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Paul Mazursky's 1986 comedy "Down and Out in Beverly Hills" is a sharp indictment of ultra-moneyed yuppie culture, which was running rampant during the Reagan administration. Culturally speaking, the mid 1980s saw a redoubled effort to enrich the already-wealthy and encourage rich people to become obsessed with conspicuous consumption. Many, many films and TV shows about Beverly Hills were released at this time, delving deep into the cockroach nest where America's wealthy classes gathered and cannibalized each other.

Prominent among these was Mazursky's film about a rich family, the Whitemans, that recently became wealthy thanks to a wire hanger manufacturing empire. The family are all empty and unhappy. Matriarch Barbara (Bette Midler) is attempting to fill her emptiness with increasingly strange renditions of New Age spirituality, while patriarch Dave (Richard Dreyfuss) is filling his own emptiness by having an affair with the family's live-in maid, Carmen (Elizabeth Peña). Their child...

The peak television renaissance didn't happen overnight. A decade prior to the epochal debut of "The Sopranos" on HBO, series as disparate in their aims as "The Simpsons," "Twin Peaks" and "The Larry Sanders Show" were challenging the industry's notions of what the broadcast medium could accomplish. Dramatic story arcs began to stretch out over a season or longer, while sitcoms got edgier and less hidebound to the multi-camera format. These successes emboldened major filmmakers to try their hand at episodic TV, which didn't always pan out. But it was always thrilling to see great artists romp about in a medium Hollywood once considered beneath them.

Of these efforts, it's possible none had a greater influence on the peak era than NBC's "Homicide: Life on the Street." When Baltimore Sun reporter David Simon began shopping his book "Homicide: A Year on the Killing Streets," an account of his time...

David Anspaugh's 1986 sports drama "Hoosiers" has gone down in history as one of the most influential sports dramas ever made. Partly inspired by the real-life story of the 1954 Indiana state champions Milan High School, "Hoosiers" focuses on formerly-disgraced basketball coach Norman Dale (Gene Hackman), who gets a rare second chance to prove his mettle at Indiana's Hickory High School. The rather tight-knit town of Hickory seems a little too unforgiving towards Norman due to his sketchy past, but redemption finds its way to him via a David vs. Goliath situation that soon transforms into a classic underdog tale about dreaming big and achieving the impossible.

Some of the more saccharine themes in "Hoosiers" might feel a tad corny at times, but it is a film that brandishes sincere authenticity when it comes to the magic of unexpected second chances and the highs and lows of small-town sports. Moreover, a...

When you take a peek at Mark Johnson‘s resume, you’re immediately astounded. Consider this partial list of projects he’s been attached to as a producer or executive producer during a career that’s exceeded four decades: “Rain Man” (which won Johnson his lone Oscar), “Good Morning, Vietnam,” “Diner,” “Tin Men,” “The Natural,” “Bugsy,” “Galaxy Quest,” “The Notebook,” “Breaking Bad” and “Better Call Saul.” And now, add “The Holdovers” to the list, for which Johnson has landed his third Academy Award nomination (this one for Best Picture).

“Every day, I still feel like a young boy who can’t believe he’s allowed to do this,” Johnson admits. “Somebody asked me if the Oscar nomination was old hat to me, and I’m like, ‘Are you kidding? I’m thrilled.’ I’m very humbled by it. There are a number of movies I’ve made that I think...

America's sweetheart Danny DeVito has been a staple of the boundary-pushing comedy series "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" for years now, but the 78-year-old was actually the last main cast member to join the gang. DeVito didn't join the series until season two, but has been in nearly every episode since. The "Taxi" alum plays the father of Dennis and Dee Reynolds, although that title is up for debate. The series is a huge hit now, but the first few seasons didn't get a lot of attention, and the rest of the cast was totally unknown at the time. So how did a huge star like DeVito get roped into a gritty underdog show like "Sunny?" The truth is that the comedian was a huge fan of the sitcom from the get-go, but he still had one condition before signing on.

DeVito was first introduced to the cast of "Sunny" through Emmy-nominated producer John Landgraf.

Robert De Niro will star in the Warner Bros. mob drama Wise Guys from director Barry Levinson, Deadline can confirm. The project reunites the duo following their collaborations on the Emmy-nominated HBO TV movie The Wizard of Lies, which had De Niro playing Bernie Madoff, and Magnolia Pictures’ 2008 dramedy, What Just Happened, as well as the director’s earlier films Wag the Dog and Sleepers.

Wise Guys is a period piece tells the story of Vito Genovese and Frank Costello, a pair of Italian Americans running two separate crime families during the mid-20th century. Genovese tried and failed to assassinate Costello in 1957, though the latter wound up taking his leave from the mob after being injured during the attempt on his life. We hear that De Niro will be taking on both key roles in the film eyed for release in theaters.

Oscar-nominated Goodfellas scribe Nicholas Pileggi penned the...

Is it Oscar time for James Gray? The director’s new film, “Armageddon Time,” is one of the few competition titles debuting at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival, so it is also one of the few likely candidates that may have an impact on the Oscar race.

