Joe Alves (Jaws production designer)

J. Michael Roddy (Producer, The Shark Is Still Working)

Synopsis:

Directed by Academy Award winner Steven Spielberg, Jaws set the standard for edge-of-your seat suspense quickly becoming a cultural phenomenon and forever changing the movie industry. When the seaside community of...

Helen Gurley Brown, the legendary editor of Cosmopolitan magazine, died Monday in a hospital in Manhattan, according to Hearst. She was 90. She was the wife of the late Hollywood producer David Brown, whose films included Jaws, The Sting, Cocoon, Driving Miss Daisy and The Verdict. They married in 1959 and were together for more than 50 years until Brown's death at age 93 on Feb. 1, 2010. The powerful pair were often the toast of the New York social scene, always impeccably dressed.  Photos: Hollywood's Notable Deaths of 2012 Brown's 1962 best-selling book, Sex and the Single

read more...

Jaws fans from around the world have descended upon Martha Vineyard (aka “Amity Island”) for Jawsfest: The Tribute (http://www.jawstribute.com/). The annual, four-day, fan-driven event takes place August 9-12, 2012, to celebrate the legacy of Steven Spielberg’s film and how it has impacted the lives of those who came to Amity in 1974. The tribute event also pays homage to the men and women of Jaws who have passed with a special focus on Peter Benchley, Roy Scheider and Robert Shaw.

The event coincides with Universal Studios’ 100th Anniversary celebration and the August 14th release of Jaws on Blu-ray.. Featuring an all-new, digitally remastered and fully restored picture, as well as 7.1 surround sound, the Jaws Blu-ray. includes over 4 hours of bonus features including an all-new documentary “The Shark is Still Working.”

Check out a clip from Jawsfest.

Jaws . the landmark motion picture that still makes audiences afraid to go...

Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water, Jaws makes its Blu-ray debut on August 14th with a Blu-ray/DVD Combo Pack loaded with more than four hours bonus material and featuring an incredible restoration of the classic film. M&C is giving away three copies of Jaws on Blu-ray Combo Pack along with a Jaws Key Chain Can Opener. One of the most influential motion pictures of all time and nominated for a Best Picture Academy Award, Jaws stars Oscar winner Richard Dreyfuss and Oscar nominees Roy Scheider and Robert Shaw. Produced by legendary filmmakers Richard D. Zanuck and David Brown, the film earned an Oscar for composer John Williams. instantly recognizable minimalist score,...

Film reviewer and broadcaster with the common touch, she was feared by directors and dismissed by auteurist critics

Judith Crist, who has died aged 90, was, at one stage, probably the most widely read, listened to and watched film critic in the world. At least, due to her appearances on the early morning Us television show Today and her reviews in the weekly magazine TV Guide, which had a huge circulation of 17m in its heyday, she was the American film critic with the largest appeal to a mass audience.

Crist, who called herself a "journalistic reviewer", knew what the public wanted and catered to them. She had no truck with "cerebral" film theorists, nor auteurists such as Andrew Sarris, nor feminist critics such as Molly Haskell. Her idols were James Agee, Otis Ferguson and Frank Nugent, solid writers in the literary tradition. "If you're going to be a movie fan,...

Dread Central recently had the opportunity to speak with the man behind the stunning restoration of Steven Spielberg's classic blockbuster Jaws - Mike Daruty, Senior Vice President of Universal's Technical Operations.

During our interview with Daruty, he discussed the restoration process he used on Jaws, which has the film looking even better than it did in theaters almost 40 years ago, and chatted with us about some of the other Universal restorations he's behind, including many of the studio's classic monster movies.

Check out our video with Daruty below, and make sure to pick up the Jaws Blu-ray when it hits shelves everywhere Tuesday, August 14th.

From the Press Release

Jaws – the landmark motion picture that still makes audiences afraid to go in the water – comes to Blu-ray for the first time ever on August 14th, 2012. Featuring an all-new, digitally remastered and fully restored picture, as well as 7.1 surround sound,...

