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Decades before shows like "Search Party" took an ever-shifting approach to the comedic TV format, "Laverne & Shirley" was switching things up season after season. The "Happy Days" spinoff started with a pretty consistent premise in its early seasons, focusing on two zany roommates working at a Milwaukee bottling company. By season 5, though, tomboy Laverne (Penny Marshall) and optimist Shirley (Cindy Williams) ended up in the Army Reserves, and season 6 saw them move to Burbank and work as department store gift wrappers. By the final season, Shirley was gone, and Laverne was working in the aerospace industry.

As wild as the twists and turns of "Laverne & Shirley" were, the show had some constants across its eight seasons, including the presence of neighbors Lenny (Michael McKean) and Squiggy (David Lander), Laverne's dad Frank (Phil Foster), and Shirley's fame-hungry ex, Carmine (Eddie Mekka). Most of the actors who made "Laverne & Shirley...

It is not uncommon for TV stars to direct episodes of the series on which they appear. Alan Alda, Mike Farrell, Harry Morgan and David Ogden Stiers all directed more than one episode of "M*A*S*H;" Peter Bonerz became a prolific director of television shows and films after directing 29 episodes of "The Bob Newhart Show;" and Penny Marshall might never have brought us such big screen classics as "Big" and "A League of Their Own" had she not started out directing on "Laverne & Shirley."

For the directing curious, the set of a long-running television show is a great place to cut one's teeth, so it's no surprise that two members of the Jeffersonian Institute Medico-Legal Lab found their way behind the camera during the 12-season run of "Bones." The most frequent guest in video village was David Boreanaz, who played the hard-charging FBI Agent Seeley Booth. He...

There’s no crying in baseball, and there’s never too much eating in it either if you’re Tom Hanks.

The 1992 historical sports comedy A League of Their Own is a completely timeless and mostly fictionalized account of the real-life All-American Girls Professional Baseball League (Aagpbl), and its contribution to the sport of baseball in the quotes department remains nearly unmatched: “There’s no crying in baseball,” “The hard is what makes it great” and “Did anyone ever tell you, you look like a penis with that little hat on?” are all bangers, and they’re all spoken by the fabricated boozehound Jimmy Dugan, played by Hanks.

A departure from his usual affable, fuckable everyman character, Hanks’ portrayal of the ball-scratching, long-pissing and hilariously ornery manager of the Rockford Peaches is one his best-ever comic roles specifically because it was so off-brand. During a chat with the Happy Sad Confused podcast,...

In the modern landscape of blockbusters, it’s not uncommon for actors to gain or lose weight to fit their characters, especially in the realm of Cbms. But back in the ’90s, director Penny Marshall, who collaborated with Tom Hanks on two occasions, urged the actor to gain weight for a contrasting reason.

A League of Their Own | Credit: Columbia Pictures

The Oscar winner, who previously lost weight to fit the part of an out-of-shape middle-aged man in Cast Away, recalled being told to overcome his cuteness for A League of Their Own.

Tom Hanks Was Deemed Too Cute for A League of Their Own Tom Hanks in A League of Their Own | Credit: Columbia Pictures

Having already worked together on 1988’s Big, for A League of Their Own, starring the likes of Madonna, Geena Davis, etc, Penny Marshall asked Hanks to gain weight, as the actor recalled, the director...

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My Old Ass is a coming-of-age sci-fi comedy-drama film written and directed by Megan Park. The Prime Video film follows Elliott, an 18-year-old who takes mushrooms on her birthday and comes face-to-face with her wisecracking 39-year-old. Soon, she is contacted by her older self who gives her life advice which makes Elliott forces to rethink everything from family to love. My Old Ass stars Maisy Stella, Percy Hynes White, Maddie Ziegler, Kerrice Brooks, and Aubrey Plaza. So, if you loved the coming-of-age drama, comedic tone, and compelling characters in My Old Ass here are some similar movies you should check out next.

The Map of Tiny Perfect Things (Prime Video) Credit – Amazon Studios

The Map of Tiny Perfect Things is a sci-fi romantic comedy-drama film directed by Ian Samuels from a screenplay by Lev Grossman. Based on Grossman...

Cissy Houston, the Grammy-winning gospel singer and Whitney Houston’s mother, died Monday in New Jersey. She was 91.

The singer was in hospice, where she was receiving care for Alzheimer’s disease, at the time of her death. In a statement, her daughter-in-law, Pat Houston, said that she was surrounded by her family. “Our hearts are filled with pain and sadness,” Pat said. “We lost the matriarch of our family. … Mother Cissy has been a strong and towering figure in our lives. A woman of deep faith and conviction, who cared greatly about family,...