While Gray’s previous work like “The Immigrant,” “The Lost City of Z,” and “Ad Astra” tends to do better with critics than audiences, this new one may end up pleasing both groups. “Armageddon Time” is a memoir-ish drama, set in Queens, New York during the 1980s, seen through the eyes of a sixth-grader named Paul, played by Banks Repeta. His parents are Emmy-winner Jeremy Strong and Oscar-winner Anne Hathaway, and his grandparents are two-time Oscar-winner Anthony Hopkins and four-time Tony-nominee Tovah Feldshuh. Weirdly enough, Donald Trump’s father, Fred Trump, figures in the story, and is played by John Diehl. Recent Oscar-winner Jessica Chastain...

When I watch a movie by the writer-director James Gray, I often have the sensation that I’m seeing two films in one: the story being told and the one hovering offscreen — the one that’s all about his aspiration to be something larger than a mere storyteller. Early Gray films like “The Yards” (2000) and “We Own the Night” (2007) were modest tales suffused with his desire to be making “a ’70s movie.” “Ad Astra” (2019) was a lavishly scaled outer-space thriller suffused with his desire to be making “2001: A Space Odyssey.”

“Armageddon Time,” Gray’s eighth feature, marks a break from most of what he has done before. It’s a more personal project ­— an autobiographical coming-of-age memoir movie, set in Queens, New York, in 1980 and featuring an 11-year-old hero, Paul Graf (Banks Repeta), who navigates the sixth grade and the wider world that starts to feed into it. It’s a skillful,...

This year marks the 40th Anniversary of writer/director Barry Levinson's debut film "Diner," which opened on March 2, 1982. Starring Steve Guttenberg, Daniel Stern, Mickey Rourke, Kevin Bacon, and Tim Daly, the sleeper hit movie was an autobiographical look at Levinson's lively group of friends in 1959 Baltimore. Still celebrated to this day, "Diner" spawned three more personal films in what became known as his Baltimore Movies, the next being 1987's "Tin Men" about the aluminum siding salesmen who also hung out at the same diner, followed by 1990's "Avalon" about Levinson's immigrant family history in America, and finally 1999's "Liberty Heights," which explored race...

The post Barry Levinson On Why He Can't Get His Final Baltimore Movie Made [Exclusive] appeared first on /Film.

When it came time for director Barry Levinson to cast the role of famed boxing trainer Charlie Goldman in his new film “The Survivor,” he went straight to his friend Danny DeVito. “This was all Barry,” DeVito said about how he came to be a part of the HBO Holocaust film, telling TheWrap it was like no time had passed at all since he and Levinson first worked together on the 1987 film “Tin Men.”

“The Survivor” tells the true story of Harry Haft, a survivor of the Auschwitz concentration camp who was forced to box other inmates to survive – sometimes to the death. The film – which premieres on HBO and HBO Max on Wednesday timed to Yom HaShoa (Holocaust Remembrance Day) – plays out in two timelines, as Haft tries to make a life for himself in America after the war but is haunted by the events that happened inside Auschwitz,...

Writer/director Adam McKay kicks off Season 5 by discussing a few of his favorite movies with hosts Josh Olson and Joe Dante.

Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode

Don’t Look Up (2021)

Parasite (2019) – Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review

Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby (2006)

The Big Short (2015)

Vice (2018)

Gremlins (1984) – Glenn Erickson’s 4K Blu-ray review, Tfh’s 30th anniversary links

The Second Civil War (1997) – Glenn Erickson’s trailer commentary, Joe Dante revisits the movie

Network (1976) – Chris Wilkinson’s trailer commentary

Broadcast News (1987)

To Die For (1995) – Illeana Douglas’s trailer commentary

The Hospital (1971) – Glenn Erickson’s Blu-ray review

Ace In The Hole (1951) – Josh Olson’s trailer commentary

Dr. Strangelove (1964) – Michael Lehmann’s trailer commentary, Glenn Erickson’s Criterion Blu-ray review

Over The Edge (1979) – Josh Olson’s trailer commentary, Randy Fuller’s wine pairing

The Warriors (1979)

River’s Edge (1986)

Tex (1982)

Rumble Fish (1983) – Adam Rifkin’s trailer commentary, Charlie Largent’s Criterion Blu-ray...

What a strange career Barry Levinson has had. The Baltimore-born filmmaker burst onto the scene in 1982 with “Diner” and embarked on a winning streak that’s still somewhat astonishing — his hits from the period included “Tin Men,” “Good Morning, Vietnam,” “Rain Man,” and “Bugsy.” And then came 1992’s “Toys,” and after it, a steady cascade of real clunkers: “Jimmy Hollywood,” “Disclosure,” “Sphere,” “Envy,” “Man of the Year,” “Rock the Kasbah,” and so on.

Continue reading ‘The Survivor’: Barry Levinson’s Boxing Biopic With Ben Foster Both Embraces & Subverts Its Formulas [TIFF Review] at The Playlist.