In honor of actor Robert Shaw's birthday today, we have another several clips from the upcoming Jaws Blu-ray for you cats to sink your teeth into. So get ready to check out the head... the tail... the whole damned thing!

From the Press Release

Jaws – the landmark motion picture that still makes audiences afraid to go in the water – comes to Blu-ray for the first time ever on August 14th, 2012. Featuring an all-new, digitally remastered and fully restored picture, as well as 7.1 surround sound, the Jaws Blu-ray Combo Pack with DVD, Digital Copy and UltraViolet gives fans the ultimate way to watch the breathtaking and terrifying action-thriller.

One of the most influential motion pictures of all time and nominated for a Best Picture Academy Award®, Jaws stars Oscar® winner Richard Dreyfuss and Oscar® nominees Roy Scheider and Robert Shaw. Produced by legendary filmmakers Richard D. Zanuck and David Brown,...

Jaws – the landmark motion picture that still makes audiences afraid to go in the water – comes to Blu-ray for the first time ever on August 14th, 2012. Featuring an all-new, digitally remastered and fully restored picture, as well as 7.1 surround sound, the Jaws Blu-ray Combo Pack with DVD, Digital Copy and UltraVioletTM gives fans the ultimate way to watch the breathtaking and terrifying action-thriller. One of the most influential motion pictures of all time and nominated for a Best Picture Academy Award®, Jaws stars Oscar® winner Richard Dreyfuss and Oscar® nominees Roy Scheider and Robert Shaw. Produced by legendary filmmakers Richard D. Zanuck and David Brown, the film earned an Oscar® for composer John Williams’ instantly recognizable minimalist score, as well as Oscars® for Best...

The original Jaws hitting Blu-ray is cause for much celebration. The best part? We have a ton of behind-the-scenes videos on tap for you right now and we didn't even have to chum the waters! Check them all out now!

From the Press Release

Jaws – the landmark motion picture that still makes audiences afraid to go in the water – comes to Blu-ray for the first time ever on August 14th, 2012. Featuring an all-new, digitally remastered and fully restored picture, as well as 7.1 surround sound, the Jaws Blu-ray Combo Pack with DVD, Digital Copy and UltraViolet gives fans the ultimate way to watch the breathtaking and terrifying action-thriller.

One of the most influential motion pictures of all time and nominated for a Best Picture Academy Award®, Jaws stars Oscar® winner Richard Dreyfuss and Oscar® nominees Roy Scheider and Robert Shaw. Produced by legendary filmmakers Richard D. Zanuck and David Brown, the...

Back in 1974 when production was first gearing up for Universal Studios' Jaws, Joe Alves knew that while the challenges they were facing to bring Peter Benchley's novel to the big screen were going to be huge, the rewards would be worth it.

That is, if they could survive their almost 160 day shooting schedule.

But of course Alves was right; Jaws went on to become the movie that launched the summer blockbuster and despite the passing of almost 40 years since its initial release, the Steven Spielberg-classic still remains one of the best and most critically-acclaimed movies ever made that has become the measuring stick for countless filmmakers out there who have stated it’s the one film that made them realize anything was possible once you step behind the camera.

Recently, Dread Central had the opportunity to chat with Alves during the recent Jaws Blu-Ray press day held...

J. Michael Roddy was only six years old in the summer of 1975, but like the rest of the country, he developed shark fever after seeing Steven Spielberg’s Jaws. “There are two things that are really cool to a six year old boy, and that’s dinosaurs and sharks,” says Roddy. “I begged my parents to let me see Jaws, and it was the first time I remember being completely lost in a film. It changed my life.”

Roddy isn’t alone. Jaws changed a lot of people’s lives, beginning with the then 28-year-old Spielberg himself. But in The Shark is Still Working,...

