A fun picture from @ClassicPics of a young Steven Spielberg on the set of "Jaws" in 1974...
The fake shark whose mouth Spielberg is climbing into was nicknamed "Bruce."
When I was 10, and the movie came out, my friends and I all tried to impress one another by crowing about how fake the shark looked. Of course, in the movie theater, it didn't look fake at all. I avoided swimming in the ocean for the next five years. And now, 38 years later, I still think about getting eaten every time I go in the water.
The final show of CNN's Piers Morgan Live aired on Friday, ending with the host giving a final plea for gun control in the United States.
"Now it's down to you," Morgan said. "It's your country; these are your gun laws. And the senseless slaughter will only end when enough Americans stand together and cry: Enough!"
While much of the final show focused on the missing Malaysia Airliner, Morgan spent his last few minutes focusing on guns in America — a topic he had often ranted against in the past. His viewpoint angered many Americans, most notably resulting in a White House petition to have the British-born anchor deported.
Morgan's ratings cratered in recent months and the show's planned end was announced back in February. While he believed his anti-gun stance was at least partially to blame, even Larry King's (who he took over for) ratings tanked toward the end of his tenure, The Guardian notes.
Here are his full remarks:
"I assumed that after 70 people were shot in a movie theater, and then, just a few months later, 20 first-graders were murdered with an assault rifle in an elementary school, the absurd gun laws in this country would change. But nothing has happened.
The gun lobby in America, led by the NRA, has bullied this nation's politicians into cowardly, supine silence. Even when 20 young children are blown away in their classrooms.This is a shameful situation that has made me very angry. So angry, in fact, that some people have criticized me for being too loud, opinionated, even rude when I have debated the issue of guns. But I make no apologies for that."
As Sir Winston Churchill said: 'If you have an important point to make, don't try to be subtle or clever. Use a pile driver. Hit the point once. Then come back and hit it again. Then hit it a third time – a tremendous whack.'
My point is simple: More guns doesn't mean less crime, as the NRA repeatedly says. It means more gun violence, death and profits for the gun manufacturers. And to those who claim my gun control campaigning has been "anti-American," the reverse is true. I am so pro-American that I want more of you to stay alive. But I've made my point. I've given it a tremendous whack. Now it's down to you. It's your country; these are your gun laws. And the senseless slaughter will only end when enough Americans stand together and cry: Enough!"
The show's time slot will be filled by Jake Tapper, Don Lemon, and others until a replacement is named, USA Today reports.
During last night's cold open, Obama, with the help of a new social media manager, did ridiculous stunts to appeal to a younger generation of potential Obamacare users. Like wearing a "Pharrell hat" while smoking an e-cigarette.
He took a selfie with social media stars Kim Kardashian, Harry Styles, and Batkid.
The president danced for a vine video with Pope Francis.
And even went so far as to kiss Justin Bieber. All in the name of Obamacare.
A long time ago on a film set far, far away, two directors made a friendly bet about a small space-fantasy film called "Star Wars."
Steven Spielberg would go on to win the bet and take millions of dollars from George Lucas over time.
Here's how the out-of-this-world wager came to be.
The Troubles Of "The Star Wars"
In the mid-1970s, science-fiction films weren't very popular.
1968's "2001: A Space Odyssey" led the way for the genre but made just $56 million at the box office. So when a young director named George Lucas was trying to sell a script called "The Star Wars," based on "Flash Gordon" space serials, not many studios were eager to make it.
It wasn't until Lucas took his script to 20th Century Fox that the film finally received backing — but even then it was more because of the success of Lucas' previous film, "American Graffiti."
The challenges didn't stop there. A delayed, over-budget production caused the troubled director to visit a friend shooting his own sci-fi film in Mobile, Ala.
According to an interview with Spielberg for Turner Classics Movies, Lucas came to the set of "Close Encounters" out of sorts after problems with his passion project. Needing to recharge, Lucas spent a couple of days on set.
"George came back from 'Star Wars' a nervous wreck," Spielberg said. "He didn’t feel 'Star Wars' came up to the vision he initially had. He felt he had just made this little kids' movie."
After a few days, Lucas realized something else: Spielberg's "Close Encounters" was going to be so much more successful than "Star Wars." So much more that he felt like making a bet with Spielberg.