Hulu is moving ahead with Dopesick, an 8-episode limited series focused on America’s opioid crisis, brandishing promising marquee names in headliner Michael Keaton, Oscar-winning director Barry Levinson, Emmy-winning writer/showrunner Danny Strong and veteran Emmy-winning producer Warren Littlefield.

The series, a production of Fox 21 Television Studios eyed for 2021, adapts author Beth Macy’s 2018 journalistic book, Dopesick: Dealers, Doctors and the Drug Company that Addicted America. Hulu’s series, like the book, will focus on the ordeal of a Virginia mining town, with Keaton starring as Samuel Finnix, who’s described as “an old-school doctor who approaches his practice with kindness and compassion, but finds himself embroiled in Big Pharma’s deadly secret.” Yet, the series will also intersect “unsparing yet deeply human portraits” of families affected by the pill-pushing encroachment of monolithic companies, all while attempting to shine “a hopeful light” for the future. As Bert Salke, President,...

Tarence Ray and Tom Sexton from the Trillbilly Worker’s Party take Joe and Josh on a cinematic journey through the South.

Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode

The Story of Film: An Odyssey (2011)

The Wild and Wonderful Whites of West Virginia (2009)

Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri (2017)

Deliverance (1972)

Apocalypse Now (1979)

Boogie Nights (1997)

In Bruges (2008)

The Birds (1963)

Cleopatra (1963)

The Blind Side (2009)

Moneyball (2011)

Next of Kin (1989)

Speed (1994)

Gravity (2013)

Ghosts of Mississippi (1996)

Hustle and Flow (2005)

Black Snake Moan (2007)

Dolemite Is My Name (2019)

Black Snake (1973)

Mandy (2018)

Sling Blade (1996)

One False Move (1992)

The Fast And The Furious: Tokyo Drift (2006)

George Washington (2000)

Prince Avalanche (2013)

Halloween (1978)

Halloween (2018)

Halloween: H20 (1998)

Halloween (2007)

Joe (2014)

All The Real Girls (2003)

Chrystal (2005)

The Accountant (2001)

O Brother Where Art Thou? (2000)

Wild River (1960)

The Ladykillers (2004)

The Ladykillers (1956)

Baywatch (2017)

Tin Men (1987)

52 Pick-Up (1986)

Gremlins (1984)

Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990)

Mad Max (1978)

Mad Max 2 – The Road Warrior (1980)

Alien (1979)

Aliens (1986)

Fire Down Below (1997)

Coal Miner’s Daughter...

Showrunner Matthew Wheeler has signed with Thruline and Apa.

Wheeler most recently served as co-showrunner and executive producer on CBS’ long-running hit series Hawaii Five-0, which as Deadline recently reported will be ending its 10-year run with a two-hour series finale tonight. He joined the writing staff in 2014 as a story editor and three years later was promoted to co-showrunner for the final two seasons. In his five seasons on the show, Wheeler received writing credit on 32 episodes.

More from DeadlineAPA Confronts Coronavirus With Salary Cuts, & Furloughs, No Layoffs'Grimm' Co-creator David Greenwalt Signs With Apa; Innovative Inks 'Sacred Lies' Actress Jordan AlexanderShowrunner Lara Olsen Inks With Apa

Wheeler also created the summer event series Salvation, which premiered on CBS in 2017 and ran for two seasons.

Wheeler began his writing career in features, where he adapted Thomas Perry’s novel The Informant for Matt Tolmach and Sony Pictures, wrote Splinter for...

AMC has given out a series order to the musical anthology dramedy “National Anthem,” with the cabler giving the series an initial eight-episode order.

“National Anthem” hails from writer Scott Z. Burns with “Better Call Saul” and “Breaking Bad” executive producer Mark Johnson also set to executive produce the new series. The show is the first under Johnson’s overall deal with AMC Studios.

The series tells the story of a middle class Midwestern family tumbling down the ladder of American society, periodically bursting into song as they struggle to catch themselves. The legendary T Bone Burnett is attached as the series’ music producer with words and music by Craig Finn.

“’National Anthem’ is a family drama with deep resonant things to say about the fragility of our country, our world and our planet,” said Sarah Barnett, president of AMC Networks’ Entertainment Group and AMC Studios. “Plus…it’s a musical!

Seymour Cassel, an Oscar-nominated longtime actor whose 200-plus screen credits include several John Cassavetes movies and three for Wes Anderson, died Sunday of Alzheimer’s complications in Los Angeles. He was 84.

Cassel scored a Supporting Actor Oscar nom for Cassavetes’ 1968 film Faces, a role that also earned him a trophy from the National Society of Film Critics. He appeared in about a half-dozen of Cassavetes’ films and also acted opposite him in a few others. Anderson cast Cassel in his films The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004), The Royal Tenenbaums (2001) and Rushmore (1998).

Cassel also was active in pre-merger SAG politics, running for national president in 2007 and 2009.

Born on January 22, 1935, in Detroit, Cassel’s film debut was an uncredited role in Cassavetes’ Shadows (1958). We would co-star alongside the filmmaker-actor in the early-’60s movies The Webster Boy, Too Late Blues — which Cassavetes also helmed — and The Killers, which was Ronald Reagan’s last movie.