Jaws – the landmark motion picture that still makes audiences afraid to go in the water – comes to Blu-ray for the first time ever on August 14th, 2012. Featuring an all-new, digitally remastered and fully restored picture, as well as 7.1 surround sound, the Jaws Blu-ray Combo Pack with DVD, Digital Copy and UltraVioletTM gives fans the ultimate way to watch the breathtaking and terrifying action-thriller. One of the most influential motion pictures of all time and nominated for a Best Picture Academy Award®, Jaws stars Oscar® winner Richard Dreyfuss and Oscar® nominees Roy Scheider and Robert Shaw. Produced by legendary filmmakers Richard D. Zanuck and David Brown, the film earned an Oscar® for composer John Williams’ instantly recognizable minimalist score, as well as Oscars® for Best...

Pretty much any movie fans worth their salt would call themselves a fan of Spielberg's 1975 summer blockbuster Jaws. However, filmmaker J. Michael Roddy has all of us beat in the fan department.

Roddy embarked on making an extensive documentary in honor of Jaws back in 2005, and now with Universal Studios' upcoming release of the restored film on Blu-ray next week, fans everywhere will finally have the opportunities to enjoy the fruits of Roddy's labor over the last seven years via his extensive look back at the film that forever changed the cinematic landscape in 1975.

During the recent press day held at Jaws Lake on the Universal Studios backlot, Dread Central had the opportunity to chat with Roddy about all things Jaws- its legacy, why it has endured and what kept him going to get The Shark Is Still Working finished up over the last few years.

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If there's one man who knows the most about Jaws and its enduring legacy, even more so than director Steven Spielberg, it has to be Carl Gottlieb.

Not only did the writer/actor co-write the screenplay with Jaws novelist Peter Benchley, Gottlieb also starred in the film as local reporter Meadows and wrote the official book on what went into making the flick, The Jaws Log, which has been called one of the best 'making-of' books ever released by Hollywood heavyweights and fans alike since it was first published back in 1975.

In honor of Universal Studios' recent restoration of Jaws for the upcoming Blu-ray release on August 14th, Dread Central had the opportunity to chat with Gottlieb recently during a press day on the Universal backlot at Jaws Lake to hear more about the legacy of the film that birthed the modern summer blockbuster, his experiences working on Jaws...

There are all kinds of producers: hucksters, hustlers, con men and schlockmeisters. Some are in it for the glory, some like to walk the red carpet with a starlet on their arm. For some, the biggest award is a box office hit and it doesn’t matter what kind of crap they throw on the screen to earn it. There are producers like Harvey Weinstein who will spend more money to promote himself to an Oscar win than he does on actually making the Oscar-winning film. And there are producers like Joel Silver who once said the only proper role for women in film was either as a dead body or naked.

And there are those – who, to be honest, may also have a touch of all of this – who are mainly driven by a desire to make good movies. Like Dick Zanuck.

I don’t think anyone will argue...

There are all kinds of producers: hucksters, hustlers, con men and schlockmeisters. Some are in it for the glory, some like to walk the red carpet with a starlet on their arm. For some, the biggest award is a box office hit and it doesn’t matter what kind of crap they throw on the screen to earn it. There are producers like Harvey Weinstein who will spend more money to promote himself to an Oscar win than he does on actually making the Oscar-winning film. And there are producers like Joel Silver who once said the only proper role for women in film was either as a dead body or naked.

And there are those – who, to be honest, may also have a touch of all of this – who are mainly driven by a desire to make good movies. Like Dick Zanuck.

I don’t think anyone will argue...

Hollywood producer and president of 20th Century Fox who made his name with Jaws

Despite the fact that the giant shadow of his father, the legendary movie mogul Darryl F Zanuck, loomed large over him for most of his life, Richard Zanuck, who has died of a heart attack aged 77, triumphantly overcame inferences of nepotism and wisecracks such as "the son also rises", to become one of the most successful Hollywood producers in the last 50 years. His reputation was due initially to Jaws (1975), among the highest grossing movies up to that time, and he was a key figure in launching the career of its director, Steven Spielberg. Zanuck was Oscar-nominated for Jaws and won the Academy Award for best picture with Driving Miss Daisy (1989).

