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Dr. Dre Cashes In On Apple Winnings, Pays $40 Million For Tom Brady And Gisele's Mansion

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dre house

Dr. Dre has purchased the Brentwood, California mansion belonging to Tom Brady and Gisele Bundchen. According to the Los Angeles Times, the Beats co-founder spent $40 million on the four-acre estate.

The five-bedroom home was originally listed for $50 million. Brady and Bundchen purchased the property in 2009 and built the 14,000-square-foot mansion from scratch. 

Highlights include a moat, sweeping terraces, and an infinity pool with views of the Pacific Ocean.

Apple announced late last month that it would buy Dr. Dre's company, Beats Electronics, for $3 billion. He's worth a reported $800 million after the deal. 

While news of Dre buying the mansion broke before the Apple-Beats deal became official, we can't help but think the new pad was a celebratory purchase. 

Click here to see more photos of the mansion.

SEE ALSO: The Winklevoss Twins May Have Bought This $14.5 Million Penthouse In Soho

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The Internet Watched Other Gamers Play For 2.4 Billion Hours Last Year

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mlg huge event

A new study says that last year, people watched other people playing video games for 2.4 billion hours, all without picking up a controller.

Market research firm IHS says electronic sports almost doubled its spectating time from the year before, and by 2018 it will almost triple again to 6.6 billion hours.

If you lived to age 80, it would take more than 3,400 lifetimes to see 2.4 billion hours.

IHS reports that a huge part of the surge in viewership comes from online services like Twitch that allow gamers to watch other players destroy the competition. In fact, in 2013 more people streamed e-sports online than television, the research firm reports. 

The recent extreme interest in e-sports has allowed some pro gamers to rake in some major Mario coin. As for the whole industry, IHS projects to rake in as much as $300 million per year after 2018.

(Via Washington Post)

SEE ALSO: 15 of the highest-paid professional video gamers in the world

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The Fabulous Life Of Dr. Dre, Hip-Hop's Richest Man

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dr. dre and snoop dogg perform at coachella 2012

When Apple announced its acquisition of Beats Electronics for $3 billion, rapper Dr. Dre became hip-hop's wealthiest artist. 

Dre is now worth about $800 million after the deal.

Dre also just recently bought a $40 million mansion in Los Angeles

News of Dre buying his new $40 million mansion broke before the deal became official, but we can't help but think the new digs were a bit of pre-celebration

 

Dr. Dre may be his rap name, but his real name is Andre Romelle Young.



Dre was born in Compton, California. He first made it big with hip-hop group N.W.A. in the 1980s.



N.W.A. consisted of Dr. Dre, Eazy-E, Ice Cube, DJ Yella, MC Ren, the Arabian Prince, and the D.O.C. Their second album, "Straight Outta Compton," marked the beginning of "gangsta rap."



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Scarlett Johansson's 'Lucy’ Contains A Darker Version Of The Sexy Opening From ‘Lost In Translation'

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Scarlett Johansson's breakout adult role was 2003's "Lost In Translation," which opens with a long shot of the then-18-year-old actress's butt in pink panties as she lies on her side.

scarlett johansson lost in translation opening shotThe image is more than just sexy. As analyzed by Dave Ehrlich at Reverse Shot:

Filmmakers have used them to a wide variety of ends, most often to tease, tempt, or titillate, but [director] Sofia Coppola uses Scarlett Johansson’s as a cry for help. ...

We meet her ass before we know her name (it’s Charlotte) or even the film’s title; before we learn that she’s a 22-year-old Yale grad (philosophy major) who’s traveled as far away from her Los Angeles home as this planet will let her, accompanying her photographer husband on his latest assignment because she doesn’t know what else to do; before we know that she’ll soon be changed by a deep but sexless romance with fading film star Bob Harris (Bill Murray). The pale pink of her underwear isn’t random, but rather the last vestige of a world she understood, a girlhood where things made sense and dreams didn’t necessarily have to come true in order to invigorate. 

After the film establishes she is at a hotel in Tokyo, there is a shot of her sitting pants-less looking over the city.

scarlett johansson lost in translation cityGiven the iconic status of this opening, it must be more than coincidence that the trailer for Johansson's science fiction action flick, "Lucy," opens with a shot of the actress lying in lingerie on a hotel bed in Taipei, Taiwan. But director Luc Besson's version is much darker.