Prolific actor Seymour Cassel, who received an Academy Award nomination for “Faces” and appeared in Wes Anderson films including “Rushmore,” died Sunday in Los Angeles of Alzheimer’s disease. He was 84.

Cassel was a veteran of dozens of independent films, appearing in multiple roles in films directed by John Cassavetes and Anderson. In addition to playing Bert Fischer in “Rushmore,” he appeared in “The Royal Tenenbaums” and “The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou.”

Cassel was born in Detroit on Jan. 22, 1935. His early career was tied to Cassavetes and he made his movie debut in an uncredited role in Cassavetes’ first film, “Shadows,” in 1958 and became an associate producer on the project. He co-starred with Cassavetes in “Too Late Blues” and “The Webster Boy” and appeared on “The Lloyd Bridges Show” in the episode “A Pair of Boots” directed by Cassavetes. His early TV credits included “Twelve O’Clock High,” “Combat!,...

Seymour Cassel, a revered actor beloved by cinephiles for his frequent collaborations with John Cassavetes and Wes Anderson, has died. The actor was 84. An Oscar nominee for his performance in “Faces,” his third of seven films with Cassavetes, Cassel worked with Anderson on “Rushmore,” “The Royal Tenenbaums,” and “The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou.”

The thespian had more than 200 acting credits to his name throughout his nearly 60-year career, which began with a role in Cassavetes’ “Shadows.” He wasn’t confined to independent productions, however, with roles in films like “Dick Tracy,” “Indecent Proposal,” and “Tin Men” balancing his more arthouse-inclined fare. Even so, he made it clear in a 1997 discussion with IndieWire where his allegiance was: “Independent film is film that has thought in it. There’s no independent thought in studio films. It’s collective thought,” he said.

“With independent film, simply because they don’t have the...

Halfway through the year, we’ve already lost a number of stars across Hollywood. Here’s a list of some of the notable celebrities and industry professionals in film, TV, music and sports who have passed away so far in 2018.

Jon Paul Steuer

Jon Paul Steuer, a former child actor who starred in “Star Trek: The Next Generation,” and most recently under the stage name Jonny Jewels for the rock band P.R.O.B.L.E.M.S., died on January 1. He was 33.

Mark Tenser

Mark Tenser, president and CEO of B-Movie studio Crown International Pictures, died on January 1. At his request, his age was not disclosed.

Frank Buxton

Frank Buxton, a writer and director best known for his work on “The Odd Couple” and “Happy Days,” died on January 2. He was 87.

Donnelly Rhodes

Donnelly Rhodes, a Canadian actor who played chief medical officer Dr. Sherman Cottle on the “Battlestar Galactica” reboot,...

Happy 71st birthday to Richard Dreyfuss on October 29, 2018! The Oscar-winning actor has been an integral part of so many American films that are now considered classics, such as “Jaws,” “American Graffiti” and “Close Encounters of the Third Kind” and a key collaborator on a number of films directed by George Lucas and Steven Spielberg.

Dreyfuss has proven himself adept in his wide range of characters — from a music teacher to a blood-thirsty gangster, and from an aspiring actor to an obnoxious oceanographer. The result has been a Best Actor Academy Award with an additional nomination, plus a Golden Globe victory with three additional Globe nominations.

So let’s celebrate Richard’s big day by looking back and ranking his 12 greatest films from worst to best in the photo gallery above.

SEESteven Spielberg movies: Every film ranked from worst to best

12. Always (1989)

For a third time, Dreyfuss teams up with his...

With 18 stories sure to chill you to the bone written by critically acclaimed authors Scott Smith, Michael Koryta, Seanan McGuire, Sarah Pinborough, among many others, Hark! The Herald Angels Scream will be available in both paperback and Kindle editions on October 23rd from Blumhouse Books/Anchor Books.

"Hark! The Herald Angels Scream, edited by bestselling author and editor Christopher Golden will be available on October 23rd. A Blumhouse Books/Anchor Books paperback original, Hark! The Herald Angels Scream is a fantastic collection of 18 horror stories from bestselling, acclaimed authors including Scott Smith, Seanan McGuire, Josh Malerman, Michael Koryta, Sarah Pinborough, and many more.

Publishers Weekly gave a positive review to Hark! The Herald Angels Scream and said, “This lineup proves that the Christmas season can have plenty of thrills and chills.” Booklist said, “Golden curates another sure-bet horror anthology.” Hark! The Herald Angels Scream dives deep into the dark side...

Barry Levinson just received his 10th and 11th Emmy nominations for producing and directing the HBO drama “Paterno” which was the true story of how the Penn State football coach handled child abuse allegations against one of his employees. Levinson has picked up Emmy nominations for producing, writing and directing in the past, winning four times in his career.

Levinson began his career as a comedy writer on various variety shows in the 1970s ultimately landing a steady job writing for 72 episodes of “The Carol Burnett Show.” When that show ended he began writing screenplays and had a remarkably successful run co-writing two Mel Brooks movies — “Silent Movie” and “High Anxiety” — as well as two acclaimed dramas “Inside Moves” and “and Justice for All.” He would receive his first Oscar nomination for the screenplay of “And Justice for All.”