Spielberg would later say:
"He said, 'Oh my God, your movie is going to be so much more successful than 'Star Wars'! This is gonna be the biggest hit of all time. I can't believe this set. I can't believe what you're getting, and oh my goodness.' He said, 'All right, I'll tell you what. I'll trade some points with you. You want to trade some points? I'll give you 2.5% of 'Star Wars' if you give me 2.5% of 'Close Encounters.' So I said, 'Sure, I'll gamble with that. Great.'"
Released May 25, 1977, on a budget of $11 million, "Star Wars" — later retitled "Star Wars, Episode IV: A New Hope" — went on to make $460 million in the U.S. alone.
Adjusted for inflation, the film has made $1.48 billion at the box office, making it the second-biggest box-office hit of all time — only behind "Gone With The Wind."
By our calculations, this means Spielberg's 2.5% could have made him nearly $40 million.
"'Close Encounters' was just a meager success story. 'Star Wars' was a phenomenon," Spielberg said a few years ago. "Of course I was the happy beneficiary of a couple of net points from that movie, which I am still seeing money on today."
Sequels "The Empire Strikes Back" and "Return of the Jedi" would also go on to be great successes leading to prequels, rereleases, and merchandising, making the "Star Wars" franchise one of the biggest in Hollywood, reportedly worth $30 billion and growing.
NOW WATCH: Neil deGrasse Tyson Tells Us Why 'Star Trek' Is So Much Better Than 'Star Wars'
Louis C.K. hosted "Saturday Night Live" this weekend and opened the show by doing a nearly nine-minute stand-up set.
The comedian joked about death and where we go when we die, God, his daughters, how “men are worse than women,” wife-beater tank tops, and much more. Watch below.
Neil deGrasse Tyson is the world's most famous astrophysicist, and he is a HUGE Trekkie.
The host of StarTalk Radio is a fan of science fiction and futuristic movies, and of Star Trek in particular.
Watch Neil deGrasse Tyson talk about Star Wars, Star Trek, and whether he's more of a Captain Kirk or Captain Picard guy.
StarTalk Radio is a podcast and radio program hosted by astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson, where comic co-hosts, guest celebrities and scientists discuss astronomy, physics, and everything else about life in the universe. Follow StarTalk Radio on Twitter, and watch StarTalk Radio "Behind the Scenes" on YouTube.
Produced by Will Wei, Robert Libetti, and Kamelia Angelova. Originally published in May 2013.
This is the third straight bomb for Schwarzenegger at theaters in the U.S. after last year's "Escape Plan" and "The Last Stand" debuted to $9.9 million and $6.2 million respectively.
"Escape Plan" went on to make $137 million worldwide.
"Sabotage" cost an estimated $35 million to make and debuted in 2,486 theaters.
In comparison, Wes Anderson's film "The Grand Budapest Hotel," which had a wide release in 977 theaters this weekend, made $8.8 million.
After an intense negotiation with ABC News, Good Morning America news anchor Josh Elliott is leaving the network for NBC Sports.
ABC News wasted no time in announcing his replacement: Amy Robach, who has been part of the GMAteam for some time, including filling in for Robin Roberts at various moments when she was out for medical reasons.
Elliott, who had been making about $1.2 million salary at GMA, turned down an offer to stay with the show for $4-$5 million.
Per the terms of Elliott’s exit, he cannot appear on NBC’s The Today Show for six months according to people familiar with the situation.
Elliott is the second member of the ensemble team that put GMA in first place in the morning show ratings race, and to depart for an NBCUniversal property.
In December, NBC-U successfully poached longtime GMA weatherman Sam Champion who is now a bigwig at their Weather Channel. In much the same way they did today, ABC announced Champion’s replacement, Ginger Zee, minutes after it was reported that he was leaving for The Weather Channel. In the wake of Champion’s departure, GMA has scored some of its highest ratings ever.
The GMA negotiations have been going on for a long time. As a matter of coincidence, four out of the five players on GMA had their contract renewals come up at approximately the same time. But has been ABC News’ practice under its president Ben Sherwood (who was recently named co-chairman of Disney Media Networks and president, Disney/ABC Television Group, replacing Anne Sweeney), the network always had a game plan in place for moving on.
