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Today our sister publication Variety reported on the Screening Room, a new first-run movie service being pitched around town by Napster co-founder and former Facebook president Sean Parker. His twist on an old idea that has been thwarted before by exhibitors would be that major studio releases could be accessed via an anti-piracy technology.
Essentially, $150 gets one a set-top box, with a $50 per-movie charge for a 48-hour rental. From what Deadline has learned, the concept is in the idea stage, but the whole idea has a number of executives in distribution and exhibition raising torches and pitchforks. Despite surrounding himself with former Sony distribution honcho Jeff Blake as a consultant, Parker is a Hollywood outsider — he’s the guy who (with Shawn and John Fanning) appeared seemingly out of nowhere with the controversial free music service Napster before metal band Metallica led the charge against them and pushed them into a major legal battle that had implications for the entire music industry.
Said one major studio distribution executive tonight, “This news is so damaging, I can’t tell you right now how unhappy I am.” Another warned that if the Screening Room becomes a reality, “it would be the beginning of the end, and half of the theaters in this country would close.” While the Variety report cites AMC Theatres being close to a deal, Deadline heard that Regal Entertainment Group — which has been critical of any attempt at thwarting the exhibition viewing window — has completely thumbed its nose at the idea. Parker’s plan– which is said to be in its R&D phase — is to cut exhibitors in for as much $20 per movie, along with providing consumers who shell out $50 with two tickets to see the movie at a theater of their choice. That’s so exhibition can make money off of concessions sales later. However, cutting theaters in on a deal that ultimately harms their existence is not being embraced. “Hopefully, this will fail,” said one film buyer in exhibition.
The high price point is also a point of debate. Some distributors think it caters to a high-end clientele, that no one would buy into it, particularly since it would rob audiences of the movie theater experience.
“There’s no market for it,” said one studio executive. Others think that the price point is economical, particularly when one takes into account the extra costs involved in moviegoing (i.e. parking, babysitting fees, extra tickets for the family). Meanwhile, here is a service called Prima Cinema that delivers first-run quality films to your home theater via its equipment (for example, one can currently watch Paramount’s Whiskey Tango Foxtrot which opened last weekend). However, Prima Cinema isn’t perceived as a threat because the barriers of entry are extremely expensive with the movie rental being $750-$1,000; a service essentially for the Bel-Air crowd. “It’s not a scaleable business,” critiqued one insider.
Nonetheless, the news of the Screening Room continues the long-gestating attempt to close theatrical and home entertainment windows for studios. Universal originally had a plan in late 2011 to sell Tower Heist via premium VOD in several markets for $59.99 a pop three weeks after the film played. The studio pulled the plan after facing boycotts from exhibitors.
Essentially, such distribution plans are attempts by studios to cut their P&A spend and make money faster between the theater and VOD/DVD dates. Last fall, Paramount tried an experiment with a shortened theatrical to VOD window with its Paranormal Activity: The Ghost Dimension and Scouts Guide to the Zombie Apocalypse (which were released only a week apart), cutting the theaters in on some of the VOD cash. But the studio was only able to get AMC (which is owned by China conglom Dalian Wanda Group), Canada’s Cineplex and a few smaller venues on board. Essentially, at the end of the day, premium VOD isn’t a plan exhibition wants to play ball with.
The Anak Krakatau volcano, infamous for its extreme eruptions, is launching lava bombs and generating its own lightning this month, which was recently captured on video by a scientist from a nearby island.
Volcanic lightning has only recently been studied and understood. Lightning in eruptions is similar to that of thunderstorms — negative and positive charges separate in the atmosphere, and the strike of lightning restores the charges to balance. In thunderstorms, ice crystals are the particles that electrified. But why the charge separation occurs in volcanic eruptions has not been well understood. Researchers have determined ice can play a role in very large eruptions, but the charge created by ash alone is enough to trigger a strike.
