Month: June 2008

Categories
Music

This is beauty, eh?!?

Stompin’ Tom is going digital for Canada Day.
The Canadian music legend is issuing five of his classic albums, including Bud The Spud, on iTunes beginning Tuesday.
It’s the first time Tom Connors, who has recorded 49 albums, has released his work digitally, EMI said in a release Monday.
The other albums to be released are:
– Fiddle & Song.
– Ode For The Road.
– My Stompin Grounds.
– Live At The Horseshoe.
Individual songs from the albums, including hits such as Sudbury Saturday Night, are also available.
More of Connors’s catalogue is expected to be released digitally over the next few months.
Connors has a new album coming out later this year, recently performed duirng the NHL awards show in Toronto and will be honoured with his own stamp next year.
He is already a recipient of the Order of Canada and the Governor General’s Award of Performing Excellence.

Categories
Concerts

Have fun , folks, I am seeing Miranda Lambert and Sugarland that same night!

Bon Jovi Playing Free Central Park Show
Iconic New Jersey rockers Bon Jovi will play a free concert in Central Park on July 12, mayor Michael Bloomberg announced today (June 30).
Alongside frontman Jon Bon Jovi, as well as officials from Major League Baseball and Bank of America, Bloomberg outlined the details of the event at a City Hall press conference.
The show, billed as an “All-Star Concert in Central Park,” will take place in conjunction with the Major League Baseball All-Star Game, which is set for July 15 at Yankee Stadium.
“We’ve gotten the chance to bookend what is the most successful tour in the world this year with a free concert for anyone in New York,” Bon Jovi said. “I just traveled the world again, and New York is still the greatest city in the world.”
The concert will take place at 8 p.m. on the park’s Great Lawn and will not be televised. Fans will be allowed to enter the area beginning at 2 p.m. Tickets will be available beginning July 2 at baseball parks as well as at events throughout New York.
The majority of the tickets will be available at Yankee Stadium, but will also be available at Shea Stadium and at the parks of the Brooklyn Cyclones and Staten Island Yankees. Additionally, tickets will be available through radio sweepstakes, promotional giveaways and in-store programs. Fan can also get tickets at MLB.com.
No more than 60,000 tickets will be distributed in an attempt to maintain the safety and integrity of the lawn’s grass, Bloomberg said. “Our interest is in keeping the park open and making sure at the same time that we protect the investment the public has made,” he said.
Bon Jovi said fans should expect a full-blown rock show despite the restrictions in place to protect the grass. “This will be our major stadium production,” he said.
The band’s “Lost Highway” tour wraps July 14-15 in New York.

Categories
Music

New Tunage – Nope, not much to hear here this week!!