GMA isn’t done negotiating yet. GMA’s George Stephanopoulos reportedly is paid about $6 million a year; his contract runs through this calendar year.
Sherwood sent the following note to the ABC News division today about the transition:
I want to share some news about GMA.
I’m excited to let you know that we have promoted Amy Robach to News Anchor onGood Morning America effective immediately. Amy is a world class anchor and correspondent who is beloved by our morning audience and all who know her.
Amy has become a familiar face on GMA, filling in for Robin Roberts for many of the 174 days that Robin spent recovering from her bone marrow transplant. Amy brought us moving interviews with the families of the Newtown shooting victims and she delivered a riveting report from inside the world of polygamist leader Warren Jeffs. Showing her lighter side, Amy covered the birth of Prince George from London and brought us inside Downton Abbey.
Amy began her career as a general assignment reporter in South Carolina and moved on to become a morning anchor in Washington DC where she covered 9/11 from the Pentagon. Amy is a gifted interviewer, sitting down with world leaders including Barack Obama, John McCain, Nancy Pelosi, Speaker Newt Gingrich, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Prince Harry. She spent five years at NBC where she was an anchor at MSNBC and co-host of Weekend Today.
We always knew that Amy was special and we have all been especially inspired to watch her battle breast cancer with grace and determination. Indeed, she thrilled us with two weeks of memorable dispatches from Sochi anchoring our Olympic coverage — all between chemo treatments. Amy will be a fierce and formidable full-time addition to our GMA team.
At the same time, Josh Elliott let us know today that he is going to NBC Sports.
As many of you know, we have been negotiating with Josh these past several months. In good faith, we worked hard to close a significant gap between our generous offer and his expectations. In the end, Josh felt he deserved a different deal and so he chose a new path.
I want to thank Josh for his many contributions to GMA and ABC News. Later in the week, we will bid him farewell.
With Robin, George, Lara, Ginger and Amy, GMA‘s best days are ahead. Just this month the broadcast enjoyed its biggest audience ever. In the days ahead, there will be more good news on the show, so stay tuned. As we make this transition, we must keep our attention laser-focused on the most important goal – serving our loyal viewers each and every day with a big picture understanding of the world.
Please join me in congratulating Amy on her well-earned promotion. And let’s bid goodbye to Josh with gratitude and good wishes.
Since its November release, the film has made $1.07 billion worldwide. Previously, Disney and Pixar's "Toy Story 3" held the record with $1.06 billion at theaters.
That figure made Disney's 53d animated picture one of the highest-grossing movies at the box office ever edging out "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest."
Here's a look at the highest-grossing movies ever at theaters via BoxOfficeMojo:
Movie
Release
Worldwide
Studio
1. "Avatar"*
2009
$2.8 billion
Fox
2. "Titanic"*
1997
$2.2 billion
Paramount
3. "The Avengers"
2012
$1.5 billion
Disney
4. "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part II"
2011
$1.3 billion
Warner Bros.
5. "Iron Man 3"
2013
$1.2 billion
Disney
6. "Transformers: Dark of the Moon"
2011
$1.123 billion
Paramount
7. "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King"*
2003
$1.12 billion
Warner Bros.
8. "Skyfall"
2012
$1.11 billion
Sony Pictures/MGM
9. "The Dark Knight Rises"
2012
$1.08 billion
Warner Bros.
10. "Frozen"
2013
$1.07 billion
Disney
*Indicates films that were re-released in theaters.
A new Michael Jackson album titled "Xscape" will be released in May, reports Billboard.
Epic Records and Michael Jackson's estate made the announcement.
It will be the second posthumous album after the singer's death in 2009.
In 2010, Sony Corp. made a deal worth up to $250 million with Michael Jackson's estate to release multiple posthumous albums of unreleased and old songs until at least 2017, according to the Wall Street Journal.
"Michael" (2010) was the first posthumous collection of unreleased songs.
The new album will contain eight unreleased tracks including title song "Xscape" which was written and produced by Jackson and Rodney Jerkins.
The song was originally recorded for Jackson's "Invincible" album.
Jerkins, along with producers Stargate, Jerome "Jroc" Harmon, and John McClain collaborated to contemporize tracks.