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Before Barry Sonnenfeld became a director with films like the "Addams Family" movies, "Get Shorty," and "Men in Black," he was a decorated cinematographer who often worked with The Coen Brothers, Danny DeVito, Penny Marshall, and on two of Rob Reiner's most memorable films — "When Harry Met Sally..." and "Misery." In Sonnenfeld's new book, "Best Possible Place, Worst Possible Time: True Stories from a Career in Hollywood," he described his role of cinematographer as a "friend of the director," rather than just the director of photography. "I had as many opinions and ideas about editing, performance, or if the costumes looked worn-in enough, as I did about lighting or camera angles," he wrote. It makes sense; the cinematographer is your first line of defense to make sure something looks right, so Sonnenfeld was often involved in areas that were...

Nearly 20 years after his breakout role in “Heroes,” Zachary Quinto returns to NBC as a world-class, eccentric doctor in “Brilliant Minds.” The “Star Trek” and “American Horror Story” star plays Dr. Oliver Wolf, a neurologist who lives with a brain disorder — prosopagnosia, colloquially known as “face blindness” — and believes “you can’t treat a patient without understanding who they really are and sometimes the only course of treatment is breaking the rules.”

But Dr. Oliver Wolf isn’t a figment of fiction and those philosophies weren’t invented for the screen — he’s got his roots in the incredible true story of a legendary physician. Here’s what you need to know what’s true in “Brilliant Minds.”

Is “Brilliant Minds” based on a true story?

Yes, but it’s not strictly following the details of the real-life Dr. Oliver.

“Brilliant Minds” is inspired by the life and writing of renowned British doctor,...

Female friendships have been at the center of some of television’s most memorable and iconic shows — from comedy highs to dramatic lows. Here are TV’s Top 10 BFFs.MEGALaverne and Shirley on 'Laverne & Shirley'mega

Schlemiel! Schlimazel! They might be polar opposites, but as roommates and co-workers at Milwaukee’s fictional Shotz Brewery, Laverne (Penny Marshall) and Shirley (Cindy Williams) constantly lifted each other’s spirits as they got in and out of trouble!

Ethel and Lucy on 'I Love Lucy'Prime Video/YouTube

In one of the most legendary sitcoms in TV history, Lucille Ball as Lucy and Vivian Vance as Bff Ethel made audiences howl with laughter over their hilarious antics.

Mary and Rhoda on 'The Mary Tyler Moore Show'mega

The classic opposites attract couple of polite local news producer Mary Richards (Mary Tyler Moore) and her brash best friend and upstairs neighbor Rhoda Morgenstern (Valerie Harper) became a...

The cause of death has been revealed for former Alf child star Benji Gregory. The actor was found dead in his car at a Chase Bank parking lot in Peoria, Arizona, on June 13, along with his service dog Hans.

The Maricopa County Medical Examiner determined Gregory died from heat exposure in the setting of hepatic cirrhosis. His death was ruled accidental.

Gregory played middle son Brian Tanner on more than 100 episodes of Alf, which aired from 1986-90. It followed the earthly adventures of a furry alien from the planet Melmac who crashes his spaceship into the Tanners’ garage. Nicknamed Alf (for Alien Life Form) and voiced by Paul Fusco, the creature often cracked wise about human customs and was a cat lover — though not in the usual sense.

Born on May 26, 1978, in suburban Los Angeles, Gregory began his TV career at a tender age with mid-’80s guest roles on such as The A-Team,...

Jimmy Fallon gets a lot of flack for his interviewing skills. We've criticized him on this very sight when it comes to his penchant for cutting guests off, or stepping on a joke that took minutes to build up. He isn't the smoothest in this regard.

That said, Jimmy Fallon is human, and things can get awkward for him during interviews as well. The veteran Tonight Show host opened up about this exact topic during a 2019 interview on Watch What Happens with Andy Cohen.

Jimmy Fallon initially struggled with Robert De Niro

Fallon was asked to reflect on the most akward late night interview of his career, and he came up with a name right away: Robert De Niro. The host told Andy Cohen that he struggled mightily with De Niro, as the conversation seemingly went nowhere.

Fallon conceded that he was relatively new to late night when the interview occurred,...

This September, Paramount+ is bringing you a ton of entertainment with the highly anticipated new season of the crime drama series Tulsa King starring Sylvester Stallone and the horrifying psychological thriller film Apartment 7A. However, for the purposes of this article, we are only including the films that are coming to Paramount+ this month and have a 90% or higher Rotten Tomatoes score. So, check out the 5 best films coming to Paramount+ in September 2024 with a 90% or higher Rotten Tomatoes score.

Big (September 1)

Rotten Tomatoes Score: 98%

Big is a fantasy comedy-drama film directed by Penny Marshall from a screenplay co-written by Gary Ross and Anne Spielberg. The 1988 film revolves around Josh Baskin, a young boy who wishes to get bigger in size to a fortune-telling machine, and when the next day he wakes up he discovers that his wish has been fulfilled. Big stars Tom Hanks in the lead role with David Moscow,...

