Written by Jon Williams
At the
Academy Awards ceremony last Sunday, Matthew McConaughey took home the statue
for Best Actor for his role as AIDS patient Ron Woodroof in Dallas
Buyers Club. The critically acclaimed film was nominated for six awards
on the night and took home three, including Best Supporting Actor for Jared
Leto in addition to McConaughey’s victory.
It was the
first Academy Award in McConaughey’s 20+ years in acting. He got his big break
when he starred as perpetual teenage wannabe David Wooderson in Richard
Linklater’s cult classic Dazed
and Confused. McConaughey has carried Wooderson with him ever since:
the lines “all right, all right, all right” and “just keep livin’” from the
conclusion of his acceptance speech, come straight from the character’s mouth,
and he created the “just keep livin” non-profit foundation to impact the lives
of high school students.
From there
McConaughey appeared in a number of films, such as Angels
in the Outfield and Boys on
the Side, but it was 1996’s A
Time to Kill that made him a star. In that film, based on a John
Grisham bestseller, McConaughey played Mississippi lawyer Jake Brigance,
who is hired to defend a man who killed two others after they were wrongly
acquitted of raping his daughter. That catapulted him into an even bigger 1997,
when he starred in Contact
with Jodie Foster and Amistad
with an ensemble cast including Morgan Freeman and Anthony Hopkins.
This was
followed by a period in which McConaughey was primarily known for starring as
the male lead in romantic comedies. It started with The Wedding Planner, in which he played opposite Jennifer Lopez.
Then he was in How
to Lose a Guy in 10 Days with Kate Hudson, Failure
to Launch with Sarah Jessica Parker, Fool’s
Gold with Hudson again, and Ghosts
of Girlfriends Past with Jennifer Garner (who was also in Dallas Buyers Club). Although the
romcoms were his most visible work during this period, he also managed to star
in other fare, like the action film Sahara
and the football drama We
Are Marshall.
After Ghosts of Girlfriends Past, McConaughey
took two years off, beginning to redefine himself with 2011’s The
Lincoln Lawyer, in which he played an attorney who is the polar
opposite of A Time to Kill’s noble
Brigance. Then he played yet another attorney in yet another Linklater film,
the dark comedy Bernie.
Since 2012, he’s been on another level, with movies like Magic
Mike and Mud,
to say nothing of Dallas Buyers Club
and The
Wolf of Wall Street, which itself was nominated for five Oscars. To top
it all off, McConaughey also stars with Woody Harrelson in the hit HBO series True Detective, which airs its Season 1
finale this Sunday night.
Matthew
McConaughey is a talented, fascinating actor with a long and varied career. For
more of his films, SmartBrowse his name on our website.
Written by Jon Williams
International
Women’s Day began in the early 1900s as part of a campaign for women’s rights,
particularly the right to vote. In 1914, the day was officially observed on
March 8 for the first time. During that year it was used as an opportunity to
rally for peace in the looming face of World War I. On its centennial
celebration, International Women’s Day is now officially recognized by 27
countries around the world, while many more observe it as well. It is now seen
as a day to celebrate the achievements of women, as well as to inspire new
generations to the lofty heights only dreamed of by their predecessors.
One way to
celebrate the achievements of women is through biographies and profiles of
notable women. A number of these have graced the bestseller lists recently,
such as I
Am Malala (about a Pakistani girl’s fight for education) and Lean
In (a memoir from Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg). On a historical level,
women like Jacqueline
Kennedy Onassis and Anne
Frank continue to fascinate, as do the Princesses Diana
and Grace
of Monaco. These are just a few of the hundreds of titles about fascinating
women that can be found here in our International
Women’s Day collection for 2014.
Of course,
hearing their stories is only one part of the equation. Another part is
actually experiencing the work they create. In fiction, women are among today’s
most popular authors. J.K. Rowling, of course, is responsible for the classic Harry
Potter books, and her two novels since then ( The
Casual Vacancy and The
Cuckoo’s Calling) have been huge bestsellers. One of the hottest books
of the past year has been Gone
Girl by Gillian Flynn, and Donna Tartt’s The
Goldfinch and Sue Monk Kidd’s The
Invention of Wings are experiencing similar popularity. Names like Nora
Roberts, Jodi
Picoult, and Janet
Evanovich are mainstays on the bestseller lists, and there are plenty of
classics from authors like Jane
Austen, the
Bronte sisters, and Willa
Cather, to name just a few. And let’s not forget To
Kill a Mockingbird—Harper Lee’s only novel is one of the best of all
time.