Johansson, 28 in this film, is dressed in a sexy black bra and whatever is under the sheet at her waist. She also has a bandage wrapped around her stomach and appears in a terrified daze. "What did you do to my stomach," she asks in voiceover. And then she is dragged by Asian men in suits into an elevator, and there is a shot of her asking, "What's going on?"

lucy scarlett johansson openingBeyond this clever reference, the rest of the film, which comes out August 8, looks exciting and shows potential to be a sleeper hit in the face of established action franchises. Here's the full trailer:

SEE ALSO: 15 movies you should see this summer

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Why 'X-Men: Days Of Future Past' Changed A Pivotal Storyline From The Comics

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Wolverine, time travelWarning: Minor spoilers ahead!

"X-Men: Days of Future Past" is killing it at the box office.

The movie is now the highest-grossing "X-Men" movie to date

While the film's performing well at theaters, it's also receiving one big complaint from fans.

Based on the popular 1981 comic of the same name, the sequel sends Wolverine (Hugh Jackman) back in time to save the X-Men, and all of humanity, from a group of robot sentinels.

However, in the original comic's storyline it was Kitty Pryde (played by Ellen Page) who was sent back to change the future instead of Wolverine.

Pryde's consciousness is sent back thanks to a telekinetic mutant named Rachel Summers. It helped that Pryde's power is the ability to pass through objects, and in this scenario space and time. 

xmen Days of future past kitty power

"Days of Future Past" had a huge impact on the comic world — it's been considered one of the most influential storylines ever written— but its biggest impact may have been on the character of Kitty Pryde herself.

The story was one of the character's first big adventures, and helped make Pryde a fan favorite.

In the movie, Pryde is shown to have the telekinetic powers of Summers and sends Wolverine back in time. Many saw this as a nod to Pryde time travelling in the comic.

This is why so many X-Men fans were disappointed with the film's switch (even Jon Stewart questioned the choice).

Why send Wolverine back in time instead of Pryde?

The film's screenwriter Simon Kinberg claims the reasoning was about age. 

“The biggest place we diverged from the original books in who gets sent back in time," Kinberg told Empire. "We wanted someone’s consciousness sent back in time instead of their bodies, and if you send Ellen Page’s consciousness back... she’s negative-20 years old, so immediately we realized it wasn’t going to the pre-ghost of Ellen Page." 

Kinberg says production went through other X-men to send back, but ultimately landed on the series' most popular character, Wolverine (Hugh Jackman).Wolverine, Hugh Jackman, muscles, Days of future past“Somewhere in that process we realized we had a character that doesn’t age and happens to be the most popular character in the movie franchise," Kinberg added. "It then became Wolverine who was sent back in time.”

However, the big switcheroo may be more easily explained by each actor's popularity.

As Kinberg noted, Wolverine is the most recognizable X-Men to audiences. Jackman not only appeared in every single "X-Men" film to date since 2000, including two spin-offmovies of his own, but he has also become a huge star in his own right in the past 14 years.

Jackman has gone on to conquer Broadway, host the Academy Awards, and also starred in Oscar-nominated "Les Miserables" along with last year's hit mystery thriller "Prisoners."

Meanwhile, Page appeared in two "X-Men" movies in a supporting role. The actress is best known for roles in "Juno" and "Inception," the latter of which was her last big hit in 2010.

Her movies have made a collective $1.7 billion worldwide (thanks to a big bump from "Inception"). Jackman's movies? $5.1 billion.

The Mary Sue suggested Pryde's lack of popularity was a fault of the writers.

"Falling back on Wolverine yet again is a mixture of kowtowing to audience familiarity and plain old writing laziness touched with sexism."

It's hard to disagree with that argument, but regardless of the reasoning many fans still found the change disappointing. 

MORE X-MEN: Why 'X-Men: Days Of Future Past' Changed The Iconic Look Of The Mutant-Hunting Sentinels

AND: Here's what happens in Anna Paquin's deleted "X-Men: Days of Future Past" scene

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Here Are The Happiest, Saddest, Most Danceable And Most Unusual Summer Songs Of All Time

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BI's Joe Weisenthal believes 2014 lacks a clear-cut Song of the Summer, something he says is bad for music lovers but great for the economy.

If anyone wants to make a late-stage attempt, they could start by consulting the following findings from Spotify about what goes into a killer summer track.