"A League of Their Own" was one of those movies that always seemed to be airing on cable when I was growing up -- and I mean always. It's not a dad movie, per se; technically, its nearly all-women cast makes it the opposite of one. Yet, it hits a lot of the same pleasure centers. It even stars America's Dad himself, Tom Hanks! At the time, though, the actor was coming off a string of box office misfires and was far from the national treasure that he is today. Hence, he asked his old buddy Penny Marshall -- who had directed him in the 1988 hit "Big" (a problematic fantasy-comedy that I still have a soft spot for) four years earlier -- to cast him in "A League of Their Own," hoping it would change his fortunes. And boy, did it ever.

Marshall's sports dramedy tells a fictional story...

Tom Hanks’ A League of Their Own character famously said, “There’s no crying in baseball,” but folks might make an exception today. A baseball park east of Los Angeles that has been a popular filming location for movies and TV shows was badly damaged in a fire overnight.

Along with the Penny Marshall-directed 1992 pic that starred Hanks, Geena Davis, Rosie O’Donnell, Madonna and Lori Petty, the park also has hosted film shoots for such features as the 1988 Charlie Sheen-John Cusack Black Sox movie Eight Men Out and the 1992 biopic The Babe starring John Goodman as Babe Ruth. It also has been used for numerous TV commercials, the city said.

The blaze was reported around 11:30 p.m. Thursday at Jay Littleton Ball Park in Ontario. An Ontario Fire Department spokesperson told Key News Network that the fire was fully involved when the crews reached to the scene.

Starting his career as a musician under the hip-hop group Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch, Mark Wahlberg has since transformed into a successful and acclaimed Hollywood actor. And he attributes his successful career to Penny Marshall’s 1994 comedy-drama, Renaissance Man, which marked his silver-screen debut.

Mark Wahlberg | Eva Rinaldi/Cca-by-sa-2.0/Wikimedia Commons

As the film celebrates its 30 years, Wahlberg reflected on starring in the movie, noting how the comedy-drama became the turning point that altered the course of his life and career.

Mark Wahlberg Credits His Film Career to Penny Marshall’s Renaissance Man

Mark Wahlberg has starred in numerous successful and acclaimed films throughout his career, even landing roles that Leonardo DiCaprio regrets passing on, such as the lead in the Oscar-nominated film Boogie Nights.

Mark Wahlberg in Renaissance Man | Credit: IMDb

However, the film he attributes his successful career as an actor is the 1994 comedy-drama Renaissance Man.

Zoë Kravitz is speaking out on the ongoing debate over whether someone can be a fan of a controversial artist’s work but not condone their actions.

Amid cancel culture and the #MeToo movement with allegations against actors and auteurs alike coming to light, “Blink Twice” writer/director Kravitz told Esquire that she does not shy away from still appreciating would-be canceled directors’ films. Kravitz specifically cited her admiration for Roman Polanski’s filmmaking. He directed two of her favorite films, “Rosemary’s Baby” and “The Tenant.”

Polanski left the U.S. in 1978 after pleading guilty to the statutory rape of a 13-year-old girl who has since defended the director. Polanski has denied the sexual misconduct claims from five other women. Polanski is still making films, with his feature “The Palace” debuting at Venice 2023.

“It’s Ok that somebody bad was involved in something good,” Kravitz told Esquire about separating the art from the artist.

Some people think Leonardo DiCaprio became a star when he acted in James Cameron’s Titanic. Others believe his stardom predated that movie when he starred opposite Claire Danes in Baz Luhrmann’s Romeo and Juliet. However, the movie that made him an up-and-comer is a film that seems to have been all but erased from his filmography: the 1995 drama The Basketball Diaries, a movie that teamed him with a young Mark Wahlberg, earned good reviews and became a VHS cult hit among teens of the nineties. Yet, it’s a tough film to find unless you’re willing to shell out big bucks for the long, out-of-print Blu-ray (never released in the U.S) or an old-school DVD. You won’t find it on streaming, and it remains an oddly obscure film considering how popular it was in the nineties. What gives?

The Basketball Diaries is based on the life of Jim Carroll,...

At the premiere of her directorial debut Blink Twice on Thursday, Zoë Kravitz took a moment for a special thank-you for the film’s star, and her fiancé, Channing Tatum.

Ahead of the screening at Los Angeles’ DGA Theatre, while Kravitz was thanking the cast and crew who worked on the project, she told the crowd she was “going to take just one second to talk about Channing fucking Tatum,” before reading a note she had written down in her notebook.

“From producing to performing to the pep talks to holding my head or my feet while I cried on the bathroom floor because I thought I fucked it all up, thank you for letting me be a complete Ocd psycho control freak. Thank you for your patience,” she said. “Making this film with you has been an awfully great adventure. Thank you for trusting me to female direct you.

