Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow courtesy Paramount Pictures
Question I saw and liked Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow but was wondering What was the source of Sir Laurence Oliviers performance Ive always wanted to know JayFlickChick The late Sir Laurence Oliviers performance as Professor Totenkopf dead head in German in Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow 2004 was digitally built from archival BBC footage of Olivier giving a speech at some fund-raising event The movements of his mouth were manipulated to match the films dialogue and the footage was processed to look like a staticky video holograph The same basic technology was used to alter existing footage of Marlon Brando from Superman 1978 so he could speak new dialogue for Superman Returns 2006 But in Superman Returns the Brando footage looks as real as the rest so its another step toward being truly able to have a living actor appear alongside a dead one the way singers can now do thoroughly convincing duets by integrating their new tracks
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Once upon a not very long time ago, Saturday Night Live had character — make that characters. Wayne and Garth, Hans and Franz, Linda Richman, Mary Katherine Gallagher, the sexually ambiguous Pat, Mango, the Cheerleaders. And so on. "It was the Yankees," remembers Chris Rock of a cast so stuffed with talent that the competition to get on air and create new comic icons and catchphrases was ferocious. (Eddie Murphy once advised Rock to create "Weekend Update" pieces delivered straight to the camera to help him break through. Which he did.) Anecdotes like these make the frankly funny and admirably frank Saturday Night Live in the '90s: Pop Culture Nation (May 6, 9 pm/ET, NBC) so much more than a nostalgic clip job. There's plenty that's celebratory in this two-hour special, but also much that's self-critical — especially in addressing the mid-'90s cast upheaval that led to falling ratings,
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Words can never hurt me: Anthony Hopkins
Question: I know actors improvise their lines all the time in comedies, but recently I learned that Anthony Hopkins improvised many of Hannibal's lines. I also recently learned from the documentary Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker's Apocalypse that Marlon Brando improvised much of his dialogue in Apocalypse Now. So now I'm curious: How often do actors, outside of comedies, improvise their lines?
Answer: All the time. OK, not all actors all the time, but the practice of ad-libbing or altering lines is an entrenched part of film acting and one of the things that drives screenwriters out of their minds. Especially if they come from the theater: In theater, the script is sacrosanct and no one messes with it except with the express consent of the playwright (assuming someone dares to ask). In film, scripts are usually treated as a kind of outline — not
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Vanessa Marcil, Las Vegas
While all those media-maven types theorize about the true meaning of Las Vegas' time-slot change — NBC's Monday mainstay is moving to Fridays at 9, starting tonight, March 3 — Vanessa Marcil won't be bothered. As the Montecito's hostess with the oh-so-mostess, she is relishing her dream job, a role she values a distant second behind that of mother to son Kassius, who turns 4 this month. In this candid Q&A with TVGuide.com, the brunette beauty cheers "Viva Las Vegas" — and reveals at least two celebrity crushes.
TVGuide.com: When I called you to set this up, it sounded a bit festive in the background. Were you at a strip club with your Vegas pals, or wer
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Jon Stewart hosts the 78th Annual Academy Awards.
The Daily Show's Jon Stewart, host of the 78th Annual Academy Awards (airing Sunday at 9 pm/ET on ABC) answers TVGuide.com readers' burning questions!
What can you tell me about your Oscar-hosting gig? — Paul Strouse, Pittsburgh, Pa.Jon Stewart: This may be the most devastating, controversial, powerful, dangerous awards show ever.... No, I'm looking to have fun with it. If people are kind enough to spend four hours watching this damn show, I'm hoping to give them something other than a numb ass. And I won't sing; I want them to be happy.
Will you have The Daily Show's Rob Corddry or Ed Helms on hand to help on the red carpet with some impromptu interviews? Or Stephen Colbert —
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Glitter: Renée Zellweger in Chicago
Question: Renee Zellweger has been nominated for an Oscar three years in a row. Can you tell me how many other times this has happened? Has anyone ever pulled it off more than three times in a row? Thanks!Answer: William Hurt and Russell Crowe have both been nominated for best actor three times in a row, Hurt for Kiss of the Spider Woman (1985), Children of a Lesser God (1986) and Broadcast News (1987) — he won for Kiss of the Spider Woman — and Crowe for The Insider (1999), Gladiator (2000) and A Beautiful Mind (2001). Crowe won for Gladiator. And just for the record, Zellweger's three-in-a-row nominations were for Bridget Jones's Diary (2001), Chicago (2002) and Cold Mountain (2003); the third time was the lucky one for her.
In the past, Elizabeth Ta
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Question: I know sequels and remakes don't usually get nominated for Oscars, but has anyone other than Al Pacino ever been nominated for playing the same character in different movies? He was nominated for his portrayal of Michael Corleone in both The Godfather (1972) and The Godfather: Part II (1974), which was a big exception to the sequel stigma. My friends and I were talking about it and we're all stumped.
Answer: Three other actors have also been honored twice for the same role: Bing Crosby was nominated for playing Father Chuck O'Malley in Going My Way (1944) and its sequel, The Bells of St. Mary's (1945). Peter O'Toole was nominated for playing King Hen
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Question: Is Marlon Brando the only person who ever refused to accept his Academy Award?
Answer: No. Back in 1936, screenwriter Dudley Nichols refused to accept his best screenplay Oscar for The Informer (1935). The early 1930s were a time of bitter conflicts between the studios and their employees; studio executives were vehemently anti-union and accustomed to forcing actors, writers, composers and crew to work on studio terms or not work at all. Nichols, who later became president of the Screenwriters Guild, refused to accept his award as a protest against what was widely perceived as the Academy's decision to sell out its less powerful members to union-busting studio heads.
By the time George C. Scott
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Vanessa Marcil, Las Vegas
While all those media-maven types theorize about the true meaning of Las Vegas' upcoming time-slot change — NBC's Monday-night mainstay is moving to Fridays at 9, starting March 3 — Vanessa Marcil won't be bothered. As the Montecito's hostess with the oh-so-mostess, she is relishing her dream job, a role she values a distant second behind that of mother to son Kassius, who turns 4 in March. In this candid Q&A with TVGuide.com, the brunette beauty cheers "Viva Las Vegas" — and reveals at least two celebrity crushes.
TVGuide.com: When I called you to set this up, it sounded a bit festive in the background. Were you at a strip club with your Vegas pals, or were
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Dean Martin, The Dean Martin Show
Question: Mr. Televisionary, I'm confused. After seeing the remake, some friends and I rented the original Ocean's Eleven and we got to talking about Dean Martin and his career. Isn't it true that by the time he got his own TV show, he was barely trying? Basically, was he really drunk the whole time? Thanks.
Answer: Well, according to Martin himself, who was backed up by many who knew him at the time, the whole point was to act like he was barely trying — and he managed to fool a lot of people by doing just that. What you reportedly saw on his show much of the time was a glass of apple juice. Of course, the man liked his drink and wasn't shy about social imbibing, but according to those who worked with him closely enough to break through the persona and see the real man, he wasn't nearly the hard-core partier he appeared to be — and he never let it get in the way of
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