New CD Releases, July 1: John Mayer, Alkaline Trio, Los Lonely Boys
John Mayer “Where the Light Is: John Mayer Live in Los Angeles”
This 2-CD live set was recorded during the vocalist/guitarist’s gig on Dec. 8, 2007 at the Nokia Theater in Los Angeles. It features Mayer performing in three different settings: an acoustic show, fronting the John Mayer Trio (with bassist Pino Palladino and drummer Steve Jordan) and leading his regular electric band.
“Where the Light is” will also be released on DVD and Blue-Ray configurations, and is being shown in theaters across the country for one night only (June 30).
Mayer is also scheduled to tour this summer. The trip will commence with a July 2 date in Milwaukee, WI, and is currently scheduled to last through the end of August. Support acts rotating through the tour will include Colbie Caillat, Brett Dennen, Paramore and OneRepublic.
* * *
Alkaline Trio “Agony & Irony”
The Chicago-based alt-rockers return with their sixth studio album, which marks the group’s first collection of all-new material since 2005’s “Crimson.” The latter set peaked at No. 25 on The Billboard 200 chart.
Last year, the group issued “Remains,” a 22-track compilation album. The dual CD/DVD release features non-album sides that the band has recorded for compilations, EPs and international versions of its studio albums, along with a 45-minute DVD including all of the band’s music videos from the three studio albums preceding “Agony.”
Fans can share in the “Agony” during Alkaline Trio’s in-progress tour. The trek is currently scheduled to stretch through an Aug. 3 date in Lawrence, KS.
* * *
Los Lonely Boys “Forgiven”
The Garza brothers–Henry (guitar), JoJo (bass) and Ringo (drums)–are back and ready to release their third album. The set follows 2006’s “Sacred,” which debuted at No. 2 on The Billboard 200, and the band’s double-platinum-selling, Grammy-winning 2003 self-titled debut, which spawned the No. 1 adult-contemporary hit “Heaven.”
The first single from “Forgiven” is “Staying With Me.” These “Texican” rockers will support the new album during a co-headlining trek with Los Lobos. Dubbed the “Brotherhood Tour,” the outing is set to begin July 18 in Portland, OR.
* * *
My Chemical Romance “The Black Parade is Dead”
“The Black Parade,” released in late 2006, made these modern goth rockers into superstars in the music business. Yet, all good things must come to an end. Judging by the title of their new release, “The Black Parade is Dead,” the band members are presumably just about ready to turn the page on this chapter in their careers and get on the next thing. This live set, released in both CD and DVD formats, documents two concerts from Oct. 2007: a small club show in New Jersey and the final “Black Parade” gig in Mexico City.
* * *
Vanessa Hudgens “Identified”
You might not know her name, but trust that your kids know her voice. Hudgens is best known for her role in the Disney phenomenon “High School Musical” (she starred as Gabriella Montez). The 19-year-old vocalist already has one hit record to her credit–her platinum-selling 2006 debut, “V”–and now she’s hoping for another taste of success with her sophomore effort, “Identified.”
* * *
More new releases:
Deltron 3030, “Deltron 3030” (Traffic)
G-Unit, “T.O.S.: Terminate on Sight” (G-Unit)
Kansas, “Two for the Show” (Sony)
Van Morrison, “Enlightenment” (Polydor)
Van Morrison, “Live at the Grand Opera House Belfast” (Polydor)
Van Morrison, “A Night in San Francisco” (Polydor)
Van Morrison, “No Guru, No Method, No Teacher” (Polydor)
Van Morrison, “Veedon Fleece” (Polydor)
Night Ranger, “Hole in the Sun” (VH1)
Relient K, “The Bird and the Bee Sides” (Warner Bros.)
Tech N9ne, “Killer” (Strange Music)
Thrillseekers, “Nightmusic, Vol. 3” (Water Music)