As we’ve written here before, Anak Krakatau is only a century old, nothing but a speck on Earth’s timeline. But it’s already become one of the most-watched volcanoes in the world because of its incredible eruptions. The volcano also happens to be the direct descendant, so to speak, of the infamous Krakatoa (also known as Krakatau), which killed thousands of people in its historic 1883 eruption. That eruption nearly destroyed the volcano entirely. What spawned from the ash and debris was a new volcano, given the name Anak Krakatau, or “child of Krakatoa.” It rose up from the ocean in 1927 and has been active since then.
Bermuda’s Canjelae Taylor released her first single last week entitled “Someone Else”. This follows after singer-songwriter Canjelae was featured singing “Sum of Us” on the soundtrack for the movie “The Intent 2″ released in theaters last September.
A spokesperson said, “This is the year of the woman and we are here to celebrate another female artist steering her way straight to the top, Canjelae. This Bermudian songstress is not only beautiful but has a voice that can stand on its own.
Official says it was caused by a lightning arrester.
FOREST CITY, Iowa – Power was lost in parts of Forest City just after 5 pm Friday.
The dispatch center says a lightning arrester blew and it took 30 to 60 minutes to restore electrical service as utility workers had to bring sections of the city back on line one at a time.
An arrester is used on power and telecommunication lines to protect the insulation and conductors of the system from the damaging effects of lightning.
Another Installment Entitled "Highlander: The Source."
Plot Summary: The world is falling into chaos. As he roams a crumbling city, Duncan MacLeod (Adrian Paul), the Highlander, remembers happier times before the love of his life left... Hopeless and alone, MacLeod finds his way to a band of immortal companions, including his mysterious friend Methos, and a mortal, Watcher Joe Dawson. Together this small group sets out on a quest to find the origin of the first Immortal and The Source of their immortality.
This new adventure is the first feature in the Trilogy. "The Source" tells the story of Immortals as they quest to locate the Holy Grail of their world. The entire series of films will chronicle the origins of the Immortals.
Jimmy Carl Black, the original drummer for Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention, passed away this past weekend after a bout with lung cancer. He was 70. Black, the self-proclaimed “Indian of the group,” served with the Mothers from their acclaimed 1966 debut Freak Out! until Zappa’s 1970 album Weasels Ripped My Flesh. Black is also known for donning a dress on the cover of We’re Only In It For the Money. Black’s drumming also formed the heartbeat during the band’s chaotic live performances captured on albums like Uncle Meat and Burnt Weeny Sandwich. Black also played a noticeable role in the Zappa film 200 Motels, where he sang “Lonesome Cowboy Burt.” In his post-Mothers career, Black played in several bands, including a stint with Captain Beefheart, Geronimo Black (which Black fronted) and the Zappa tribute bands like the Grandmothers and the Muffin Men. A benefit for Black will be held November 9th at the Bridgehouse II in London.
•Frank Zappa’s Raunchy Rock Opera Joe’s Garage Debuts in L.A.
It’s post-Katrina New Orleans and there are snakes in the water — none bigger than Terence McDonagh, an exceptionally corrupt detective, who slinks through town snorting coke, smoking heroin, harassing women and brandishing a .44 Magnum stuffed in the front of his pants.
When a security guard finds McDonagh (Nicolas Cage) behind the pharmacist counter rooting around for his Vicodin prescription because he’s tired of waiting, the guard is reasonably skeptical when McDonagh says he’s a cop.
McDonagh is doing what might be called “a huckuva job.” Despite his behavior (he also steals evidence and threatens the life of old lady), he’s considered the department’s finest detective and he’ll be honored twice before the film is done.
“Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans” is one of the most curious films to arrive in a long time. It’s a kind of remake of Abel Ferrara’s 1992 cult classic “Bad Lieutenant,” which was set in New York and starred Harvey Keitel in a similar role.
Director Werner Herzog has insisted this is not a remake, though much of the story mimics the original: Our antihero still has a gambling problem with debts mounting; he’s still trying to solve a particularly heinous crime (in this case, the drug dealing-motivated slaughter of a family); and redemption might still come for him.
The original “Bad Lieutenant” was sensational, wild and unpredictable. It’s exactly what one looks for in pulpy noir, and it contained a truly great performance from Keitel, vulnerable and weighed by Catholic guilt despite his coked-up animalism.