On December 17, 1989, America sat down to watch "The Simpsons." The animated characters created by Matt Groening first appeared in short segments on the variety series "The Tracey Ullman Show," but by 1989, the Simpson family was ready to take on their own series.

Or were they?

The first episode to make it to air was the holiday special "Simpsons Roasting on and Open Fire," in which a down-on-his luck Homer (voiced by Dan Castellaneta) takes a job as a mall Santa. Eventually, the family adopts a greyhound dog named Santa's Little Helper, and Christmas is saved. It may not be the best episode of "The Simpsons," but it certainly made history: as of this writing, "The Simpsons" is still on the air, having just wrapped its 35th season. But back in 1989, a completely different episode of "The Simpsons" could've been the premiere. Then everything changed at the last minute.

Read more:...

Bob Newhart, an Emmy winner and nine-time nominee who helped launch the recorded comedy craze with two smash stand-up albums before starring in the revered TV shows The Bob Newhart Show and Newhart, died today at his Los Angeles home. He was 94.

His longtime publicist Jerry Digney said Newhart died after a series of short illnesses.

Newhart broke out in 1960 with a pair of No. 1 comedy albums — despite never having done stand-up before. The Button-Down Mind of Bob Newhart spent 14 weeks atop the Billboard 200 and stayed on that chart for more than two years. The Button-Down Mind Strikes Back! arrived about 10 months later and also hit No. 1. The former won Grammys for Album of the Year, Comedy Album of the Year and Best New Artist and featured a slow-spoken still-cited monologue with Newhart as Abe Lincoln.

Related: Hollywood & Media Deaths In 2024: Photo Gallery & Obituaries

“I worked as an accountant for 2½ years,...

Legend has it that every turning point in American history was marked by the presence and influence of an elusive and mythical Forrest Gump. Tom Hanks’s 1994 film, directed by the legendary Robert Zemeckis, was powerful enough to move souls and shape ideas even decades after its critically acclaimed release.

Forrest Gump (1994) [Credit: Paramount Pictures]

Although Forrest Gump developed into an instant classic and a global phenomenon upon release, the film was shrouded in troubled production and studio politics at the time of its making. From problems related to the rights to the IP to slashing of the film’s budget, the uphill battle that Hanks and Zemeckis weathered to get Forrest Gump on the road is a tale in and of itself.

Tom Hanks’s Extraordinary Journey as Forrest Gump

While the world witnessed Forrest Gump teaching Elvis his iconic dance moves and shaking hands with President John F. Kennedy,...

At one of the heights of his career, following films like “Malcolm X,” “Philadelphia,” and “Devil in a Blue Dress,” Denzel Washington starred in a remake of the 1947 Christmas movie, “The Bishop’s Wife.” Directed by the late great Penny Marshall, the remake was called “The Preacher’s Wife” and centered on a struggling Baptist pastor, played by Courtney B. Vance, and an angel come down to help, but who ends up focusing more on the pastor’s wife. Marshall cast this role to another megawatt talent of the time, Whitney Houston. Discussing his career with Chaz Ebert at the American Black Film Festival in Miami, per People, Denzel Washington remembered the concern he had for Houston while making the film.

“I felt like I always wanted to protect her,” he said. Ebert acknowledged how this was present in the film. She said, “There was a vulnerability that you saw.”

Surprised this came across in his performance,...

Synopsis

It’s a home run with this hilarious and beloved comedy starring Tom Hanks, Geena Davis, and Madonna. With baseball lineups and locker rooms left empty during World War II, the newly-founded All-American Girls Baseball League brought talented women to the big leagues and fans to the stands. The indomitable Dottie Hinson (Davis) finds herself leading a rag-tag group of players who end up winning over the heart of their has-been coach, Jimmy Dugan (Tom Hanks). Lori Petty, Rosie O’Donnell and Jon Lovitz round out the all-star roster. Based on the true story of the pioneering women who blazed the trail for generations of athletes.

Disc Details And Bonus Materials

4K Ultra HD Disc

• Feature presented in 4K resolution with Dolby Vision, restored from the original camera negative

• English Dolby Atmos + English 5.1 + English 2-Channel Surround

• Special Features:

o Domestic Theatrical Trailer

o 5 International Teasers & Trailers

Blu-ray Disc™

• Feature presented in high definition,...

One of the best aspects of TV is watching relationships build, transform, and transpire, whether they are healthy or not.

Feuding females, frenemies, and gal pals glued at the hip seem to carry a magical essence in the TV world.

Some are so iconic they drive the show and make for the best scenes and audience draw. Here are 17 female duos who obsess over each other!

Laverne DeFazio and Shirley Feeney (Laverne & Shirley)

Laverne & Shirley first aired in 1976 and was a spinoff of Happy Days. It stars Penny Marshall (Laverne) and Cindy Williams (Shirley).