In film and
television, one of the buzziest names in pop culture right now is Lena Dunham,
creator and head writer of the hit HBO series Girls,
currently in its third season. (Incidentally, on International Women’s Day this
Saturday, Dunham will be hosting Saturday
Night Live.) In 2008, Kathryn
Bigelow became the first woman to win an Academy Award for Best Director
for the film The Hurt
Locker. Other notable female directors include such names as Penny
Marshall, Nora
Ephron, and Sofia
Coppola. And the list of talented actresses, past or present, would be too
long to even begin.
It’s a
similar story in music, where women are a dominant force in the industry. Taylor
Swift, Miley
Cyrus, Lady
Gaga, and Katy
Perry are some of the biggest stars in the world right now, with New
Zealand teenager Lorde
well on her way to joining them. They follow in the footsteps of classic
artists like Madonna,
Stevie
Nicks, Janis
Joplin, and Loretta
Lynn, again to name just a few. Going back further, there are names like Ella
Fitzgerald and Billie
Holiday. And this is obviously just limited to pop vocal music—there are
plenty of other genres which have seen incredible contributions by women.
So use this
Saturday to encourage your patrons to celebrate the life and work of women all
around the world. You can search for names of individual women on our website,
or SmartBrowse International Women’s Day to find a wealth of material by and
about women to add to your library’s media collection.
Written by Jon Williams
In 1980,
famed astronomer Carl Sagan teamed up with PBS to create Cosmos,
a 13-episode series that explored a number of scientific themes, particularly
about the universe and our place in it. It was written with the assistance of
astrophysicist Steven Soter and cosmologist Ann Druyan, who would soon become
Sagan’s wife. Sagan served as host of the series, which is still the
most-watched series in PBS’s history.
In a field
predicated on exploration and new discoveries, the 34 intervening years have
brought a wealth of new knowledge. Now that knowledge is set to be brought
forth, as Cosmos is being reimagined
into a new series. Debuting next weekend, on Sunday, March 9, and being
broadcast simultaneously on ten Fox networks, Cosmos: A Space-Time Odyssey will present nine episodes.
Unfortunately, Sagan passed away in 1996; the new show will be hosted by astrophysicist
NeildeGrasse Tyson.
The new
series is produced by Family
Guy creator Seth MacFarlane, who was a fan of the original Cosmos series and wanted to get involved
with something outside of his usual range. Sagan’s widow Ann Druyan is involved
as well, as she was with the original. Tyson, Druyan, and MacFarlane will
attempt to inject the series with the same kind of broad appeal that made the
original such a hit, exploring scientific concepts in an understandable and
entertaining way. Like the first series, music will play a big part; the score
will be written by film composer Alan
Silvestri (the original used music by Vangelis
and a number of other artists).
Written by Jon Williams
American comic
actor, writer, and director Harold Ramis passed away on Monday at the age of
69. While he appeared in a number of films, if you know his face, chances are
good that it’s for his role as Dr. Egon Spengler in the Ghostbusters franchise. If you’re a fan of comedy, though, there’s
no doubt you’re familiar with his work, as he was involved in many of the
funniest films created since 1978.
Ramis got
his start in comedy with the famed Second City troupe in Chicago, which led to
a stint as a performer and head writer for the sketch comedy series SCTV.
During his years working on the show (1976-1979), he worked with two
collaborators to write the script for Animal
House.
Ramis’s
first attempt at writing a feature film was a success, to say the least. It
earned over $141 million at the box office, breaking comedy records. He followed
it up with the goofy camp comedy Meatballs,
the first of six collaborations with Bill Murray. In 1980, he teamed up with
Murray again for the golf classic Caddyshack,
which he directed as well. He then stepped in front of the camera for the first
time, starring with Murray in Stripes
(which he also co-wrote), about two slackers who join the army.
