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Ruth Ashton Taylor, the trailblazing journalist who was the first female TV reporter on the West Coast and an inspiration to generations of women covering serious news, has died. She was 101.

Ashton Taylor died Thursday in San Rafael, California, her daughter Laurel Conklin told The Hollywood Reporter.

After getting her start at CBS Radio alongside Edward R. Murrow in the 1940s, Ashton Taylor returned to her native Los Angeles and, in 1951, became the first woman on the West Coast to work in television news when she took a job with Knxt-tv (now Kcbs).

Ashton Taylor exited in 1958 to work as a college public information officer but came back to the station in 1962 to join a program produced by TV personality Ralph Story and to co-host The Ruth and Pat Show on the radio with comedian Pat Buttram (Mr. Haney on Green Acres) for about a year.

Ashton Taylor turned exclusively...

From Errol Flynn to Disney, cinema has long been fascinated with the legend of Robin Hood. In 1991 he was played by box office superstar Kevin Costner, in Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, who transformed the famous outlaw of Sherwood Forest into a movie icon fit for the 1990s. This grand, swashbuckling adventure in the classic tradition was a huge hit, suggesting audiences will never tire of the tale. To celebrate the release of the film in an all-new Uhd 4K restoration, here’s a look at the various actors who set audiences a quiver playing the beloved folklore hero through the decades.

The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938)

For many Errol Flynn was the quintessential Robin Hood – a dashing, devilish rogue. In this lavish Hollywood classic, he starred alongside Olivia de Havilland as Maid Marian, Basil Rathbone as Sir Guy of Gisbourne, and Melville Cooper as the High Sheriff of Nottingham,...

Those who grew up watching The Fox and the Hound should get ready to sob all over again. According to our sources – the same ones who revealed an Aladdin sequel was in development, and that Ewan McGregor is returning as Obi-Wan – Disney is reportedly in the early stages of developing a live-action remake of the 1981 animated classic for a new generation of fans. Though nothing has been confirmed by the studio as of yet, the film is likely to land on the Disney Plus streaming platform, from what we’re told.

For those unfamiliar with the original, the heartfelt movie featured the story of two unlikely pals trying to preserve their friendship despite their budding animal instincts and the nagging pressure from society that urged them to be enemies. The original flick subtly taught children a useful lesson about prejudice and how society often determines behavior.

The voices of Mickey Rooney,...

Elvis fans laud this high-end drama, an attempt by the superstar to lock into a mainstream acting career. Presley has fine dramatic support, especially from his three leading ladies, but the requirement that an Elvis movie be all things to all people — especially marketers — really takes its toll. It’s a soap where almost nothing is believable, except to true believers for whom Presley can do no wrong.

Wild in the Country

Blu-ray

Twilight Time

1961 / Color / 2:35 widescreen 1:37 academy / 114 min. / Street Date August 20, 2019 / Available from Twilight Time Movies / 29.95

Starring: Elvis Presley, Hope Lange, Tuesday Weld, Millie Perkins, Rafer Johnson, John Ireland, Gary Lockwood, William Mims, Raymond Greenleaf, Christina Crawford, Pat Buttram, Doreen Lang, Alan Napier, Jason Robards Sr..

Cinematography: William C. Mellor

Editor : Dorothy Spencer

Original Music: Kenyon Hopkins

Written by Clifford Odets from a novel by J. R. Salamanca

Produced by Jerry Wald

Directed by Philip Dunne...

Start with the title: Clown Car! may sound like the movie someone will inevitably make about the 2016 presidential campaign, but how about evoking those great Seventies wacky-journey films like Death Race 2000, Vanishing Point or Smokey and the Bandit?

When I raised the question on Twitter, suggestions included All the President's Wanna-Bes, Every Which Way But Left, Cannonball Rug, A Kochwork Orange and the subtly appropriate Hair.

All excellent ideas, and we may have to put the movie name to a separate vote. Right now, though, the more pressing question is...

The Aristocats

Written by Ken Anderson, Larry Clemmons, Eric Cleworth et al.

Directed by Wolfgang Reitherman

USA, 1970

The 1970s and early 1980s represent a curious episode in the history of Walt Disney Animation Studios’ features. The famous studio rarely produces outright poor movies, yet this period is just as rarely mentioned in the same breath as its first decade or so, when classics like Pinocchio, Bambi, and Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs came to be, or the baptized renaissance that began with The Little Mermaid and lasted until Tarzan. It feels as though the aforementioned decade and a half feature a steady stream of decent, generally appreciated outings but nothing most people cite as being their favourite efforts. The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, The Rescuers, The Fox and the Hound, Robin Hood; few if any of these make anyone’s top 5 lists. Neither does the film that opened the 1970s,...

It's a little weird to watch a trailer for an upcoming Disney cartoon like "Planes" and hear among the characters the voice of Dane Cook. What's a typically adults-only comic like Cook doing in the G-rated world of a Disney animated feature?

Well, maybe it's not that weird. After all, the family-friendly studio has a history, going back 60 years, of casting performers from the world of grown-up entertainment in its cartoons, and most have proved they can be fun and kid-safe in fantasy worlds far from smoky nightclubs. In fact, Disney and Pixar's classic cartoons are full of unlikely voice actors -- not just blue comics but also performers cast radically against type, and even people not considered actors at all.

Cook, then, joins a distinguished list of stars you'd never have expected to find in a Disney cartoon feature, as you can see from the gallery below.

Gallery | Unlikely...

It's a little weird to watch a trailer for an upcoming Disney cartoon like "Planes" and hear among the characters the voice of Dane Cook. What's a typically adults-only comic like Cook doing in the G-rated world of a Disney animated feature?