"Xscape" will be released May 13, but will be available for pre-order April 1.
After eight years as host of late-night talk show "Chelsea Lately" on E!, Chelsea Handler will be leaving the network when her contract is up at the end of the year.
Handler's manager, Irving Azoff, confirms to The Hollywood Reporter, "Chelsea intends to leave when her contract expires. She hired me to figure out her life after E! We have at least seven suitors and many ideas.”
He adds that Handler may even leave television and head to radio or another digital service.
E! was less forthcoming in their statement, saying, "Chelsea has nine months left on her contract and E! will not comment on the future of Chelsea Lately at this time."
But the exit shouldn't come as a shock to the network. While on Howard Stern's radio show a few weeks ago, Handler called E! "a sad, sad place to live,” adding, “They don’t know what they’re doing. They have no ideas. It’s a failure.”
Handler, whose new book "Uganda be Kidding Me" is currently No. 1 on the New York Times best-seller list, is also in the midst of a lucrative 30-market stand-up tour and feels she is on top of her game.
The only thing the "Chelsea Lately" host has to lose by leaving E! is her massive paycheck from the late night show. “I don’t know if anybody’s going to pay her as much as E!,” one source told THR.
Handler reportedly makes $9 million a year while delivering average viewership of 572,000 a night — a decline in ratings from two years ago.
While ad revenue from the show has also has dropped more than 15% to $134.5 million, Azoff insists "Chelsea Lately" has consistently built on its lead-in and that this year, her show is averaging a 67% increase in viewers over the lead-in.
Handler said on Stern’s show that she may want to change mediums to a forum like Netflix, which could be a good move considering her no holds barred sense of humor.
NOW WATCH: The Truth About 'The Most Interesting Man In The World'
Saturday Night Live lampooned Jos. A. Bank this weekend in a skit suggesting that its deeply discounted suits could be a cheap alternative to paper towels.
"I spend a lot of my time cleaning up messes, so I need something that's absorbent and affordable," SNL's Vanessa Bayer says, playing a suburban mom in a mock commercial. "So what do I reach for? A suit from Jos. A. Bank. With their innovative buy-one-get-three-free pricing, a suit from Jos. A. Bank is effectively cheaper than paper towels."
The menswear brand is well known for its frequent "buy one, get two free" promotions. It's able to offer so many sales by using higher initial markups to give the illusion of deep discounts.
"With four suits for the price of a modest dinner, I can feel good about throwing them away when I'm done," Bayer says in the skit.
After using the suits to soak up bacon grease and clean up pet stains, she tosses a couple into her fireplace to use them for kindling.
"It's so flammable!" she exclaims, before lighting the suits on fire.
Watch the SNL skit:
NOW WATCH: 4 Essential Suits Every Man Needs In His Closet
The Israeli government has banned a new commercial starring model Bar Refaeli from airing until after 10 p.m.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Israeli government's TV and radio regulatory authority ruled that the ad, in which a puppet fantasizes about spending a day with Refaeli, had "too many sexual insinuations."
The puppet in question is a character named Red Orbach, a member of the fictional Israeli/American rock group Red Band. In the ad for clothing company Hoodies, Orbach wakes up next to the Sports Illustrated cover girl and wonders how things could possibly get better.
Suddenly, two more Refaelis appear, and the commercial becomes a rock-infused, safe-for-work montage of Orbach spending the day with Refaeli and her clones. The Refaelis wash Orbach's car, take him to the spa, and challenge him to a steamy game of high-stakes poker.
Political comedy "Alpha House," starring John Goodman, will be back for a second season.
New series include shows from "X Files" and "The Wires" creators, as well as from Roman Coppola and Jason Schwartzman.
Check out the new shows below. Will you watch?
1. “The After”–from Chris Carter, the legendary creator of “The X-Files” — follows eight strangers who are thrown together by mysterious forces and must help each other survive in a violent world that defies explanation. Aldis Hodge, Andrew Howard, Arielle Kebbel, Jamie Kennedy, Sharon Lawrence, Jaina Lee Ortiz, Adrian Pasdar and Louise Monot star.
2. “Bosch,” based on Michael Connelly's best-selling book series about a relentless LAPD homicide detective, will be co-written by Connelly and Overmyer. It features Titus Welliver, Annie Wersching, and Jamie Hector. Henrik Bastin and Fabrik Entertainment (“The Killing”) are producing.