Various Artists, “Hed Kandi Beach House 2008” (Ministry of Sound)
Soundtracks and scores:
“Hancock” (Varese)

Categories
People

May he continue to rest in peace!!

Maher and Shandling honor George Carlin at service
LOS ANGELES – He was the comedian who actually said the seven words you can never say on television, but close friends and family members remembered George Carlin as a man who, when he was off stage, had only a kind word for everyone he met.
At a private memorial service Sunday attended by some 150 people ó “That was as small as we could keep it,” chuckled Carlin’s daughter, Kelly Carlin McCall ó her father was memorialized by comedians Bill Maher, Garry Shandling and others as someone who had no enemies, in part because he was nice to everyone he spoke to.
“What everyone said tonight is if you spent time with my father, whether it was five seconds or five hours, he was kind, attentive, very connected to you, compassionate,” said Carlin’s daughter.
Among those who spoke at the service, which was closed to the public and news media, was Shandling, who told of being a teenage college student when he sought out Carlin nearly 40 years ago.
“My dad read his material and encouraged him to continue on, which was a life-changing moment in Gary’s life,” McCall told The Associated Press after the service.
Overall, Carlin’s daughter said, the service was a happy event, one presided over in part by her father himself, who spoke from a montage of video clips assembled from his 51-year career.
Carlin, who died June 22 of heart failure, recorded nearly two dozen albums, 14 HBO comedy specials, wrote three best-selling books and appeared in numerous movies and TV shows.
“It was a very, very light event, as he wanted it,” McCall said of the two-hour service. “He wanted a lot of laughter. I’d say 90 percent of it was laughing and just remembering what he brought to us in his funny way.”
Although his standup routines were often filled with four-letter words ó so many that early in his career Carlin was sometimes hauled off stage and taken to jail ó his dead-on ability to highlight the absurdities of everyday life, and do so in such comical voices and faces, made his humor come across as anything but harsh.
And although famous for four-letter words, Carlin, 71, did not always use them. He was also Mr. Conductor on the children’s show “Shining Time Station,” Fillmore the hippie van in the 2006 children’s movie “Cars,” and the guest host of the first “Saturday Night Live” episode ever broadcast. That 1975 show was replayed by NBC on Saturday night in his honor.
There also was more to Carlin than just the comedian, said McCall, and that too was reflected at her father’s funeral.
He loved music, and his service was attended by Kenny Rankin, who sang “Here’s That Rainy Day,” and Spanky McFarland of the 1960s pop group Spanky and Our Gang, who performed the song “Coming Home.”
Other speakers included Carlin’s older brother, Patrick, his partner, Sally Wade, and his former standup partner, Jack Burns. Carlin’s wife, Brenda Hosbrook Carlin, died in 1997.
Carlin and Burns had met in 1960, and although they worked as a comedy duo only briefly they remained lifelong friends.
In an earlier AP interview, Burns recalled Carlin calling him several times a year to remind him of such things as the anniversary of the day they met, the day they did their first show together and, in one less-than-joyful incident, the day they were jailed for armed robbery in Texas in a case of mistaken identity.
That’s just the sentimentalist he was, said McCall, who is Carlin’s only child.
“He went out of his way to make sure friends and family members, if they needed anything, he was there for them,” she said. “He was a complete man. He was more than just the seven words you can never say on television.”