Such films aren’t meant to be remade — the very idea is incongruent to their wildness.
Herzog, though a self-described madman himself, also wouldn’t seem right. Gritty, stylistic sensationalism is Ferrara’s stock in trade, whereas Herzog’s long and justly acclaimed career (“Fitzcarraldo,” “Grizzly Man”) has been defined by raw naturalism.
Where Ferrara placed Catholicism, Herzog has turned to his god: Nature. Throughout Herzog’s “Bad Lieutenant” are thoroughly strange, shaky interludes shot from the perspective of various lizards. The scenes play like drug-induced hallucinations: a crocodile watches from the roadside, iguanas join a stakeout.
Cage dives headlong into the madness. It’s plain fun to see the actor give himself so fully to a character after several years of mostly forgettable action movies.
Cage, constantly running his hand through his hair, speaks with an odd, hazy drawl that has a touch of Nixon in it. Though often blank and deadpan, he has occasional flashes of glee. He steps out from a stealth arrest almost dancing, “I love it. I just love it.” Whenever he utters the amusing nickname of a suspect (“G”), his face lights up in hysterical incredulity.
The rest of the cast doesn’t quite keep up, though Alvin “Xzibit” Joiner, playing drug-dealing kingpin Big Fate, is a good foil. Though he’s the supposed criminal, he’s more composed than McDonagh and the most charismatic character in the movie.
Eva Mendes gives a fine but unremarkable performance as McDonaugh’s prostitute girlfriend. Val Kilmer is terribly underused as McDonagh’s partner. Given only a caricature to work with, Kilmer seemingly falls out of the movie for an hour.
There’s plenty not to like in “Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans.” It’s altogether nutty, and intentionally so. It keeps closer to the original plot than one might want of a film from a highly skilled director. And the ending feels like an a forced, extra dose of Herzog mania.
But it has a pulse, and it’s a marvel to watch in wonder.
But it can’t be a model everywhere.
A few years before Queens elementary school PS 244 became the first public school in the nation to go vegetarian, it decided to stop serving chocolate milk. That had never been done before in New York City’s school meals program. Robert Groff, the school’s principal, says even that first simple step took a lot of time and effort.
Groff, whose grandfathers both died of heart attacks in their 50s, co-founded PS 244 in 2008 on the premise that health and wellness is closely tied to academic performance. The chocolate milk removal, suggested at first by a third grader who was learning about nutrition labels, was followed by other menu changes that maximized healthy eating.
By January 2013, with the help of the New York Coalition for Healthy School Food and NYC’s Office of School Food, PS 244 had a full meat-free breakfast and lunch menu, made at no added cost compared to the city’s meal program. Since then, one other city public school has gone completely vegetarian, and other schools now have a vegetarian lunch option to choose from.
But PS 244 isn’t going to be an example for everyone: Schools nationally are having trouble with the new USDA guidelines at it is, says Diane Pratt-Heavner, a spokesperson for the School Nutrition Association.
Finicky and growing kids don’t always like the heaping veggies or unfamiliar brown rice, restricted calories, and worse, strict salt limits that the guidelines set. The association says that 1.4 million fewer children participated in school lunch on a daily basis since 2012–mostly students who pay full price for their meals. As a result, lunch programs are losing money and children who opt out are likely eating more poorly, since studies show food brought from home is usually far less healthy. Another unintended consequence, since kids are now required to take their milk, fruits, and veggies: A lot goes in the trash.
“We’ve seen a dramatic increase in the amount of food waste that the system really can’t afford,” says Pratt-Heavner. The association generally supports a lot in the guidelines but is pushing for more flexibility for schools and a delay on even stricter sodium limits set for 2017.
This healthy meal, including a turkey wrap and low-sodium green beans, exceeds USDA’s 2017 sodium limit.
Groff, too, agrees that one-size-fits-all models are difficult. Vegetarian meals wouldn’t be for everyone, he says. He attributes a lot of PS 244’s success to the education that kids get. “The vegetarian meals are what get the most attention, but that wouldn’t have happened without the education prior to it. I think for any schools that are looking towards healthy meal options, you have to start with the education behind it,” he says.