That success led Levinson to a feature film directing career. His semi-autobiographical film “Diner,...

Danny DeVito will be presented with Donostia Award on September 22 Photo: Courtesy of San Sebastian Film Festival American actor, director and producer Danny DeVito is to be honoured with a Donostia Award for lifetime achievement at San Sebastian Film Festival

The Get Shorty and Batman Returns star - who will play the ringmaster in Tim Burton's upcoming live-action remake of Dumbo - will receive his accolade on September 22 and present animated film Smallfoot - about a Yeti who becomes convinced that mysterious creatures called 'humans' really exist - at the Velodrome the next day.

The award recognises his five-decade career in theatre, film and TV. The Golden Globe and Emmy Award winner is known for his roles in television series Taxi and It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia, and movies including One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest, Terms of Endearment, Romancing The Stone, Twins, Ruthless People, and Tin Men.

Part of the Barry Levinson tribute in Karlovy Vary: Kathy Baker and Al Pacino portray Sue and Joe Paterno in a scene from Paterno, about the late disgraced football coach Photo: Film Servis Festival Karlovy Vary

Barry Levinson: Crystal Globe for Outstanding Contribution to World Cinema Photo: Film Servis Kviff In the grand tradition of the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival (29 June to 7 July) of honouring key figures, Oscar winning writer, producer and director Barry Levinson will receive a Crystal Globe for Outstanding Contribution to World Cinema.

The honour marks the 30th anniversary of the Dustin Hoffman and Tom Cruise tour de force Rain Man for which Levinson won an Academy Award as well as being the recipient of five Oscar nominations. He follows in the wake of the likes of William Friedkin, Jerry Schatzberg and the combo of Ken Loach and Paul Laverty last year.

Levinson started as a...

The Academy celebrated its 90th birthday on Sunday evening in style. Filled with montages of both classic and recent films, this year’s Oscars, hosted by Jimmy Kimmel, was infused with the right mix of humor that had a more relaxed and natural tone. Inclusion was the highlight of the evening and many of the acceptance speeches continued to raise attention to the Time’s Up and Me Too movements, immigrants and minorities.

Best Picture went to The Shape Of Water. The fantasy film also saw Oscars for director Guillermo del Toro, production design and original score.

Check out the full list of winners below and what the winners told the press backstage.

Best motion picture of the year

“The Shape of Water” (Fox Searchlight) A Double Dare You Production Guillermo del Toro and J. Miles Dale, Producers. On setting the film in Baltimore, de Toro said, “You know, I...

Chicago – The actor John Mahoney, the son of Chicago that came here from England, died on February 4th, 2018 at his home in nearby Oak Park. He was 77. He had a varied career of stage and screen roles, but he is best remembered as Dad Martin Crane to sons Niles and “Frasier,” on that long running series.

He was born in Blackpool, Lancashire, England, and came to the U.S. because his sister was a war bride. She sponsored his emigration here, and after serving in the army graduated from downstate Quincy University. Post graduation, he was a teacher at Western Illinois University and journal editor in Chicago, but a dissatisfaction for that life led him to acting lessons through members of the fledgling Steppenwolf Theatre company. He joined that ensemble in the late 1970s, and had a hit play called “Orphans” that went to New York and put him on the map.

Tony Sokol Feb 6, 2018

Best known as Martin Crane on Frasier, John Mahoney was part of the Steppenwolf theatre troupe for 39 years.

Veteran actor John Mahoney, who played Martin Crane on Frasier for 11 seasons and was a member of the Steppenwolf Theatre ensemble for 39 years, died Sunday, February 4th at age 77, it was reported by Variety.

“It is with our deepest sorrow that we share the news that ensemble member of 39 years John Mahoney passed away due to complications from cancer while in hospice care on Sunday,” Chicago’s Steppenwolf Theatre announced via Twitter.

Steppenwolf cancelled its opening night Monday for the play You Got Older to honour Mahoney, who most recently starred in their production of The Rembrandt. The theatre invited ticketholders to gather at the venue for a moment of silence.

Mahoney was born in Manchester in 1940. He was a World War II evacuee to Blackpool, where he also attended St.

John Mahoney, the actor who played the role of Martin Crane on Frasier for 11 seasons, died in Chicago on Sunday while in hospice care, his manager confirmed to Variety. He was 77.

The British-born Mahoney, who moved to the Chicago area at the age of 19, didn't fully enter acting until decades later, when John Malkovich and Gary Sinise enlisted Mahoney, then in his 40s, to join their Steppenwolf Theater Company. After winning the Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Play in 1986 for his role in the Broadway production of The House of Blue Leaves,...

John Mahoney has died at age 77, reports TMZ. The actor, best known for playing Martin Crane on “Frasier” for the show’s entire 11-season run, passed away while in hospice care in Chicago. Mahoney won a Screen Actors Guild Award for his performance on the long-running sitcom and was also nominated for two Golden Globes and two Emmys.