After Stripes, Ramis returned to his roots
with National Lampoon, writing the original Vacation
movie that introduced Chevy Chase as well-meaning family man Clark Griswold.
Then Ramis was called in to consult on a Dan Aykroyd script about a dark comedy
about a group of enforcers traveling through time and space to battle the
paranormal. Ramis brought the story back down to Earth, and the result was the
1984 blockbuster Ghostbusters.
He joined Aykroyd and Murray on the screen for the film, as he did for the 1989
sequel (one of the few sequels Murray has done in his career).
 |
| Cartoonist Ash Vickers (@Mega_Ashra) pays tribute to Harold Ramis/Egon Spengler |
Ramis was
able to carry his string of classic comedies into the 1990s with the hilarious Groundhog
Day in 1993, in which an insufferable Pennsylvania TV weatherman (played
by Murray) is forced to relive the same day over and over again. From there, he
took a break from writing, but made memorable appearances in the films Airheads
and As Good As It Gets (currently
unavailable). He came back with a vengeance, penning and directing the 1999 mob
comedy Analyze
This with Billy Crystal and Robert De Niro, along with the sequel in
2002. The last film Ramis wrote was 2009’s Year
One, starring Jack Black and Michael Cera.
Harold Ramis
was an undisputed comedy genius, and this is just a sampling of the films he
was involved with over the course of his career. For more, SmartBrowse his name
on our website.
Written by Jon Williams
Watching TV
shows on DVD is a trend that has really caught on in recent years, and
contemporary shows have really taken advantage, with new seasons or complete
series usually being released on disc shortly after their initial television
run. Did you miss Friday
Night Lights or Breaking
Bad when they aired (or just want to see them again)? No problem. Do
you need to catch up on Game
of Thrones or True
Blood before the new seasons begin on HBO? You can do that too.
With older
shows, it can be a little harder. While a great many have come to DVD over the
years, there are plenty that devoted fans are still waiting for. One of the
most highly sought-after series that has not yet come to DVD is The Wonder Years, which aired from 1988
to 1993. Starring a young Fred Savage, the show portrayed the trials and
tribulations associated with growing up and coming of age in the U.S. in the turbulent
1960s. It explored themes of sibling rivalry, family struggles, first love, and
friendship against the backdrop of Vietnam and the space race.
Well, it
appears the wait is almost over. It was announced yesterday that Time Life is
finally bringing the complete series to disc. Although an official release date
has not yet been nailed down, plans are for it to be in “the second half of
2014.” This isn’t the first acclaimed older show that Time Life has brought to
DVD—they’re responsible for the recent release of China
Beach, among others.
Considering The Wonder Years was a show about youth
in the ‘60s, it was only natural that music played a large part in the show.
That has contributed to the delay in bringing the show to DVD, as it was
necessary to secure rights to all those songs in order to include them in a new
release. Time Life is working on that, ensuring that the upcoming DVDs will
come with all the music intact—including the theme song, Joe
Cocker’s cover of “With a Little Help from My Friends,” originally recorded
by the
Beatles.
With fans
waiting so long for this release, demand is sure to be high. Keep your eye on
our website for more information on a release date as it comes available.
Written by Jon Williams
In a press
conference held yesterday in Hollywood, rock icons Mötley Crüe announced their
impending retirement as a band. The foursome, citing a desire to go out while
still on top of their game and not carry on with anything other than their
original lineup, signed a legally binding “cessation of touring” agreement that
will dissolve the band at the end of 2015.
Fear not,
though, Crüe fans, as the boys are planning to send themselves out with a bang,
announcing a few things fans can look forward to between now and then. One is a
film adaptation of their collaborative 2001 book The Dirt, detailing the music
and debauchery that have highlighted their career, to be helmed by Jeff
Tremaine, who directed Bad
Grandpa and the rest of the Jackass
films. There will also be a Mötley Crüe tribute album, in which a number of
big-name stars will cover the band’s hits in a country music style. Florida
Georgia Line has been confirmed as one of the groups taking part, with
names like LeAnn
Rimes and The Voice winner Cassadee
Pope also being mentioned. That album is slated for a summer release; keep
an eye out for details as they become available. When asked about the
possibility of a new original Crüe album, bassist Nikki Sixx replied, “We’ll
just have to see.”
