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Wednesday, January 28, 2015

Dateline Movie Spotlight: George Lucas and the Star Wars Films

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Best known as the creator of monumental and epic films such as the Star Wars and Indiana Jones, George Walton Lucas, Jr. was born in Modesto, California on May 14, 1944 from parents George Walton Lucas, Sr. and mother Dorothy Ellinore Lucas. He is currently married to Mellody Hobson with whom they have one daughter with the name of Everest Hobson Lucas.  They currently reside in Marin County in California. 
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After attending Modesto Junior College, he would later on transfer to the University of Southern California School of Cinematic Arts were he met and befriended with young Steven Spielberg, who is also a student of the said school and shares the same passion for filming as he is.
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He is best known for creating the space series saga Star Wars, which consist of two trilogies.  The first Star Wars movie was released in May 1977 while its two sequels, The Empire Strikes Back was released three years later and its last sequel The Return of the Jedi was released also three years later in 1983 to complete the first trilogy.  

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After an absence of about sixteen years, the saga continues with The Phantom Menace which was released on May 1999 to be followed three years after by the Attack of the Clones in 2002 and concluded three years later by the Revenge of the Sith released on May 2005 to conclude the second part of the trilogy.
               
              

The Star Wars saga was a world-wide success that has become a pop culture for the young and old generations alike.  Its triumph is not limited in the box-office, it can be seen in a lot of merchandise, video games, cartoon series, books, trading cards, toys and a whole lot more.  It has become the fifth-highest grossing film series of all time.

Below is a summary of the Star Wars movies and its released dates.  It can be noted that all Star Wars movies was released on the month of May.  These released dates are all done to George Lucas' preference that it be released on his birth month which is May. 

Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope (May 25, 1977)


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When the original Star Wars movie was released in 1977, it had no corresponding episode title attached to it. It became Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope only upon its re-release in 1981.

Star Wars: Episode V The Empire Strikes Back (May 21, 1980)


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When the next sequel came out in 1980, instead of having the title "Star Wars II," it was named "Star Wars: Episode V The Empire Strikes Back.

Star Wars: Episode VI Return of the Jedi (May 25, 1983)


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Star Wars: Episode I The Phantom Menace (May 19, 1999)


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With the said episode numbers of the original "Star Wars" trilogy,  people are prompted by exuberant speculation about the next three chapters preceding them. George Lucas responded in May 1999 with the release of a new movie, Star Wars: Episode I The Phantom Menace.

Star Wars: Episode II Attack of the Clones (May 16, 2002)


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Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith (May 19, 2005)


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Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith was released in 2005. George Lucas claimed that the space series saga in now complete.  Although rumors of a possible Episode VII, VIII and IX continues to linger.

Star Wars: Episode VII The Force Awakens (December 18, 2015)

This year in December 2015 after almost a ten-year hiatus, the space saga will again grace the big screen, although the release date is set on December unlike the rest of the previous Star Wars movies which were released on the month of May.  But still, MAY THE FORCE BE WITH YOU!!!

Below are some good behind-the-scenes Star Wars photos that I have stumbled upon and am gladly sharing them with you.





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Thursday, January 15, 2015

Dateline Movie Spotlight: Michael Douglas


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The son of popular veteran actor Kirk Douglas and the eldest among four brothers, Michael Kirk Douglas was born in New Brunswick, New Jersey on September 25, 1944.  He is presently married to Welsh actress Catherine Zeta-Jones who is also born on the same date September 25, although she is 25 years younger, having a birth year of 1969.  They were married on November 18 in the year 2000.  They were blessed with 2 children, a son with the name of Dylan Michael and a daughter by the name of Carys Zeta.  His mother is Diana Love Dill.  He studied acting at New York City's American Place Center.


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He has won several awards, among which were 4 Golden Globe Awards, 2 Academy Awards, an Emmy Award, and other citations from distinguished award-giving bodies. Michael Douglas is a good actor, a great producer, an activist, a UN Messenger of Peace, a spokesperson for the FBI's campaign against financial crime, and also an avid supporter of gun control. 


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His first break was when he was cast alongside Karl Malden in the Streets of San Francisco which was produced by Quinn Martin Productions, a policed drama that run from 1972 to 1977.  Michael Douglas left the television series at the beginning of the final season to produce the movie drama that is based on a popular novel in 1962 by Ken Kesey, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest.  


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It won the five major Academy Awards  at the 48th Oscar ceremony in 1975 including Best Picture for Michael Douglas and Saul Zaentz, Best Actor in a Lead Role for Jack Nicholson, Best Actress in a Lead Role for Louise Flecther, Best Director for Milos Forman, and Best Screenplay for both Laurence Hauben and Bo Goldman.

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He appeared in several movies most notable of which are The Running and The China Syndrome during the late 1970's, the action-adventure movie Romancing The Stone and its sequel The Jewel of the Nile, the very memorable movie with Glenn Close - Fatal Attraction, the movie that won for him the Best Actor award in 1987 for portraying the role of Gordon Gekko which is directed by Oliver Stone - Wall Street, the box-office hit movie with Sharon Stone - Basic Instinct, and dozens of other successful movies that makes him a Hollywood legend.

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This year, Michael Douglas would be doing a different kind of movie. Okay, he may be too old to suit-up as a hero, but here's the second best thing. He'll be a mentor, but not just a mentor, an exceptional scientist and a remarkable inventor who created a size-manipulation substance and can talk to ants. Ringing any bells? He'll be portraying the role as Dr. Henry "Hank" Pym in the Ant-Man film, an adaptation of the classic comic book hero created by no less than Stan "The Man " Lee, his younger brother Larry Lieber and Jack Kirby from the Marvel fame.

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So far, the majority of the movie's plot has been shrouded in obscurity, although there have been recent teases and leaks regarding the actual film itself. For those who do not want any spoilers, now is the time to look away.

Ant-Man would follow master thief Scott Lang, played by Paul Rudd (Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy) as he is tasked by veteran mystery man, Hank Pym on an epic heist that will "save the world", with the use of size-altering gadgets. Seems alright for a man who is an expert at stealing things, until he realized he has to rob from Pym's former colleague, Darren Cross, played by Corey Stoll (Push), who himself is building his own version of the Ant-Man gear known as "Yellowjacket"! Also appearing is Evangeline Lilly (The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies) as Pym's daughter, Hope Van Dyne. The film is directed by Peyton Reed (he also directed the movie Yes Man that starred comedian Jim Carrey).


This movie, set to hit the big screens on July 17, 2015, is considered as the most "ant-icipated" film in the Marvel universe! (See what we did there?)