Using acoustic analysis technology, powered by The Echo Nest, Spotify has grouped the last 51 songs of the summer into most and least happy,  danceable, artificial, as well as pinpointed some other categories. Check out the list. 

Most danceable

Measured according to multiple factors including tempo, rhythm stability, beat strength, and overall regularity, Nelly's "Hot In Herre" (2002) is the most danceable summer song of all time.

Most artificial

This measures the extent of live, natural instruments in a song. "Hollaback Girl" by Gwen Stefani (2004) has almost none, and is therefore the most artificial.

Least artificial

"Alone" (1987) by Heart is tops here — the Wilson sisters would never allow anything inauthentic into their music. That said, "Alone" is also the least happy and slowest summer song ever, as measured by Spotify's criteria.

Happiest

Spotify uses valence to describe song happiness. "Tracks with high valence sound more positive (e.g., happy, cheerful, euphoric), while tracks with low valence sound more negative (e.g. sad, depressed, angry). This attribute in combination with energy is a strong indicator of acoustic mood, the general emotional qualities that may characterize the track's acoustics."

The winner is  "We Like To Party" by the Vengaboys (1998), which are actually two Dutchdudes.

Most unusual time signature 

Every single song of the summer has been in standard 4/4, with four exceptions in 3/4 (aka Waltz) or 6/8 time: "House Of The Rising Sun" (1964) performed by The Animals; "I Got You Babe"  (1965) by Sonny and Cher; "How Can You Mend A Broken Heart" (1971) performed by the Bee Gees; and "Vision Of Love," by Mariah Carey (1990), which is also the least danceable:

Longest

"When Doves Cry," by Prince (1984), clocking in at just under six minutes.

[PRINCE DOES NOT ALLOW HIS VIDEOS ON YOUTUBE OR ANYWHERE ELSE EXCEPT IN THE FIGMENTS OF YOUR IMAGINATION]

Shortest

"I Get Around," by the Beach Boys (1964), running 2:14.

Rarest key

The vast majority of summer songs are in C Major. The rarest key is E Minor, which also happen to be the ones for two of the best songs on this list: "The Locomotion" (1962) performed by Little Eva

...And "Waterfalls" (1994) by TLC.

Click here to read the full post »

SEE ALSO: The Most Dominant Summer Songs Of All Time

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Netflix Is Shaming Verizon For Its Slow Internet (NFLX)

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netflix slow verizon service

The above screenshot is a notification from Netflix tweeted out by Vox Media's Yuri Victor Tuesday night.

It seems like Netflix is making a move to shame internet service providers (ISPs) that don't offer speeds fast enough to provide reliable streaming for Netflix videos.

Netflix has had a tepid relationship with ISPs recently. It now pays Comcast, AT&T, and Verizon for direct access to customers using those providers. In theory, that should provide more reliable video streaming. It seems to be working, at least with Comcast, but this is Netflix's not-so-subtle way at showing its customers that ISPs may not be doing enough to provide reliable streaming.

The image is real, by the way. A Netflix spokesperson tweeted that the company is "always testing new ways to keep members informed."

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Here's The $13.9 Million Hamptons House Where The Kardashians Will Spend The Summer

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The Kardashian clan will descend on the Hamptons this summer as they tape their E! show "Kourtney & Khloé Take the Hamptons."

The sisters are staying in a Southampton mansion that's currently on sale for $13.9 million, according to E!.

The five-bedroom estate rents for $295,000 from Memorial Day through Labor Day, though no word if the Kardashians got a discount rate.

Our friend Jeff Cully of EEFAS snapped some awesome aerial photos of the home last year, and shared them with us.

This place is seriously secluded, with water on three sides. Even so, the paparazzi should have no problem staking out the property.kardashianThere are views of North Sea Harbor from most rooms in the home. kardashian hamptons houseThe house comes with a boat dock and private beach. Not a bad place to spend the summer.kardashian hamptons house

SEE ALSO: Meet The Residents Of 'Billionaire Lane' In The Hamptons

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Warner Bros. Abruptly Just Delayed One Of Its Biggest Movies Of The Summer Until Next Year

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mila kunis jupiter ascendingThis is really unexpected.

Warner Bros. just delayed one of its biggest movies of the summer, “Jupiter Ascending,” until next year.