3. “Mozart in the Jungle” is a half hour comedic drama about sex, drugs and classical music. The cast includes Gael Garcia Bernal, Saffron Burrows, Lola Kirke, Malcom McDowell, Bernadette Peters and Peter Vack. The series will be written by Oscar-nominee Roman Coppola, as well as Jason Schwartzman, Tony-nominated writer and director Alex Timbers, and Oscar-nominee Paul Weitz.
4. “Transparent,” a dramedy about a Los Angeles family with serious boundary issues, comes from Jill Soloway and stars Jeffrey Tambor, Judith Light, Gaby Hoffmann, Amy Landecker and Jay Duplass. It is an exploration of sex, gender and family that begins when a dramatic admission causes everyone's secrets to spill out.
5. “Gortimer Gibbon's Life on Normal Street” is a live-action adventure show created by David Anaxagoras, a pre-school teacher and first-time writer who was discovered through Amazon Studios’ open-door submission process. The series is a coming-of-age tale that centers around Gortimer, his two best friends Ranger and Mel, and their exploits on Normal Street–an ordinary suburban neighborhood that has a hint of something magical just beneath the surface.
6. “Wishenpoof!” is written by Angela Santomero, creator of “Blue's Clues,” “Creative Galaxy,” and the Emmy-nominated literacy series, “Super Why!” It is an animated series that revolves around Bianca, who has “wish magic,” which means if she wishes to play under the sea then–Wishenpoof!–she's a mermaid, swimming around with the sea horses. Bianca uses her wish magic to help others and learns to solve life's problems in her own creative way because with magic, or without, we all have the power to make good choices.
BONUS: This summer, Amazon will premiere its first three kids series "Creative Galaxy," "Tumble Leaf" and "Annedroids" exclusively on Prime Instant Video. Each show will focus on important skills for children–science, arts and critical thinking–and will foster creativity by promoting learning through play.
NOW WATCH: We Finally Figured Out How To Pay Less For Cable TV
Sunday night delivered one of the most action-packed episodes of "The Walking Dead" we've seen in a while.
If you tuned in for the season 4 finale and are already missing the hit show, AMC released a bunch of behind-the-scenes photos from the episode.
We've compiled images from the second half of season 4 to hold you over until season 5 comes to TV later this year.
Here's how Rick (Andrew Lincoln) looked in the opening scene of Sunday night's finale.
Here he is looking radically different while getting bloodied up for the shoot.
This may be how we saw Rick and Daryl (Norman Reedus) on screen ...
... but this is how it looked from the camera's point of view.
It's not anywhere near as grim or glum on set as it often is on the show. Here's Lincoln with Reedus (Daryl) and Chandler Riggs (Carl).
... and Daryl with co-star Emily Kinney who plays Beth.
Here's Riggs trading in his weapon for control of the camera.
Showrunner Scott Gimple revealed during "The Walking Dead" aftershow "Talking Dead" that Scott Wilson (who played Hershel) returned on set *spoiler*(after being killed earlier this season)*spoiler* to film the final scenes for season 4 in front of the prison.
The entire cast and crew were really happy to see him again.
The cast likes to take a lot of silly photos together. Here are Alanna Masterson (Tara), Lauren Cohan (Maggie), and Sonequa Martin-Green (Sasha) capturing a set selfie.
Greg Nicotero is the make-up artist responsible for all the awesome looking zombies (walkers) on the show.
Here he is carrying one of the props around earlier this season.
Remember this scene where Carl was eating pudding on a roof?
Here he is with his double.
We've watched the finale twice, and though we remember Rick, Michonne, Daryl, and Carl running past these piles of bones, we can't recall this scene actually occurring. Is this a hint at what's to come in season 5?
The battle between the production company behind the Netflix original series "House of Cards" and the state of Maryland finally came to a head last week, when Maryland's House of Delegates pulled a move that would make Frank Underwood proud.
It began late last month when Charlie Goldstein, the senior vice president of Media Rights Capital, sent a letter to Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley, threatening to leave the state if the show was not provided with millions of dollars more in tax credits for which it believes it should qualify.