Categories
Games

I want it now!!!!!

‘Rock Band 2’ to include new online modes, songs
LOS ANGELES – “Rock Band” is ready for an encore.
A sequel to the play-along music game that redefined the genre last year will be released first for the Xbox 360 in September, according to publisher MTV Games and developer Harmonix. “Rock Band 2” will feature a new variety of instruments, online modes and songs, and will allow players to import their previously purchased “Rock Band” tunes.
“With the original ‘Rock Band,’ the focus was on innovation,” Harmonix co-founder and CEO Alex Rigopulos told The Associated Press. “With ‘Rock Band 2,’ the focus is on perfection of the experience. We’ve had a year to listen to our fans and build out the scope, depth and polish of the experience, so it feels like a second-generation band game.”
MTV Games and Harmonix will debut “Rock Band 2” on Microsoft’s Xbox 360 in September then make the game available for Sony’s PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 2 as well as Nintendo’s Wii later in the year. The original “Rock Band” was simultaneously released on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 last November before later coming to the PlayStation 2 and Wii.
“Microsoft has been a great partner for ‘Rock Band,'” said Van Toffler, president of MTV Networks Music Group, which oversees the “Rock Band” franchise. “It’s just so easy to download the content using the Xbox 360 system. It’s evolved into a great marketing partnership as well. They’ll really blow it out for us.”
“Rock Band” allows up to four gamers to form a virtual band, thrashing and singing along to songs with friends online or in-person on various phony instruments. The second edition will feature a playlist of over 80 songs ó all master recordings ó which will include more female-fronted bands and artists who have never contributed tunes to a music game.
If you’ve already downloaded a song for the original “Rock Band” ó at about $1.99 per track, which can’t be transferred to an MP3 player ó it will immediately be loaded into your “Rock Band 2” song list without needing to be repurchased or re-downloaded. It’s the first time such retroactive compatibility has been introduced in a music game.
“It’s the No. 1 most-requested feature from our fans,” said Rigopulos.
All prior versions of “Rock Band” instruments, as well as many from the competing “Guitar Hero” franchise, will also be compatible with “Rock Band 2.” Harmonix will unleash a collection of new instrument-shaped controllers, including a sturdier drum kit and a Fender Stratocaster reproduction guitar lined with faux wood-grain buttons.
“For fans interested in hardware, the second-generation peripherals are an amazing step forward from the first-generation guitar and drums,” said Rigopulos of Harmonix, which created the first two “Guitar Hero” games. “The instruments make huge strides in both fit and finish as well as features and functions.”
Thus far, over 15 million songs of the over 200 available tracks have been downloaded from the “Rock Band” online music store since the game’s launch last November. The catalog includes songs from rock acts such as The Rolling Stones, Blondie, The Cars, Wolfmother, Queens of the Stone Age, Smashing Pumpkins, Sonic Youth and Jimmy Buffett.
MTV Games and Harmonix are releasing 12 “Rock Band” songs on July 15 from The Who ó ranging from “My Generation” to “Who Are You” ó that all utilize the band’s master recordings. The tracks will be available for $1.99 individually or $19.99 together. The special release coincides with the upcoming “VH1 Rock Honors” ceremony commemorating The Who.
“Their music really comes alive when you’re playing it,” said Rigopulos. “We were trying to release ‘Who’s Next’ in its entirety, but we were unable to locate all the masters. So in the face of that, Pete (Townshend) and Roger (Daltrey) helped curate this best-of soundtrack of everything we were able to find.”
The official announcement of “Rock Band 2” means the industry’s rhythm game rivalry will enter a three-way matchup this fall against Activision and RedOctane’s latest “Guitar Hero” title and Konami’s new-music-game-on-the-block “Rock Revolution,” which will use the Wii’s controllers to simulate air guitars and drums.
Playing music on plastic guitars has become a big business. “Guitar Hero III” has sold 2.5 million units while “Rock Band” has moved 1.3 million units. Both music games are in the top-10 moneymakers for 2008 so far, according to the most recent monthly video game sales data from NPD Group analyst Anita Frazier.
Rigopulos wouldn’t comment on how much “Rock Band 2” would cost. The original game bundled with all the instruments went for about $170 at launch. Rigopulos said MTV Games, Harmonix and distributor Electronic Arts were making every effort possible to provide several choices for consumers looking to gear up for “Rock Band 2.”
“Guitar Hero World Tour” ó the fourth iteration of the franchise that started the music-game trend ó will be released in October and will feature a “Rock Band”-like assemblage of peripheral instruments for the first time, as well as the ability make instrumental music, a feature Rigopulos said won’t be found on “Rock Band 2.”
“We really felt like we wanted to do it right,” said Rigopulos. “We’re taking a radically different approach to that problem. It’s something we wanted to take more time to do it right. It’s actually something we’re not focused on in ‘Rock Band 2.’ We’re really focused on other areas related to the music and bringing the community together.”
MTV Games and Harmonix plan to announce additional “Rock Band 2” details ó including the game’s playlist ó at the E3 Media and Business Summit in July. MTV executive Toffler hinted that “Rock Band 2” will be expanding upon idea of what it means to play online as well eventually broadening the musical genres of available downloadable content.
“I believe we’re going to see global online competitions where bands performing throughout the world will compete against each other,” said Toffler. “I’m personally excited to open up the genres of music to country, hip-hop and R&B. We’ve just scratched the surface, really.”