Read More:‘Altered Carbon’: The Ending to Season 1 is Especially Satisfying, and Not Only Because It Answers So Many Questions

Born in Blackpool, England on June 20, 1940, Mahoney was the seventh of eight children. He spent his early years in Manchester, returning to the city of his birth to escape the bombing during World War II; he became an American citizen in 1959 after joining the United States Army. It wasn’t until his late 30s that Mahoney began pursuing acting, a life-changing decision encouraged by John Malkovich. Prior to his work on “Frasier,...

John Mahoney has died.

The actor passed away on Sunday in Chicago, Illinois, his manager confirmed to People. He was 77.

Born in Blackpool, England, in 1940, Mahoney became best known for his role as Martin Crane in NBC’s Frasier, though he didn’t kick-start his acting career until later on in life. As a child, Mahoney — who was one of eight children from a Irish-Catholic family — witnessed the struggles of war firsthand as it quickly tore apart his parents’ marriage.

The British native attended St. Joseph’s College in Blackpool but was determined to immigrate to the United States.

Breaking Bad producer Mark Johnson is in Western Australian for the Simon Baker's directorial debut..

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Oscar and Emmy winning Hollywood producer, Mark Johnson, has arrived in Western Australia to work on Simon Baker's directorial debut film, Breath, which is based on Tim Winton's award-winning novel.

Johnson is working in partnership with Baker and See Pictures' Jamie Hilton to produce the film, which is being shot entirely in the Great Southern region, primarily in Denmark..

The Hollywood-based producer has has worked for many years in film and television..

He has produced and been involved in projects including: Rain Man, Breaking Bad, Better Call Saul, Rectify, Good Morning Vietnam, The Natural, Tin Men, Avalon, Diner Bugsy, The Chronicles of Narnia franchise, The Notebook, Galaxy Quest, The Rookie and Donnie Brasco, to name a few.

..Since I first read Breath and began discussing it with Simon, I.ve dreamed of filming in Western Australia,...

Oh, Bill. I recently wrote a piece about how Bill Murray has transcended being a mere living legend and has become a urban myth, and I stand behind every word of that. Unfortunately, Bill often makes choices involving films that make it very hard to support the films themselves, and "Rock The Kasbah" is a perfect example of that. Mitch Glazer is one of those people who appear to be able to get Bill Murray to actually pick up the phone, and he's a credited co-writer on "Scrooged," a film that features one of my favorite Bill Murray performances. Unfortunately, he's also responsible for writing and directing "Passion Play," one of the worst things Murray has ever been part of, and so walking into "Rock The Kasbah," I had my fingers crossed that Glazer would be able to tap the side of his friend that has made him such an...

A few nights ago, Warner Bros. hosted a very canny event that our own Louis Virtel attended at the Playboy Mansion, a screening of "Entourage" that may have felt like virtual reality for those who attended. While I doubt being surrounded by scantily clad bunnies influenced Louis one way or another on the film, it's likely you'll see a number of reviews that are perhaps more enthusiastic than they would otherwise be, and it'd be hard to blame anyone who fell for it. One of the reasons the setting seemed so right for that particular film is because much of the charge of "Entourage" is watching the core ensemble swagger their way through Hollywood, doing whatever they want and rarely if ever facing any consequences as a result. It's always presented with a wink and a smile, just a case of boys being boys. We live in a world right...

The star of Jaws and Close Encounters made another early film, but it never got the credit it was due. Its rerelease reminds us that the young actor really had something special

At 65, with the big hits well behind him and the star retinue long since dissipated, Richard Dreyfuss still burns with the righteous fire of the Hollywood player. He fixes me with a beady eye and says: "Acting is an ennobling experience and if it's something that you're capable of, you're lucky. I enjoyed and am proud of everything I ever did – except maybe two or three films whose names you'll never get from me. I am proud of my life and proud of my body of work."

These days, Dreyfuss cuts a very different figure from the bundle of nervous energy that made him a massive star in the early 70s, and one of the key faces of...

Barry Levinson has written and/or directed a number of films set in his native Baltimore (Diner, Tin Men and Avalon among them), and he's returned to the Maryland coast to make this superior example of that hackneyed sub-genre, the found-footage horror movie. The title refers to Chesapeake Bay, site of an ecological disaster that destroys most of the several hundred inhabitants of a small holiday resort on 4 July 2009, for which irresponsible farmers and a complacent, politically motivated mayor are to blame. All that remains is a federally suppressed documentary, recording the terrible events that began some weeks before and were attributed to a shark.

The tension is well enough sustained, the horrors build steadily, the eco message is familiar. The film is a variant on Jaws, an influence it signals by calling the despicable mayor Stockman, the name of both the complacent mayor and his brother, the honourable ecological whistle-blower,...

★★★☆☆ Veteran filmmaker Barry Levinson makes his best movies at home in Baltimore. His memoirs, Diner, Tin Men, Avalon and Liberty Heights - buoyant with wistful charm and unpretentious fondness - have a personal acuity his non-Baltimore films have suffered without. Now in his 70s, the director returns to his home city - not this time for misty-eyed nostalgia - but for an ecological horror inspired by the environmental problems in Chesapeake Bay. Warm sentiment and quiet smiles give way to sheer terror and deathly screams in The Bay (2012), as Levinson deploys the weary fad of faux-found-footage to surprisingly gruesome effect.