In the letter, Goldstein wrote that the company would "break down [their] stage, sets and offices and set up in another state."
However, one Maryland delegate came up with a drastic plan to keep that from happening. Delegate Bill Frick introduced an amendment to a budget bill that would allow Maryland to seize the production company's property under eminent domain in the event it leaves the state.
Frick said the move was inspired by the style of politics depicted on "House of Cards" and by the show's ruthless protagonist, Frank Underwood, who is played by Kevin Spacey. He told Business Insider, he thought, "How would Frank Underwood respond?" Frick said his eminent domain plan was the "most dramatic" thing he could think of to counter MRC's threat.
Frick's amendment does not specifically target the show in its language, but "House of Cards" would be the only production to which it would apply. The amendment would only permit the state to use eminent domain powers to buy or condemn property owned by a film company that received more than $10 million in tax credits if it leaves the state. According to The Washington Post, "House of Cards" has been given $26.6 million in tax credits, which would make it the only show filmed in Maryland that would qualify.
For now, the future of Frick's amendment is unclear. Though the House of Delegates approved Frick's amendment by voice vote, Maryland's Senate doesn't seem to be on the same page. In fact, the Senate recently voted 45-1 to increase the tax credits available to production companies to $18.5 million annually. The House's Ways and Means Committee is scheduled to hold a hearing on that provision this Wednesday.
For his part, Frick said his objective is simply to keep "House of Cards" in Maryland — at a minimal cost to taxpayers.
"Some people have told me it's a 'gangster move,'" Frick told Business Insider. "I don't know about that. But I think it was definitely a bit of hardball" to an original threat he said was done in "extremely bad faith."
During last week's season finale, the Rich Kids alerted viewers to abandon their Facebook accounts because the social media site is dead. Especially when it comes to status and relationship updates.
"Nowadays, posting a photo with someone you're dating on Instagram is basically replacing the old Facebook status update of 'In a relationship,'" show star Morgan Stewart declared.
Her pal Dorothy Wang questioned, "Who actually changes their status on Facebook?"
"There's like dust on my Facebook," added Morgan. "I haven't changed my Facebook in that long."
But there is one photo-sharing app the girls keep up to date — Instagram, obviously.
The reality stars, who both have over 300,000 Instagram followers, offered some helpful hints for maintaining a classy Instagram account:
DO: Make it funny. "When you hashtag something, it changes a regular word into a thing and it makes it funny," explains Dorothy. "There should definitely be a funny element. Do two or three hashtages at most."
DO: Use repeat hashtags. "I use #Fabuluxe, #Funemployed, #HiMom, and #ThanksDad," says Dorothy.
DON'T: "Don't use too many hashtags," advises Morgan. "When you hashtag the date, you name, your middle name, your last name, your brother, whatever the f--- is going on in the photo, you don't need to hashtag #Tree or #Driving, we know what's going on, we see it."
DON'T: "Hashtag your own name. If someone hashtags their own name, we unfollow them."
Let's see if the girls followed their own advice, shall we?
Insta-offenders!
That is way more than "two or three hashtags at most," Dorothy.
No "funny caption" or hashtags? Not okay Morgan, especially when wearing sheer pants.
It's okay girls, we'll still watch next season.
If you still trust them, watch Dorothy and Morgan offer more Instagram tips below:
The cast of "How I Met Your Mother" appeared on "Inside the Actors Studio" Thursday to reminisce about the CBS' series nine seasons.
During the episode, host James Lipton asked each of the show's five main actors — Josh Radnor, Cobie Smulders, Neil Patrick Harris, Alyson Hannigan, and Jason Segel — to choose their favorite scenes from the show.
Harris’ favorite moment was when he broke out in song and dance to “Nothing Suits Me Like a Suit” on the series’ 100th episode after a girl asked him to ditch his suits.
In an episode that counted down the moment until fans heard the “bad news,” Hannigan recalled the moment Lily told her husband Marshall his father passed away after.
Early in the episode, Marshall and Ted make Robin feel awful by singing a song — “Bang, Bang, Bangity Bang” — about how many women Barney (her ex at the time) had been seeing. At the episode’s end, after Robin goes on a date and has an awesome time, everyone except Barney joins in on singing the song.
Click here to follow Business Insider on Pinterest >