Categories
Movies

Let’s all go to the lobby, and get ourselves a snack!

‘WALL-E,’ ‘Wanted’ team up as $100 million duo
LOS ANGELES – A lonely little robot made millions of friends during the weekend ó and even outgunned Angelina Jolie.
“WALL-E,” the Pixar Animation tale of a robot toiling away on a long-abandoned Earth, debuted as the No. 1 movie with $62.5 million in ticket sales, with Jolie’s assassin thriller “Wanted” opening in second place with $51.1 million, according to studio estimates Sunday.
The two movies combined to keep Hollywood on a roll. The top 12 movies took in $179.2 million, up 22 percent from the same weekend last year, when Pixar’s “Ratouille” opened with $47 million.
It was the fifth straight weekend that revenues climbed. Revenues for the summer season that began May 2 are up 6 percent over last year’s record pace, according to box-office tracker Media By Numbers.
The sour economy and high gas prices may be helping to fuel Hollywood’s boom, said Paul Dergarabedian, president of Media By Numbers. Movies tend to thrive when times are tough because they are relatively cheap compared to sports events, concerts and other outings.
“Audiences are obviously gravitating toward the movies as their first choice for entertainment,” Dergarabedian said. “It doesn’t take that much gas to get to the local multiplex. That might have a little something to do with this, as well.”
The previous weekend’s No. 1 movie, the Warner Bros. comedy “Get Smart,” slipped to third place with $20 million, raising its total to $77.3 million.
“WALL-E” maintains the perfect track record of Pixar, the Walt Disney unit that has made nine films, all of them critical and commercial successes, including “Cars,” “Monsters, Inc.” and the “Toy Story” flicks. “Finding Nemo” and “The Incredibles” put up the biggest opening-weekend numbers among Pixar movies, both pulling in just over $70 million.
Set centuries in the future, “WALL-E” is the story of a rickety, walking trash compactor that humans left running after abandoning the over-polluted planet.
The movie overcame a dialogue challenge ó the two main robot characters barely speak, beyond each other’s names ó using wildly inventive visuals and sound effects to propel much of the story.
Like other Pixar films, “WALL-E” packed in family crowds, as well as adults without children.
“The real secret is they’re not children’s movies. They’re movies for everybody. Children absolutely adore them, but parents enjoy them on a different level,” said Mark Zoradi, president of Disney’s motion-picture group. “You can’t be nine-for-nine like Pixar is without that.”
The G-rated “WALL-E” was complemented by Jolie’s R-rated “Wanted,” which distributor Universal originally planned to release back in March. The studio decided the movie was too good to release at a slower moviegoing time and moved it to summer on a weekend when competition for a violent action tale would be light.
“We knew `WALL-E’ would be huge, but it’s not the same audience as `Wanted,'” said Nikki Rocco, head of distribution for Universal.
“Wanted” stars Jolie as a member of a secret society of assassins whose new recruit (James McAvoy) is trained to use his superhuman abilities to take out a rogue killer.
Here are the estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Media By Numbers LLC. Final figures will be released Monday.
1. “WALL-E,” $62.5 million.
2. “Wanted,” $51.1 million.
3. “Get Smart,” $20 million.
4. “Kung Fu Panda,” $11.7 million.
5. “The Incredible Hulk,” $9.2 million.
6. “The Love Guru,” $5.4 million.
7. “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull,” $5 million.
8. “The Happening,” $3.9 million.
9. “Sex and the City,” $3.8 million.
10. “You Don’t Mess With the Zohan,” $3.2 million.