The big-budget sci-fi movie, starring Channing Tatum and Mila Kunis, was set to be the next movie from the Wachowski siblings — the duo behind “The Matrix” series.

How abrupt is this change in schedule? 

Well, the movie was due for release in about seven weeks on July 18. 

Instead, the movie will now be released February 6. That's the same weekend WB released "The Lego Movie" this year and it turned into a break-out hit dominating the box office for four weeks.

batman spaceman lego movieWhile it’s smart to put a big movie out when there's little competition, the unexpected move raises some serious questions about the Wachowski picture.

According to Variety, the move was made to finish "more than 2,000 special effects shots in the film."

“With the July release date, they were just not going to make it on time,” said domestic distribution chief Dan Fellman. 

While that may be the case, there may be other concerns about the $150 million movie.

There hasn't been a lot of buzz about the original sci-fi flick at all. 

Tatum's last summer movie "White House Down" ended up underperforming for Sony (granted it was overshadowed by the very similar "Olympus Has Fallen").

And the last time the Wachowskis tried their hands at another sci-fi flick for Warner Bros. we ended up with Tom Hanks and Halle Berry's "Cloud Atlas." The $100 million film made $130 million at theaters.

You would think Warner Bros. would want to keep a movie in the July 18 weekend slot. It's one of the best performing weekends for the studio producing two "Dark Knight" and "Harry Potter" hits.

This is the second time Warner Bros. has recently removed a film from this weekend. The "Batman V Superman" movie was originally slated for July 17, 2015 before being pushed back to April 2016.

The other factor to consider is that Warner Bros. has no shortage of movies coming out. That’s both a good and a bad thing because none of them are surefire hits for the studio.

There’s “Tammy” starring Melissa McCarthy. While the actress has been a box-office hit, the trailers haven’t offered much past a fast food robbery for viewers to latch onto. Then there’s  Clint Eastwood’s “Jersey Boys” adaptation out later this month and a tornado thriller “Into the Storm” on the way this August. 

Tom Cruise’s “Edge of Tomorrow,” out Friday, is getting favorable reviews— as it should, it’s pretty good — but the $175+ million film already isn’t performing well overseas. That’s where Cruise’s movies usually make a lot of their money. So far it’s made $23.8 million.

Either WB didn't see this movie performing as well and the studio is doing some pre-damage control to offset other potential misfires or they wanted to save it for early next year to have the first big hit of 2015. 

Since the track record for February releases isn't stellar, the latter doesn't seem the case.

If "Jupiter Ascending" underperforms in the February slot the good news for WB is that there should still be money rolling in from the final installment of "The Hobbit" out this holiday.

SEE ALSO: The 12 most sought-after stunt doubles in Hollywood

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Hillary Clinton Would Rather Talk About 'House Of Cards' Than Monica Lewinsky

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hillary clinton people

In a new interview with "People" magazine, Democratic presidential front-runner Hillary Clinton opened up — sort of.

For example, when it came to the dark political drama "House of Cards," Clinton excitedly exclaimed that she and her husband, former President Bill Clinton, "totally binge-watched the first season." 

Part of the Netflix series' appeal, she said, was "a little bit of the, 'Oh, my gosh, I can't believe we can just sit here and do this' and 'We're only going to watch one episode, oh, let's watch another. Okay, well, we have time, we're not going anywhere, let's watch a third.' I know that sounds kind of devoid of content."

However, Clinton was far less forthcoming when she was asked about Monica Lewinsky, who recently wrote about her affair with Clinton's husband. Clinton was quoted telling "People" it is time to "move on" from the issue. The magazine pressed and asked Clinton about her reported "narcissistic loony toon"  insult of Lewinsky after the affair became public.

"I'm not going to comment on what did and didn't happen," Clinton said, adding, "I think everybody needs to look to the future."

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The 'Fantastic Four' Director Is Making A 'Star Wars' Spinoff Movie

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josh trank star wars spinoff directorAdd another name to the growing "Star Wars" list.

Disney and Lucasfilm announced Josh Trank ("Chronicle") will direct a "Star Wars" spinoff film.

Trank is currently working on a new "Fantastic Four" movie for 20th Century Fox. Most recently, he brought teen superhero film "Chronicle" to theaters. 

The news comes after two days of leaked images from the set by TMZ showing off creatures and the Millennium Falcon.