The two are best friends, roommates, and co-workers at the Shotz Brewery in Milwaukee. They are complete opposites who balance each other perfectly and constantly encourage each other.

Related: Prequel Problems: Why Are TV Execs So Fixated on the Past?

The memorable duo was there for each other no matter what, and they were also highly independent.

As a kid growing up in the nineties, a movie that always got a ton of play in my household was Penny Marshall’s A League of Their Own. I have fond memories of seeing it in theaters as a ten-year-old in the summer of 1992, and it’s a movie I only revisit from time to time. So, I’m pretty happy to hear that my next revisit will be in glorious 4K, with Sony revealing that the movie’s coming out on 4K disc this September, with a fully loaded special edition.

For those who may not remember the film, it’s based on the real-life All-American Girls Baseball League, which sprung up during World War II, as most male players were overseas fighting the war. In the film, Geena Davis (in an iconic performance) plays Dottie Hinson, who, along with her sister Kit (Lori Petty), becomes a star player for the Rockford Peaches.

If one were to rank all the major streaming services by queerness, Amazon Prime Video would be a pretty tough one to pin down.

On the one hand, you have to give credit where credit is due: One of the service’s very first stabs at original programming was “Transparent,” which in turn was one of the first shows to star a trans main character. That show now has a lot of baggage, but it’s hard to its understate historical significance.

Beyond the thorny topic of “Transparent,” Prime Video does have a good track record of releasing shows with LGBTQ characters and centering their narratives on queer themes; in particular, many of their shows focus on queer women, refreshingly avoiding the centering of gay men that defined queer TV for decades. This spring, the streamer dropped a phenomenal limited series retelling of David Cronenberg’s “Dead Ringers,” starring Rachel Weisz as twin lesbian gynecologists.

Quincy Jones, the first Black producer to be nominated for best picture, and legendary casting director Juliet Taylor will receive honorary Oscars at this year’s Governors Awards, announced by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Wednesday. Screenwriter and director Richard Curtis will receive the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award, while James Bond producers Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli will be bestowed with the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award. The statuettes will be presented at the 15th annual ceremony on Sunday, Nov. 17, in Los Angeles.

“The recipients of this year’s Governors Awards have set the bar incredibly high across their remarkable careers, and the Academy’s Board of Governors is thrilled to recognize them with Oscars,” said Janet Yang, Academy President. “The selection of Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli is a testament to their success as producers of the fan-favorite Bond series and their contribution to the industry’s theatrical landscape.

Tom Hanks was a television star in 1982 and, 42 years ago, if what you really wanted was to be a movie star, that was a problem.

Actors had made the transition from small-screen success to big-screen stardom before, but Hanks' claim to fame was as one-half of the cross-dressing duo living in an all-women's apartment building on the ABC sitcom "Bosom Buddies." Though the show was initially a hit, the gimmick quickly wore thin, and Hanks found himself back on the casting market.

Post-"Bosom Buddies," Hanks' sole film credit was in the 1980 slasher flick "He Knows You're Alone," and, to his credit, he was so charismatic that the filmmakers opted not to kill him off onscreen. Still, that's not much to hang your hat on, nor was, unfortunately, two years of mild television notoriety. The biggest sitcom stars of the 1970s roughly in Hanks' age range were getting star vehicle...

Tom Hanks was fated to lead Penny Marshall’s comedy feature that made history more than three decades ago. But, as it turns out, two rather exceptional actors reportedly passed down the film that was well on its way to becoming a box-office sensation.

Big (1988) (Credit: 20th Century Studios)

Both Batman star Michael Keaton and Yellowstone actor Kevin Costner were apparently offered to play the ebullient protagonist in the fantasy drama, Big. But thanks to their refusals, Hanks ended up swiping the opportunity from them, starring in the first-ever movie by a female director to reach $100 million at the box office.

How Tom Hanks Came to Lead Penny Marshall’s Big (1988)

When industry titan Steven Spielberg’s sister, Anne Spielberg churned out the brilliant idea of a young boy trapped in the body of an old man, the Jaws creator decided to step down as the director out of respect for his sibling.

The experience of watching live sports is thrilling enough but time and time again TV shows have proven that a scripted series about a fictional team giving their all to a game while standing side-by-side is also very entertaining. There have been countless great sports TV shows like Friday Night Lights and Ted Lasso that have brought us joy and the feeling of camaraderie that we all want. That’s why we thought of making a list of the 10 very best sports TV shows that you shouldn’t miss out on.

Friday Night Lights Credit – NBC

Friday Night Lights is a sports drama series created by Peter Berg. Inspired by a 1990 nonfiction book titled Friday Night Lights: A Town, a Team, and a Dream by author H.G. Bissinger, the NBC, and The 101 Network series is set in the fictional small Texas town of Dillon and it follows the story of...