PS 244 is thriving. According to Groff, almost 80% of the school’s 440 students eat the vegetarian school lunch; students can bring meat from home if they wish, though chips, candy, and soda are not allowed. Kids are even requesting that their parents buy more broccoli at home, he says. The school says it is seeing benefits in improved student performance–though with few resources to do a formal study, this is based mostly on anecdote rather than hard data and many other factors may contribute. Nevertheless, attendance is up at PS 244, and so are applications. Teachers report the kids are less sluggish and more attentive in the afternoon.
He does admit that getting kids to love straight up two-ounce blocks of tofu isn’t easy, which is how the USDA guidelines require they serve tofu. That would be hard even for an adult.
Benjamin Furdui serves coffee in the breezeway at 5th and Citrus in Redlands. The company runs on a donation-based system where customers pay what they wish.
Two brothers want to help start your morning off right with a cup of joe.
James and Benjamin Furdui are behind the new AndCoffee – or &Coffee – cart that recently took up residence in the breezeway between Redland City Hall and the downtown public parking structure on Citrus Avenue.
The cart serves a selection of iced lattes, espressos, cappuccinos and Americanos.
AndCoffee runs on a donation-based system in which customers pay what they wish.
The cart is just one of several new amenities added to downtown to attract visitors to the area.
In June, the City Council approved the coffee vendor’s agreement with the city, and before its opening, city staffers installed utility hookups for necessary cart operations.
City staffers also recently installed shade sails above round tables in the breezeway and a new seating area adjacent to the area. Music now plays in the area for additional ambiance.
The cart is a dream come true for the two, who have aspirations of opening their own storefront in downtown, they said.
The cart is different from the norm – it’s a remodeled utility truck James Furdui found in a utility yard.
With help from their dad, the brothers gave the truck a makeover to improve its mobility and create storage.
The cart is out periodically, so both James and Benjamin Furdui can gauge days when the area is populated with potential customers.
Currently, the brothers serve up locally distributed and grown Wild Goose Coffee, but they envision brewing beans of their own in the future. They also hope to expand operation hours, James said.
To learn more, follow AndCoffee on Instagram at AndCoffeeCo or send an email to thecoffeetruckster@gmail.com.
But perhaps this World Password Day will inspire improvement.
As our lives are increasingly housed online, password security becomes more and more important. The World Password Day campaign hopes to encourage everyone to get serious about passwords. It's not just tech neophytes that are making password mistakes: Even people working in information technology commit a variety of password sins.
In honor of World Password Day, Sailpoint partnered with research company Vanson-Bourne to survey decision-makers in IT about their password habits. The results are somewhat surprising.
The survey found that 55 percent of IT leaders have reused the same password throughout their work and personal life, violating the cardinal rule against password re-use. Almost a third of IT professionals surveyed have used a family member’s name in a password, and 28 percent have used a pet’s name. These are simple, predictable passwords that are easy for hackers to guess.
But perhaps the most egregious stat of all is that 10 percent of surveyed IT leaders are still using some of the most common password fails like “password” or “qwerty."
Those stats seem grim, but there are some easy fixes to these mistakes.
In addition to using a solid password, you should also layer your level of security by turning on two-factor authentication whenever possible. It might be a pain, but it's one of the best ways to keep accounts secure. Start with your email and bank accounts, which contain the most valuable and vulnerable information.
If you're having trouble managing lengthy passphrases and multiple layers of authentication, you might slide into bad password habits. If that's the case, consider using a password manager. There are multiple options such as LastPass and 1Password, but no matter which you choose, make sure that your password to your password manager is ironclad. Your whole online life depends on it.
The trial of a former Anglican priest charged with abusing indigenous boys at Chippewas-of-the-Thames First Nation 40 years ago has been adjourned until later this month.
David Norton, 72, who already is serving a four-year prison sentence for sexual abuses in the 1990s, will have his judge-alone five-day trial start on Oct. 29, one way or another, the judge said.