The biggest
news from the event, however, was the announcement that the band will take to
the road one final time, for the “All Bad Things Must Come to an End” world
tour. The first 72 dates, making up the North American leg and running through
November of this year, have already been set, kicking off July 2 in Grand
Rapids, Michigan. The Crüe will be supported on their tour by Rock and Roll
Hall of Famer Alice
Cooper, who pioneered the type of theatrical “shock” rock that allowed Mötley
Crüe to thrive.
When the
band finally walks off the stage for the final time, it will close a 30+year
chapter that began with their formation in Los Angeles in 1981. They
self-produced and released their debut album, Too
Fast for Love, in November of that year. Their outrageous style and
antics brought them a great deal of attention, and soon they were staples on
the fledgling MTV network. They helped usher in the popularity of hair metal in
the ‘80s with a string of hit singles and albums: Shout
at the Devil (1983), Theatre
of Pain (1985), Girls,
Girls, Girls (1987), and Dr.
Feelgood (1989).
Shortly
thereafter, as hair metal’s star fell and grunge rose to popularity in its
place, Mötley Crüe went through a period of turmoil, with singer Vince Neil and
drummer Tommy Lee both leaving the band for periods of time. They actually
recorded one album, 1999’s self-titled Mötley
Crüe, with John Corabi on lead vocals, and one, 2000’s New
Tattoo, with Randy Castillo on drums. The entire original lineup
reunited for 2008’s Saints
of Los Angeles, and has been together ever since.
Mötley Crüe’s
upcoming tour and retirement are sure to bring interest in their extensive
catalog, as well as that of Alice Cooper and other rock and metal acts as well.
Fill in the gaps in your collection by using the SmartBrowse feature on our
homepage.
Written by Jon Williams
Fans of
late-night television talk shows are in for some changes. Jay Leno’s final
night as host of NBC’s Tonight Show will
be on Thursday, February 6.
Leno began
hosting the show on May 25, 1992. He took over following the retirement of
legendary host Johnny
Carson, who had been the face of the show since 1962. At the time, Late Night host David Letterman was
hoping to move into Carson’s slot instead of Leno; the HBO movie The
Late Shift depicts the events that put Leno behind the desk. Letterman
then famously cut ties with NBC, moving to CBS for The Late Show, where he’s still going strong.
Leno’s
tenure as host was put on hold briefly when he was replaced by Conan O’Brien in
2009. That change lasted less than a year, and Leno came back to The Tonight Show early in 2010. O’Brien,
who hosted Late Night from 1993 until
taking over The Tonight Show, took a
short break from hosting to go on a very well-received comedy
tour before returning to TV to host Conan
on TBS late in 2010.
Leno’s first
guest when he took over The Tonight Show
in 1992 was actor and comedian Billy
Crystal. In a nod to the show’s roots, Crystal will also be Leno’s final
guest on February 6. That final show will also feature a musical performance
from country legend Garth
Brooks.
Leno’s
successor this time around is, once again, the current host of Late Night: Jimmy Fallon. Fallon’s star
began to rise as a cast member of Saturday
Night Live from 1999-2004, where he served as co-anchor (with Tina
Fey) of the Weekend Update segment, along with bringing a number of
characters to life. After leaving the show, he appeared in a number of movies,
most notably Fever
Pitch with Drew Barrymore, before taking over Late Night.
Fallon’s
first show as host of The Tonight Show
will be on Monday, February 17. It will air at midnight for the first week due
to NBC’s coverage of the Winter Olympics in Sochi, reverting afterwards to its
customary 11:35 time slot. His first show will feature Will
Smith and U2
as guests. Following Fallon as host of Late
Night will be fellow SNL alum
Seth Meyers, who will begin on February 24, after the Olympics are over.
For more
from any of these talented comedians and performers, SmartBrowse their names on
our website.
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