Robert De Niro and Robin Williams shared a beautiful bond of friendship before Williams’ unexpected demise in 2014. The death of the actor devasted global fans. Williams was diagnosed with Lewy body dementia (Lbd)— a progressive form of dementia that pushed the legendary actor to take his life at the age of 63.

Robin Williams and Robert De Niro in a still in Awakenings. Credit: Columbia Pictures

Niro and Williams starred in Penny Marshall’s acclaimed 1990 drama, Awakenings, and Niro share great memories from the set. Williams, who was a comedian before being a full-time actor, has always kept the sets of the movies he worked in sparking, and behind-the-scenes footage has revealed how he made Niro laugh with his hilarious wit.

Robin Williams Made Robert De Niro Laugh in a BTS Footage

Robin Williams and Robert De Niro in Awakenings. Credit: Columbia Pictures

Robin Williams did the same as he always...

Very few directors have ever had the kind of run Rob Reiner did as a director between 1984 and 1992. Think about it. This is Spinal Tap, The Sure Thing, Stand By Me, The Princess Bride, When Harry Met Sally, Misery and A Few Good Men. Surely, that run alone would be enough to solidify him as one of the greatest Hollywood directors of all time? Those movies are so good it almost doesn’t matter how much money-losing crap he puts out now…and there is a lot of it… and North isn’t even the worst of it! So how did this man go from making a few great movies that defined and elevated our pop culture on so many different levels to suddenly pumping out nothing but heartless, soulless political flicks (did anyone see Lbj?) and rom-coms that are neither romantic nor comedic?

So, how did this jack of...

Season 1 of "The Simpsons" is a whole different beast. You've got brown Mr. Smithers, character designs out of a Dr. Seuss book, and Homer inexplicably sounding like Walter Matthau. It's a charming affair, but it also hasn't yet turned into "The Simpsons" we've come to know and love.

What complicates the first season even more is the way that Fox aired certain episodes out of order. This was famously a much bigger problem with the classic era of "Futurama," but it also led to some inconsistencies in early "Simpsons." While the animation, character designs, and voices were all slowly evolving in the right direction throughout the first three seasons, the out-of-order episodes meant the show would sometimes take a seemingly random, large step back in animation quality. A case in point was the season 1 finale, "Some Enchanted Evening," which inexplicably looked closer to the old bumpers on "The Tracey Ullman Show...

Classic rom-com When Harry Met Sally originally had a more heartbreaking ending where Harry and Sally didn’t get together. Here’s why that was changed.

It’s hard to imagine a rom-com that is more perfect, more iconic than When Harry Met Sally. Rob Reiner’s 1989 classic has long been considered one of the best of the genre and is often looked at as a blueprint for how to make a romantic comedy work.

Well, it turns out that the ending of When Harry Met Sally was originally very different. The current ending sees Harry confess his love for Sally at a New Year’s Eve party and the two get married and live happily ever after.

However, director Rob Reiner recently said in an interview with Who’s Talking to Chris Wallace on CNN (via Deadline) that the ending we all know and love was only conceived after...

On Friday nights, IndieWire After Dark takes a feature-length beat to honor fringe cinema in the streaming age.

First, the spoiler-free pitch for one editor’s midnight movie pick — something weird and wonderful from any age of film that deserves our memorializing.

Then, the spoiler-filled aftermath as experienced by the unwitting editor attacked by this week’s recommendation.

The Pitch: A Midnight Movie for the Love of a Woman

The cinematic understanding of romance is on the run. It’s a sad topic ahead of Valentine’s Day, I know. But the big romantic gestures and sweeping professions of love that once characterized the rom-com genre are now about as welcome in real life as TikTok therapists are welcome on the big screen. Add a family counselor to your next “Clueless” viewing and you just won’t see Paul Rudd the same way; try planting one on your step-sister at...

Robert De Niro has been working in Hollywood for almost six decades now, with eight Oscar nominations to his name and two wins. His most noted collaboration has been with director Martin Scorsese, with whom he has done 10 films, including their latest partnership on “Killers of the Flower Moon,” which was released October 20 through Apple Original Films. In celebration of the western crime epic, let’s take a look back at De Niro’s eight Oscar nominations in 45 years; seven for acting and one for producing.

His first Oscar nomination and victory came on the heels of Francis Ford Coppola’s epic crime film “The Godfather” with the equally successful second installment “The Godfather Part II” (1974), in which De Niro plays a young Vito Corleone, played by Oscar winner Marlon Brando in the first movie. Just like Brando, De Niro triumphed at the 1975 Oscars for the character, albeit in the...

I was about 8 years old when I first met Norman Lear.

My dad, Carl Reiner, was working on Sid Caesar’s Show of Shows and Norman was writing for Colgate Comedy Hour, so they were both in New York. In those days, it was a small world of people who trafficked in sketch comedy. Mel Brooks, Larry Gelbart, Dom DeLuise — all these guys and their families would hang out together. My family and Norman’s family used to have summer houses near each other on Fire Island, and Norman had a daughter, Ellen, who was around my age, so we used to play together.