The delay Monday was because one of Norton’s defence lawyers is ill. This was the second time the trial, involving four complainants, has been delayed.
Superior Court Justice Lynda Templeton said it was “extremely important that the matter move forward” but understood Norton needed to have a defence team in place.
She suggested he could keep his lawyer or hire someone else. Otherwise, Templeton said, he would have to represent himself.
“It will proceed on this date, with or without counsel,” she said.
The complainants, whose identities are protected by court order, and their supporters, some wearing matching blue T-shirts, were in the courtroom.
“You have a right to be heard. You will be heard,” Templeton told them.
Norton was a priest at St. Andrew’s Church at Chippewas of the Thames First Nation in 1977.
Last month, Norton was sentenced to four years in prison for sexual interference of a boy, now in his 30s, when Norton was the rector at St. Mark’s in London, beginning in 1991.
It was the charges laid in the case of the Indigenous boys that prompted the victim in the later crime to come forward to police.
Norton was a full-time priest until 2011, then filled in for vacationing clergy once he retired. He since has resigned from the Diocese of Huron.
Norton also was an award-winning history lecturer at King’s University College where he specialized in indigenous history.
The “new normal” among consumers is to make due with automobiles long after they’ve lost that new car smell. Plenty of drivers plan on sticking with their aging cars well past the six-figure mileage marker, until they can’t be driven any more. That’s bad news for automakers and car dealerships, but has spelled rising revenues for mechanics and auto repair shops in the business of keeping old clunkers on the road.
Drivers just aren’t buying new cars like they used to. Last year, the vast majority of car owners said they planned on hanging onto their current vehicles for at least 50,000 more miles than their previous automobiles. Especially high auto prices over the past several months have also caused would-be car buyers to hold off on making purchases until better deals arrive.
Naturally, while consumers have prudently been avoiding big-ticket new car purchases, they’ve been more likely to spend smaller amounts in order to keep their old rides plugging along. The trend has meant that while most businesses have struggled through the past few years, auto repair shops have never been busier.
Last year, auto repair garages in the U.S. reported $36 billion in sales, according to estimates from the Automotive Aftermarket Industry Association. That’s up 10.5% from 2007.
Sales figures at auto repair shops are expected to rise another 5% this year.
In the same way that thrift stores are doing brisk business because consumers are less likely to be buying new clothes and home furnishings lately, garages specializing in repairs have been booming because consumers have been holding off on buying new cars. Americans bought around 16 million automobiles annually between 1999 and 2007. But in 2009, dealerships sold only 10.4 million new cars as unemployment remained stubbornly high and consumers sought ways to avoid large purchases. Sales remain slow this year, with 12.5 million new vehicles expected to be purchased by the end of 2011.
So long as economic growth remains stifled and drivers keep trying to get by with “good enough” vehicles rather than feeling the need for spotless, scratch-free, brand-spanking new cars, it should continue being a great time to be in the auto repair business.
New rules will be put in place to protect those who genuinely fall ill on holiday and prevent extortionate legal fees to travel companies.
Whether travelling by train, plane, Eurostar or ferry, you could be entitled to compensation if your journey is disrupted.
Transport Secretary Chris Grayling has told ITV News Political Editor Robert Peston that despite opposition within the government over Heathrow expansion, a third runway will go ahead after consultation.
The new Btrfly app hopes to add romance to international train journeys by linking-up like-minded travellers at airports worldwide.
The Queen is set to celebrate her 90th birthday on Thursday, and in those years she has travelled around the world 42 times.
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office is continuing to advise against all non-essential travel to the country due to the threat of terror.
Angry Eurostar passengers have vented their frustrations on Twitter after an incident at Dagenham Docks station left hundreds of travellers stuck on trains that were not moving for more than two hours.
ITV News has learnt the delays were caused by a person on a bridge who was threatening to jump.
@eurostar I have spent £500 to get to the Alps for opening of the ski lifts. This is just not good enough.
@eurostar oh look yet another delay!! Not looking forward to using the Eurostar ever again!!
Eurostar confirmed trains had slowly started moving again shortly after 11pm.

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