Well, maybe it's not that weird. After all, the family-friendly studio has a history, going back 60 years, of casting performers from the world of grown-up entertainment in its cartoons, and most have proved they can be fun and kid-safe in fantasy worlds far from smoky nightclubs. In fact, Disney and Pixar's classic cartoons are full of unlikely voice actors -- not just blue comics but also performers cast radically against type, and even people not considered actors at all.

Cook, then, joins a distinguished list of stars you'd never have expected to find in a Disney cartoon feature, as you can see from the gallery below.

Gallery | Unlikely...

The Rescuers

Directed by Wolfgang Reitherman, John Lounsbery, Art Stevens

Written by Larry Clemmons, Vance Gerry, Ken Anderson, Frank Thomas, Burny Mattinson, Fred Lucky, Dick Sebast, Dave Michener

Starring Bob Newhart, Eva Gabor, Geraldine Page, Pat Buttram, George Lindsey

One of the most fascinating aspects of our podcast is watching the struggle within the Walt Disney Company to blend reality and fantasy. From the beginning, Disney had stated that he wanted movies like Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs to be perceived as films for adults, as opposed to films for children or families. I’m always heartened to see that comment brought up in modern conversation, because the stigma that animation is specifically for children hasn’t ever dissipated in popular culture. What frustrates me is the film Disney refers to, and how it became a template of sorts for the animators and filmmakers who work at the Walt Disney Company.

There was talk of a new Green Acres TV series a few years back but that project seems to have stalled. Now, there's talk of bringing the community of Hooterville to Broadway in a new musical.

Green Acres debuted in 1965 on CBS as a spin-off of The Beverly Hillbillies and Petticoat Junction. The sitcom follows NY lawyer Oliver Douglas (Eddie Albert) as he moves to live his life-long fantasy of being a farmer. His glamorous and bubble-headed wife Lisa (Eva Gabor) is dragged unwillingly from her sophisticated life to live in a ramshackle farm in Hooterville. The bizarre small town is populated by a wide variety of eccentric characters like dim-witted farmhand Eb Dawson (Tom Lester), oily salesman Mr. Haney (Pat Buttram), scatterbrained county agent Hank Kimball (Alvy Moore), elderly farmers Fred and Doris Ziffel (Hank Patterson and Barbara Pepper, later Fran Ryan) and their "son," Arnold...

When the subject of Disney movies comes up, one film always stands out to me as not getting enough attention. The Fox and the Hound is now out in a 30th Anniversary Blu-Ray release which includes The Fox and the Hound 2, and I'm hopeful that the re-issue allows another generation to add some support to the popularity of both films.

For all that weaves of complicated friendship are not at all uncommon, there is a unique mix at play in The Fox and the Hound that delivers exceedingly well to younger audiences. Not only, as we all know, a fun and engaging movie, but an interesting and relatable situation for all kids, who find friendships waxing and waning.

The presentation of how all aspects of one's life can put pressure on actions, and perspectives can be complex and blurry, is wonderfully drawn, and surprising purposeful to kids who only...

In the mid-1920’s, an up-and-coming young animator had a brief encounter with an up-and-coming child star. Although they only met in passing, Mickey Rooney remembers Walt Disney as “a very charming man.” More than 50 years later, in 1981, Rooney would find himself starring in one of Walt Disney Studio’s most beloved animated films, The Fox and the Hound. Rooney voiced the character of Tod, an orphaned fox cub who forms an unlikely friendship with Copper, a coonhound voiced by Kurt Russell. The film also stars Pearl Bailey, Pat Buttram and Jack Albertson. The Fox and the Hound and its sequel The Fox and the Hound 2 will be released in a 30th Anniversary 2-Movie Collection on August 9, 2011.

Although he is quick to deny it, Mickey Rooney is the definition of a Hollywood legend. With a career that spans nine decades, he has defied the odds in an industry that often typecasts performers.

In the tradition of heart-warming films, such as Bambi and Dumbo, comes Disney.s classic tales that taught us the power of friendship in The Fox and the Hound and The Fox and the Hound 2, in a special 30th Anniversary 2-Movie Collection. For the first time ever in high-definition, consumers can now experience the brilliant, humor-filled adventures of best friends Copper and Tod in an all-new digitally restored version of the original 1981 film, arriving to stores on August 9, 2011.

Featuring an all-star cast of voice talents, toe-tapping music and fantastic bonus features, consumers can take home two of Disney.s beloved ―tails.∥ The Fox and the Hound and The Fox and the Hound 2, 2-Movie Collection features both movies in a single 3-Disc Blu-ray Combo Pack. This release provides families with the value, versatility and opportunity to enjoy their favorite movies how they want, when they want and on the...

It's been over three decades since Green Acres went off the air. Is it time to go back to country life in Hooterville?

Green Acres debuted on September 15, 1965 on CBS as a spin-off of The Beverly Hillbillies and Petticoat Junction. The sitcom followed New York attorney Oliver Wendell Douglas (Eddie Albert) as he lived out his life-long fantasy of being a farmer. His glamorous and ditzy wife Lisa (Eva Gabor) was dragged unwillingly from her sophisticated life to live in a ramshackle farm in Hooterville. The bizarre small town was populated by a wide variety of eccentric characters like dimwitted farmhand Eb Dawson (Tom Lester), oily salesman Mr. Haney (Pat Buttram), scatterbrained county agent Hank Kimball (Alvy Moore), elderly farmers Fred and Doris Ziffel (Hank Patterson and Barbara Pepper, later Fran Ryan) and their "son," Arnold the pig.

Like Hillbillies and Junction, Acres became incredibly popular and the show ran for 170 episodes.