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Sure, "Diner" is a landmark movie, one that launched numerous careers (including those of Kevin Bacon, Mickey Rourke, Ellen Barkin, and director Barry Levinson). But is it really the most influential movie of the last 30 years? Vanity Fair seems to think so. According to an article in the March 2012 issue, "Diner" -- released 30 years ago today, on March 5, 1982 -- is indirectly responsible for "Seinfeld," "The Office," "Pulp Fiction," and "The 40-Year-Old Virgin." Such writers as Nick Hornby, Stephen Merchant, and Judd Apatow acknowledge its impact on the way they write scenes that others omit, scenes were guys reveal what matters most to them by chatting over coffee about things that don't matter at all. Like its trivia-obsessed characters, "Diner" is full of unspoken tales beneath the surface. Even fans may not know how closely life imitated art in the alliances, rivalries, pranks, and power games that helped make the movie...

Michael Douglas and Demi Moore set the box office alight in the adaptation of Michael Crichton’s Disclosure. But has any film of the 90s aged as badly as this one?

There was a point in the 1990s where Michael Crichton's novel, Disclosure, was something of a must read. This was a book that dared to address sexual discrimination against men in the workplace, from that man who wrote the thing with all the dinosaurs. And thanks to that combination of factors, it shot up the charts and stayed there for a long time.

Also in the 1990s, Michael Douglas was riding high. Off the back of Basic Instinct, he was Hollywood's go-to guy if they wanted someone to have sex while wearing a jumper. And thus, when the movie version of Disclosure came together, in fairly quick time, he was the obvious choice for the male lead.

It...

First of four three-day festivals also features the Flaming Lips.

By Mary J. Dimeglio

Dave Matthews performs at the Caravan festival in Atlantic City on June 24, 2011

Photo: Getty Images

Atlantic City, New Jersey — For the first stop on its traveling roadshow, the Dave Matthews Band Caravan brought a rootsy collection of friends to dusty Bader Field on Friday. And even after a career-spanning set that included "Don't Drink the Water," "Satellite" and "Why I Am," Dmb still have plenty of hits to draw from for the next two headlining performances of their inaugural three-day festival.

Matthews gave nods to almost all of the day's supporting acts, mentioning Delta Spirit, Carolina Chocolate Drops and The Head & The Heart, and saying, "It was a pleasure to share the stage with Ray Lamontagne." David Ryan Harris, who played Friday afternoon, joined the band for perennial crowd favorite "Jimi Thing" from their 1994 debut, Under the Table and Dreaming.

The first Critics' Choice Television Awards are fast approaching, and now that the votes are in (well, mine are... I think they are all supposed to be in by now), there's so more very cool news. The awards are going to feature an Icon Award, and the first recipient is going to be Danny DeVito.

Presenters were also announced, and it's going to be a great show.

Danny DeVito To Be Honored By Btja With Critics’ Choice Television Icon Award

Rob McElhenney, Elijah Wood, Kevin Connolly, Connie Britton, Wilmer Valderrama among Presenters

The Broadcast Television Journalists Association (Btja), a new offshoot of the Broadcast Film Critics Association, today announced that Danny DeVito will be honored as the first recipient of the Critics’ Choice Television Icon Award at the inaugural Critics’ Choice Television Awards, hosted by Cat Deeley and scheduled to take place at a luncheon at the Beverly Hills Hotel...

Barry Levinson tells Andrew Pulver how John Gotti's son himself has given the green light to a film about the Teflon Don

The Cannes film festival is the launchpad for many a still-to-be-realised movie: the streets, cafes and hotels are packed with dreamers and hucksters alike. But some pitch-merchants have more pedigree than others: here, for example, is Barry Levinson, director of Diner, Tin Men and Rain Man, who has slipped quietly into Cannes to talk up a film of which not a frame has yet been shot, but the world is already very well aware: the biography of notorious mafioso John Gotti, the "Teflon Don".

"I find it awkward to talk about a movie before there's a movie," says the 69-year-old Levinson, baseball cap pulled down over his eyes. "I'm not crazy about any of this. I don't like speculation about what may or may not happen." But on some level,...

Director of Rain Man, Diner and Wag the Dog set to begin work on Okc, a drama about the events of April 1995, reports say

Acclaimed director Barry Levinson is to tackle the subject of the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing, the deadliest act of terrorism on Us soil before the 9/11 attacks, in an independent film titled Okc, reports say.

Deadline says the film will focus on a young legal clerk on bomber Timothy McVeigh's defence team whose determination to expose the truth almost destroyed him. Screenwriter Clay Wold is the brother of the clerk and has supposedly written the story based on his sibling's experiences. Wold is due to hand his latest draft in to producers next week.

The Oklahoma City bombing took place on 19 April 1995. It killed 168 people and injured hundreds more. McVeigh was later executed by lethal injection for his crime.