Categories
The Couch Potato Report

O Canada, here are some films for thee!!

The Couch Potato Report – June 28th, 2008
This week The Couch Potato Report peels a few Canadian films, one about rails and ties, and My Name Is Juani, from Spain.
It is the pre-Canada Day edition of The Report, and the the Hot Potato this week comes from La Belle Province, it is the Quebec film CRUSING BAR or MEET MARKET, en anglais.
This film is a comedy, with some very funny scenes, about four very different men from very different lifestyles, who are all going out to try and find some companionship on a Saturday night.
The four men don’t know each other, and they don’t even interact in the movie, but they do all have a connection.
All four of them – the very shy nerd, a broken- hearted junkie, a snob yuppy, and a middle-aged married man – are all played by the same actor.
Michel CÙtÈ plays all four lead characters, and he gives all four a unique series of body movements and voices.
CRUISING BAR or MEET MARKET – en Anglais – was actually released in Canadian theatres in 1989, but it is only debuting on DVD now, and I am glad it is. It isn’t perfect, but it is very, very good and I easily recommend it…and the cheesy 80’s disco music it features.
Our next two films don’t feature one actor giving multiple performances, but they do both have the same guy playing one role.
That guy is Vancouver born Ryan Reynolds and the films are DEFINITELY MAYBE and CHAOS THEORY.
Did I like them…definitely…well, maybe…lets get to the facts…but first this clip.
In DEFINITELY MAYBE Reynolds is a man who tries to explain his impending divorce and past relationships to his 11-year-old daughter, after she pesters him relentlessly to do so.
Abigail Breslin from LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE is the daughter.
Rachel Weisz, Elizabeth Banks and Isla Fisher are the women who Reynolds has romanced and they, he, and Breslin are all pretty good in this film, and the film itself would like to be a cross between WHEN HARRY MET SALLY and THE PRINCESS BRIDE…but ultimately it comes up just a bit shy.
I liked it, and it has a really nice ending, but as a whole DEFINITELY MAYBE is a film that I would only say is definitely not bad.
I would also say that the other Ryan Reynolds film I have for you would like to be not bad, but it isn’t even worthy of that mild praise.
CHAOS THEORY isn’t awful, but it definitely is the lesser of these two films.
In this made-in Vancouver film, Reynolds is a man who has every day of his life planned out, but when he misses the morning ferry, his whole life changes in a way that could never have planned, let alone imagined.
After his planned out world falls apart, he becomes completely spontaneous as his life falls apart…and I wish I could tell you chaos reigns…the good type of chaos…but instead the film just becomes overly dramatic, and while there is some good stuff in CHAOS THEORY, there just isn’t enough for me to say very many good things about it.
So, if you liked Ryan Reynolds work in VAN WILDER, or the made in Saskatchewan film JUST FRIENDS, and you need to make a choice between CHAOS THEORY or DEFINITELY MAYBE…see the latter…or just close your eyes and pick…let chaos reign, baby!!!
MAMA’S BOY is this week’s next release, and it is the type of film that we have seen before…this one marks the third time in the past two years, in fact, that we have seen the story of an mid-twenties man who either whon’t move out of his Mother’s house, or can’t let her be happy with the man she has fallen for.
FAILURE TO LAUNCH came out in 2006 with Matthew McCoaughey…MR. WOODCOCK was last year’s entry, it starred Sean William Scott and Billy Bob Thornton, and this year we have MAMA’S BOY, with Jon Heder, Jeff Daniels and Diane Keaton.
Poor, poor Diane Keaton!
Jon Heder from NAPOLEON DYNAMITE plays a twenty-nine year-old slacker named Jeffery who lives with his mom.
His lifestyle is threatened when Mom and her self-help guru boyfriend fall in love.
MAMA’S BOY also stars Canadian born actress Sarah Chalk from SCRUBS, but even her presense, and the fact that the film co-stars the great Diane Keaton can’t save this mess.
At one point, Anna Ferris – who also stars in this film, an dthe previoulsy mentioned made-in-Saskatchewan movie JUST FRIENDS – calls the Jeffery character pathetic…and that is what he is. The lead actor in MAMA’S BOY is pathetic, and as a result the film is not worth your time, just like FAILURE TO LAUNCH and MR. WOODCOCK weren’t.
RAILS & TIES is our second to last release this week, and it is a very well written and acted movie, that marks the directorial debut of Allison Eastwood, daughter of Clint.
Kevin Bacon plays a train engineer who is at the controls during a deadly collision.
A young boy escapes the accident, and he, Bacon and Bacon’s terminally ill wife – played by Oscar winner Marcia Gay Harden – all form a unique bond.
RAILS & TIES is a very, very dramatic movie, but it is very worthy of your time.
And this week’s entry in the FOREIGN FILM FESTIVAL ON DVD is also worthy of your time!!
This week I’d like to tell you about the you, fresh and hip film MY NAME IS JUANI from Spain
In this film a small-town girl named Juani and her best friend leave to seek fame and fortune in the big city.
Once they arrive in Madrid – population 3.2 million – some of their dreams are fulfilled and others are dashed.
Through it all the young actresses and the filmmakers give us music, cars, gadgets, and unique on screen visuals to wash it all down with.
Unfortunately, the ending of MY NAME IS JUANI is extremey unsatisfying, but this is still a very good film, and it is the latest entry in The FOREIGN FILM FESTIVAL On DVD!!
The entertaining Spanish film MY NAME IS JUANI, the very dramatic, but very good RAILS & TIES, the useless MAMA’S BOY, Ryan Reynold’s latest two films – CHAOS THEORY and DEFINIETLY MAYBE and the Quebec movie CRUISING BAR or MEET MARKET – en Anglais – are all available now on DVD.
Coming up on the next Couch Potato Report
The Canadian made film DAKOTA about two friends who were once were inseparable; now they barely speak; the British film IN BRUGES; the FOREIGN FILM FESTIVAL ON DVD continues with GONE WITH THE WOMAN from Norway; and the 2 DVD set YANKEE STADIUM looks at BASEBALL’S CATHEDRAL from OPENING DAY 1923 TO Opening Day 2008.
I’m Dan Reynish. I’ll have more on those, and some other releases, in seven days.
For now, that’s this week’s COUCH POTATO REPORT.
Enjoy the movies and I’ll see you back here next time on The Couch!

Categories
Games

And I will buy them all!!!