One day Ellen and I were playing jacks — I was teaching her how, explaining the rules, showing her what to do. Norman came over to watch and he started to laugh. Apparently, I was teaching her in a funny way, which he found hysterical. And he...

Penny Marshall was in a bind. Her new movie was just a few weeks away from the start of filming, and her leading actress had quit over casting issues. She needed someone quickly… but the replacement had to have a very specific skill set: She needed to be able to look like she could play baseball convincingly. The film, of course, was A League of Their Own. Marshall’s choice to play Dottie Hinson was Geena Davis; at the time of the film’s release, Davis explained that she was so excited about the opportunity, she kind of kind of left out the little detail that she wasn’t much good at throwing a ball. (Click on the media bar below to hear Geena Davis) https://www.hollywoodoutbreak.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Geena_Davis_A_League_Of_Their_Own_.mp3 A League of Their Own is available on DVD, Blu-Ray, and most digital platforms.

Despite what the "manosphere" tries to say, society is far more aware of the influence of age and power dynamics in relationships than it used to be. Sometimes to a disastrous point, as young fans who are less trained than ever to deal with media critically may overreact and miss the point of a piece of fiction. And then there are the people who believe that the existence of LGBTQ+ people is a danger to children. That is, of course, nonsense of a cruel and bigoted kind.

What's true, though, is that an older person can hold all kinds of sway over someone younger, from financial threats to abuse of power in a work or life situation. In fiction, an age gap romance or a relationship with imbalanced power dynamics can be used to explore important themes. Not all stories have aged well, though, and sometimes the behind-the-scenes tales are even worse.

To quote the great Taylor Swift, “August slipped away like a moment in time.” September has arrived, and with it, a countdown to certain films and shows leaving Netflix at the end of the 30-day month. Penny Marshall’s “A League of Their Own” (1992) has one more month to teach you that “There’s no crying in baseball,” and why not watch it in support of the Prime Video series that can’t seem to catch a break? If you’re more in the mood for a childish story and magical whimsy, the person you need is “Nanny McPhee” (2005).

Franchise films exiting the streamer’s rotation this month include “Rocky,” “Rocky II,” “Rocky III,” “Rocky IV” and “Rocky V.” Along with those wrestling movies, other films departing at the end of September are “Snow White & the Huntsman,” “Star Trek,” “Star Trek Into Darkness,” “Titanic” and “Warm Bodies.”

Here’s...

Prime Video’s reimagining of Penny Marshall’s beloved 1992 classic A League of Their Own had been renewed for a second season, but fans were shocked when the streaming service reversed the renewal last week. Will Graham, who co-created A League of Their Own with Abbi Jacobson, took to X/Twitter to discuss the impact of the cancellation and his hopes for season 2.

“Making this show is so hard and so great,” Will Graham wrote. “There’s quite a bit to say about what’s been hard, but at this point that’s in the past. Of course, if we have an avenue to do it well, we will continue the show, and I love seeing the noise you’re making in support of that. The noise matters!“

Related The Peripheral, A League of Their Own cancelled at Amazon despite second season renewals

Even if A League of Their Own...

A League of Their Own co-creator Will Graham wants fans of their since-canceled Amazon series to hold out hope that the show will find a new home, as well as for the Lgbtqia+ community who embraced the queer take on Penny Marshall’s beloved movie of the same name.

“We are still fighting for League,” Graham, who changed their pronouns after working on the series, wrote in a lengthy message on social media. “If we have an avenue to do it well, we will continue the show.”

Amazon on Aug. 18 reversed its plan for an abbreviated four-episode second and final season of the women in baseball show created by Graham and star Abbi Jacobson. The news came after a months-long negotiation with producers Sony Pictures Television in which the studio reduced the show’s licensing fee in order to get the show picked up for a second season. As THR reported at the time,...

A League Of Their Own co-creator Will Graham is sharing his thoughts publicly for the first time since it was revealed Friday that the series’ Season 2 renewal had been reversed and the show was ending.

Graham made clear his disappointment, but vowed to continue to try to find a new home for the beloved series, along with a plea and a huge thank you to Lgbtqia+ fans of the show to “please take care of yourselves,” adding “You are not alone.”

“When all queer people are personally and politically under attack across the country and Hrc has declared a “state of emergency,” my biggest fear is that the many queer fans of League will take this reversal as one more invalidation, one more blow, one more…effect of the general politicization of our identities. Most of us grew up feeling invisible, and as we gain strength, the predictable backlash forces...

“A League of Their Own” cocreator Will Graham shared a lengthy response to the show’s recent cancellation and renewal reversal at Amazon’s Prime Video on Wednesday.