Born in Los Angeles, Zanuck seemed destined to enter show business. He was the third child and only son of the co-founder and head of 20th Century Fox,...

HollywoodNews.com: Producer Richard Zanuck, Part of Hollywood’s Dynasty, Dies at 77.

Beloved Hollywood big studio producer Richard Zanuck has died at age 77 in Hollywood. Zanuck’s long list of hits includes “Jaws,” “Driving Miss Daisy,” “Cocoon,” “Big Fish,” and most recently, “Dark Shadows.” In recent years he co-produced movies with his third wife, Lili Fini Zanuck. For most of his career, Dick Zanuck partnered with the late great David Brown, and they were a popular and successful team in Hollywood. Zanuck was part of Hollywood’s real dynasty. His famous father, Darryl F. Zanuck, helped start Hollywood. He began producing movies in 1925. The Zanucks leave a long and proud legacy in the film business. Here’s a link to a great piece from two years ago in the L.A. Times. Rip. http://herocomplex.latimes.com/2010/04/13/richard-d-zanuck-a-hollywood-legend-too-busy-to-look-back/

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Los Angeles – Producer Richard D. Zanuck was a Prince of Hollywood. The son of Darryl Zanuck – the founder of 20th Century Fox Studios and one of the early movie moguls – Richard nevertheless made his own mark in the business, producing iconic and Oscar winning films such as “The Sting” (1973), “Jaws” (1975) and “Driving Miss Daisy” (1992). Zanuck died Friday of a heart attack, according to his publicist Jeff Sanderson. He was 77.

Producer Richard Zanuck on Set with Mia Wasikowska in Tim Burton’s “Alice in Wonderland”

Photo Credit: © Walt Disney Pictures

Richard Zanuck talked to HollywoodChicago.com in 2010, upon the release on Blu-ray of the Tim Burton directed “Alice in Wonderland,” which he produced. I asked him about his relationship with Burton, since he also produced the director’s remakes of “Planet of the Apes” (2001), “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” (2005) and the recent “Dark Shadows” (2012). He simply said, “What Tim brings is great imagination.

Producer Richard D. Zanuck dies at age 77: "Richard D. Zanuck, whose distinguished producing career included the best picture Oscar winners 'The Sting' and 'Driving Miss Daisy,' the blockbuster 'Jaws' and such well-regarded films as 'The Verdict' and 'Cocoon,' died Friday of a heart attack at his home in Beverly Hills. He was 77 ... Regarded as one of the more progressive producers in Hollywood, Zanuck was partnered with his wife, Lili Fini Zanuck, in the Zanuck Co ... In 1999, Zanuck and his longtime partner, David Brown, received the Irving G. Thalberg Award from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. It marked the first time that an honoree was a second-generation recipient – Zanuck’s father, former 20th Century Fox head of production and chairman Darryl F. Zanuck, was given the award in 1938, 1945 and 1951." Hollywood Reporter Intenational Emmys to be showcased at Asia Television Forum: "The Interna.

Film producer Richard Zanuck, who won the best picture Oscar for Driving Miss Daisy and was involved in such blockbuster films as Jaws and The Sting after his father, Hollywood mogul Darryl F. Zanuck, fired him from 20th Century Fox, died Friday. He was 77.

Zanuck's publicist says he died of a heart attack at his Beverly Hills home.

Zanuck's run of successes as an independent producer rivaled the achievements of his legendary father who reigned over 20th Century Fox from the 1930s until age and changing audience tastes brought him down.

The production company the younger Zanuck founded with David Brown produced The Sting in 1973, as well as Steven Spielberg's first feature film, The Sugarland Express, in 1974 and Spielberg's first blockbuster, Jaws, in 1975. The Sting also won the best movie Oscar, although Zanuck and Brown were not listed as its producers. Jaws was nominated for best picture, as was the Zanuck-produced The Verdict.