Levinson won an Oscar for best director for Rain Man.

Extras have been cleared by BBFC for the forthcoming release of the fourth Doctor story Revenge of the Cybermen.

Extras Cleared:

CommentaryCheques Lies and Videotape - 28'15"Easter Egg - 21"The Tin Men and the Witch - 25'22"Location Report - 5'53"Photo Gallery - 4'35"No release date for the story has yet been announced.http://gallifreynewsbase.blogspot.com...

Have you wondered what David Chase has been doing since his phenomenal HBO series "The Sopranos" concluded nearly three years ago? Apparently he's moved on completely from the cable mafia drama and is headed for the big screen. According to Deadline Hollywood, Chase is set to begin filming later this year a coming of age movie set in the 1960s.

Specifically the untitled film deals with the formation of a rock band, which immediately calls to mind anything from "The Doors" to Tom Hanks' "That Thing You Do." Probably more like the latter, given that Chase will distribute the film under the indie-minded Paramount Vantage banner. The "Sopranos" creator wrote and will direct the film, which he's producing with Mark Johnson, who gave us the '60s-set films "Good Morning, Vietnam' and "Tin Men," as well as the period romance "The Notebook."

I wonder if this is a personal work for the TV vet,...

While the second episode of FlashForward disappointed me, I have to say that I am thoroughly enjoying Season Two of Fringe, which continued last night. This week's episode ("Fracture"), written by David Wilcox and directed by Bryan Spicer, once again nicely positioned the team and furthered the characters as well as the overarching plot while also servicing the case of the week. It's been a treat to see the team running like a well-oiled machine, with Olivia and Peter out in the field (as it should be), going so far as to make a rather impromptu trip to Iraq, while Walter and Astrid deal with matters back in the lab. It was also the first episode so far where I really felt like Astrid had a purpose. Given the fact that she's now spending more time with Walter alone in the lab, their scenes not only provide some off-kilter humor...

Danny DeVito has been sued over an upcoming film by a businessman who claims he helped raise the fund for the project.

New York businessman Michael Caridi claims in the papers he filed at the Manhattan Supreme Court that the 64-year-old actor/filmmaker reneged on a deal to pay him a 0,000 fee for helping him raise the money for the film.

He said that he had a deal with DeVito's Jersey Film production company to raise million for the movie, an adaptation of the novel "True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle" starring Morgan Freeman and Pierce Brosnan. Caridi alleges that the deal promised him a return of five percent.

Caridi sys that DeVito is refusing to honor the deal, while the "Tin Men" star claims that there is no such deal.

New York -- Barry Levinson is going back to Baltimore.

The prolific writer-director will return to his birthplace and cinematic stomping ground with "Sixty-Six," a story about a group of characters coming of age in 1966 Baltimore on the eve of significant historical events such as the counterculture movement and the war in Vietnam.

Levinson will write and direct from his own novel.

The protagonist in "Sixty-Six" is a staffer at a local television station, whom some have noted is a stand-in for Levinson and his professional and personal life. Like one of the director's most famous works, "Sixty-Six" also will feature a diner as the center of social activity.

The film completes an informal series of sorts in which Levinson examines the social dynamics in Baltimore at various periods throughout the 20th century. He kicked that off with 1983's "Diner" set in a very different city of 1959, and covered related...

Espn is taking a trip to the "Diner."

The network has brought on Barry Levinson to helm one of its documentaries in its "30 for 30" program.

The prolific writer-director, who has explored his native Baltimore in scripted pics such as "Avalon" and "Tin Men," will examine the Baltimore Colts' ignoble middle-of-the-night escape to Indianapolis in 1984.

"And the Band Marched On" will cover owner Robert Irsay's decision to sneak the team out of the city after a string of losing seasons; Levinson, a longtime Baltimore Colts fans, will investigate "how a fan base copes with losing the team that it loves," Espn said, in what will be his first documentary.

The sports giant also said Monday that it had signed up several more directors as part of its ambitious program, which aims to match noted filmmakers with subjects they're passionate about.

Barbara Kopple will helm a documentary about the Steinbrenners in which...

Baltimore's own Barry Levinson started in television (The Carol Burnett Show, The Marty Feldman Comedy Machine) and screenwriting for others: He co-wrote the minor Mel Brooks classics High Anxiety and Silent Movie, as well as the iconic, Oscar-nominated script to .And Justice For All. In the '80s, he graduated to film, becoming an Oscar-winning, A-list writer-director. He debuted with the 1982 cult classic Diner; during a particularly impressive stretch, he directed 1987's brilliant Tin Men, the smash hit Robin Williams vehicle Good Morning Vietnam, 1988's Rain Man, 1990's critically acclaimed Avalon, and the glossy 1991 gangster epic Bugsy. His career has been spottier since then, as he's moved between genres and chased the occasional success, like 1994's profitable though critically disparaged Disclosure, or the well-received 1997 political satire Wag The Dog, with flops like 1992's Toys, 2000's An Everlasting Piece, and 2004's barely released Envy. Levinson also found success...