“We are still fighting for ‘League.’ But whether we win or lose this one, I’m so proud,” he wrote. “From the time when we began working on the season, Abbi, Desta and I said to each other — ‘Let’s not hold anything back. for as long as we get to be here, let’s do this the right way.'”

If you want to read this in one go, here it is. #ALeagueOfTheirOwn pic.twitter.com/vZw2bLIXit

— Will Graham (@WillWGraham) August 23, 2023

“We got so many notes wondering if the exploration of the queer world of the 1940s or Max’s world would be better saved for Season 2, if people needed to start somewhere a little more familiar,” he continued. “I...

Abbi Jacobson and Will Graham’s “A League of Their Own” television show could still see some extra innings.

Sony plans to shop the show around following the cancellation of its shortened second season by Amazon Studios Friday, an insider close to decision making told TheWrap.

Prime Video reversed the show’s renewal due to the double Hollywood strike. Jacobson responded to the news of the show’s cancellation Friday in an Instagram post.

“To blame this cancellation on the strike is bulls–t and cowardly. But this post isn’t about all that,” she wrote. “About all the ways this show has been put through the ringer. Not today.”

“A League of Their Own” was cocreated by Graham and Jacobson. Jacobson also starred as Carson Shaw, a married woman who took a chance and tried out for the All American Girls’ Professional Baseball League. Once she makes the Rockford Peaches team,...

“A League of Their Own” co-creator and star Abbi Jacobson has reacted to the news that Amazon has scrapped Season 2 due to the ongoing strikes, calling the decision “bullshit and cowardly.”

On Friday, Variety confirmed that the series — based on the 1992 baseball film of the same name — would no longer be going forward with its shortened final season, which was greenlit in April. According to sources, the cancellation came about due to the writers and actors strike against the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP).

In an Instagram post over the weekend, Jacobson wrote: “What luck I have had to get to tell these stories and play this character I love so much. What a rare thing in life. And so I am sad today. To blame this cancellation on the strike, is bullshit and cowardly. But this post isn’t about all that. About all the ways...

A League of Their Own is not returning for its second and final season after all. Per Deadline, plans for season two have been cancelled due to production delays and the current actors and writers strikes in the industry.

Starring Abbi Jacobson, Chanté Adams, D’Arcy Carden, Gbemisola Ikumelo, Roberta Colindrez, Nick Offerman, Saidah Arrika Ekulona, Kate Berlant, Kendall Johnson, Kelly McCormack, Alex Désert, Priscilla Delgado, Aaron Jennings, Molly Ephraim, Melanie Field, and Dale Dickey, the A League Of Their Own series is a reimaging of the Penny Marshall film of the same name. The story revolves around the 1943 formation of the Rockford Peaches, a women's team in the newly formed All-American Girls Professional Baseball League.

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“A League of Their Own”, Prime Video’s series inspired by Penny Marshall’s 1992 feature, is no more.

On Friday, Aug. 18, Deadline reported the show had been cancelled, with the streamer deciding to rescind its original announcement that “League” had been picked up for a brief four-episode second season that would conclude the storyline.

According to the outlet, the ongoing WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes were behind the decision; since production wouldn’t be able to begin on the new episodes until 2024 at the earliest, this would push the premiere date of those episodes to 2025 — resulting in a three-year gap between the first and second seasons.

Read More: Abbi Jacobson Says Anger From Some At Diversity In ‘A League Of Their Own’ Has ‘Only Made Me More Sure’ About Need For The Reimagining

Abbi Jacobson, who portrayed Rockford Peaches catcher Carson Shaw, took to Instagram to share her thoughts on the cancellation news.

“A League of Their Own” series co-creator Abbi Jacobson has responded to the cancellation of the show by Prime Video.

The actress posted on Instagram hours after the streamer revealed that they were reversing the show’s renewal for a shortened second season.

“To blame this cancellation on the strike is bulls— and cowardly. But this post isn’t about all that,” Jacobson wrote on Instagram. “About all the ways this show has been put through the ringer. Not today.”

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A post shared by @abbijacobson

Along with sci-fi series “The Peripheral,” an individual with knowledge of the matter told TheWrap that Amazon Studios’ reversal of the two shows’ renewals stems from delays caused by the ongoing Writers’ Guild of America strike, which started May 2, and the SAG-AFTRA strike, which started July 14.

“What luck I have had to get to tell these stories and play this character I love so much,...

Amazon has officially pulled the plug on A League of Their Own. Earlier this year, the streamer renewed the series for an abbreviated second season, a move that was already protested by fans of the show. Now it’s canceled the series entirely, and production will not be moving forward.

The series, which premiered in August 2022, was a reboot and expansion of the hit 1992 film, pulling from history to tell more accurate stories about the women who played baseball during World War II. It was a project years in the making, first conceived by Abbi Jacobson and Will Graham in 2017 — the pair got Penny Marshall’s blessing to create the show before her death in 2018.