Activision launches Aerosmith-only “Guitar Hero”
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Aerosmith fans can finally get their chance to step into the shoes of Steven Tyler and Joe Perry as video game developer Activision Inc released its Guitar Hero: Aerosmith game on Friday.
Dozens flocked to the Hard Rock restaurant in Times Square to see the legendary five-member rock band debut the game and try out the latest Guitar Hero addition.
Aerosmith guitarist Brad Whitford even brought his sons to take a look at the band’s creation.
The game features 30 of the band’s most notable hits such as “Love in an Elevator” and “Sweet Emotion.” It also includes songs from various artists Aerosmith performed and collaborated with over the years, including Run D.M.C.’s “Walk This Way” and “I Hate Myself for Loving You” by Joan Jett.
There is even a special guitar controller emblazoned with the band’s red-and-white logo for hard core fans.
The game and guitar controller bundle for Microsoft Corp’s Xbox 360, Sony Corp’s PlayStation3 and Nintendo Co Ltd’s Wii sells for $99.99, with an additional PlayStation2 version for $89.99. The game is also sold individually for each of the consoles and costs $59.99 and $49.99, respectively.
The Aerosmith game is the first Guitar Hero edition that focuses on an individual rock band. The previous three versions of the game featured various rock music genres that ranged from grunge, classic rock, metal, punk and ’80s hits.
“This is an experiment for us,” said Charles Huang, co-founder of Activision’s RedOctane unit, which oversees the Guitar Hero franchise. “There are certain artists that have so much great music like Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen … but we wanted to do something much bigger.”
The Santa Monica, California-based company said Aerosmith’s vast collection of rock hits and elite status in the music industry made the band the ideal choice for the new game.
“There’s only a handful of bands that have that longevity,” Huang said.
During the game’s creation, band members spent two weeks performing in a motion capture studio in order for their video game figures to move exactly as the group performs on stage.
Activision is set to come out with a Metallica Guitar Hero edition in 2009, but declined to specify what month the game will be released.
The company will also release Guitar Hero: World Tour during the Christmas season, which will include a drum set and microphone in addition to the guitar controller. This version will rival Activision’s biggest competitor “Rock Band,” produced by Viacom Inc’s MTV unit and Electronic Arts Inc.

Categories
Television

Now that is an interesting decision, and I can’t wait to see at least one scene between him and D’Onofrio!!

Mr. Big out, Goldblum in for `Criminal Intent’
LOS ANGELES – Mr. Big is out, and Mr. Goldblum is in.
Jeff Goldblum will be joining “Law & Order: Criminal Intent” while Chris Noth ó Mr. Big in the “Sex and the City” TV show and movie ó is leaving after three seasons, a series spokeswoman said Thursday.
“Criminal Intent,” part of the “Law & Order” franchise that includes the original series and “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit,” recently was picked up for a 16-episode eighth season by USA Network.
“Jeff’s presence will add a new dimension to an already successful show,” series creator Dick Wolf said.
Noth’s character, New York police Detective Mike Logan, was a member of the “Law & Order” family since the start, Wolf noted, adding, “We all wish him the best.”
Noth played Logan on the original NBC series from 1990 to ’95, in a “Law & Order” TV movie and then on “Criminal Intent” starting in 2005. The show’s seventh season airs Sundays on USA.
A call requesting comment from Noth was not immediately returned by his representative.
Goldblum recently starred in the short-lived NBC series “Raines” but is mostly known as a film actor with credits that include “Jurassic Park,” “The Lost World,” “Independence Day” and “The Fly.”
He shared an Academy Award nomination in 2005 for the live-action short film “Little Surprises.”
“Criminal Intent” originally aired on NBC. But when the network decided that last season’s schedule had room for only two of the shows a deal was struck to air “Criminal Intent” first on USA, then on NBC.
NBC and USA are corporate cousins within NBC Universal, and “Criminal Intent” reruns on USA already had proved among its most popular programming.
“Criminal Intent,” which looks at cases from both the perspective of police and lawbreakers, stars Vincent D’Onofrio, Kathryn Erbe and Eric Bogosian.

Categories
Movies

Cool!!!

‘Dark Knight’ credits pay tribute to Ledger
LOS ANGELES (AP) ó Heath Ledger is getting a fond tribute from his collaborators on “The Dark Knight.” The end credits of the “Batman Begins” sequel include a farewell note to Ledger, who died in January from an accidental overdose of prescription drugs; and to special-effects technician Conway Wickliffe, who was killed last September in a stunt-car accident.
“In memory of our friends Heath Ledger & Conway Wickliffe,” reads the tribute included in the credits, which went up Thursday on the Warner Bros. publicity Web site.
Ledger plays the villainous Joker in “The Dark Knight,” who begins a reign of terror on Gotham City that pits him against conflicted hero Batman (Christian Bale).
Arriving in theaters July 18, the movie reteams Bale with director Christopher Nolan and returning co-stars Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman and Gary Oldman. Joining the cast are Aaron Eckhart and Maggie Gyllenhaal.
Beginning months before Ledger’s death, his frenetic performance and demented-clown makeup have been a cornerstone of the marketing campaign for the film.
“I needed a phenomenal actor, but he also had to be someone unafraid of taking on such an iconic role,” Nolan says in the production notes for “The Dark Knight.” “Heath created something entirely original. It’s stunning, it’s captivating. … It’s going to blow people away.”