It was previously announced "Godzilla" director Gareth Edwards will take the lead on another standalone "Star Wars" movie due out Dec. 2016.

At least three "Star Wars" spinoff movies are expected.

"Star Wars: Episode VII" will be released December 18, 2015.

SEE ALSO: "Godzilla" director to make a "Star Wars" spinoff

SEE ALSO: How you can be in "Star Wars: Episode VII"

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The 25 Most Influential Musicians Under 25

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avicii

Avicii is the most influential artist under 25, according to a new ranking from Spotify.

The streaming service announced the top 25 musicians under 25 Wednesday morning which includes the "Wake Me Up" singer, Taylor Swift, Miley Cyrus, and Lorde.

According to Spotify, Avicii was the first artist to reach one billion streams on the service.

Spotify looked at musicians' number-one hits, stream growth, shares, and viral success over the past year to compile the list.

Here are the top 25 below along with one of their most recognizable songs.

25. Sky Ferreira, Age: 21
"Everything is Embarrassing"

24. Joey Bada$$, Age: 19
"Waves"

23. Hozier, Age: 24
"Take Me to Church"

22. Jake Bugg, Age: 20
"Lightning Bolt"

21. Earl Sweatshirt, Age: 20
"Chum"

20. Disclosure members Guy and Howard Lawrence, Ages: 23 and 20, respectively
"Latch"

19. John Newman, Age: 23
"Love Me Again"

18. Phillip Phillips, Age: 23
"Home"

17. The Neighbourhood members:
Jesse James Rutherford, Age: 22
Brandon Fried, Age: 23
Michael Margott, Age: 20
Zach Abels, Age: 21
Jeremy Freedman, Age: 21
"Sweater Weather"

16. Demi Lovato, Age: 21
"Let it Go"

15. Zedd, Age: 24
"Clarity"

14. YG, Age: 24
"Who Do You Love"

13. Birdy, Age: 18
"People Help the People"

12. Sam Smith, Age: 22
"Stay With Me"

11. Justin Bieber
"Beauty and a Beat"

10. Iggy Azalea, Age: 23
"Fancy"

9. Rita Ora, Age: 23
"I Will Never Let You Down"

8. Hunter Hayes, Age: 22
"Invisible"

7. Ariana Grande, Age: 20
"Problem"

6. Jason Derulo, Age: 24
"Talk Dirty"

5. Taylor Swift, Age: 24
"We Are never Ever Getting Back Together"

4. One Direction members:
Harry Styles, Age: 20
Zayn Malik, Age: 21
Louis Tomlinson, Age: 22
Niall Horan, Age: 20
Liam Payne, Age: 20
"Story of My Life"

3. Miley Cyrus, Age: 21
"Wrecking Ball"

2. Lorde, Age: 17
"Royals"

1. Avicii, Age: 24
"Wake Me Up"

In addition to the list, Spotify put together a playlist of each artist's top track.

You can listen to that below.

SEE ALSO: Kanye West had a great reaction when he first met Michael Jackson

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Stan Lee Reveals The Secret To A Longer And More Productive Life

Twitter Is Coming To The Xbox One — Here's How It Will Look

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twitter xbox one 24

Wednesday morning, Microsoft announced that more than 45 new entertainment apps including HBOGo, Twitter, and Vine are coming to the Xbox One and 360.

The news comes ahead of next week's E3 (Electronic Entertainment Expo) conference where Xbox is expected to make announcements surrounding its upcoming "Halo" game and original series.

Currently, Microsoft says there are more than 180 apps and "entertainment experiences" on both the One and 360.

While we're sure to get a closer look at these apps during the Xbox briefing, Microsoft briefly showed off how Twitter will look on the console.

Let's take a look.

In Xbox's OneGuide — Microsoft's TV listing guide — you'll be able to see shows people are tweeting about in real-time.twitter xbox one

You'll also be able to see what shows are trending in a separate area.xbox one twitter

We rarely use Xbox's One guide. It's just not necessary. If you connect your cable to the console you're still able to use your cable provider's guide through the Xbox. 

The trending now is kind of cool, but that's if you're using the OneGuide.

What's most interesting to us is that you'll have the ability to see live tweets while watching a show. Hitting a view button on the Xbox One controller will allow fans to interact with tweets from official series accounts as well as those from cast and crew. They'll then be able to retweet and favorite those tweets using their account.

It's not clear whether you'll be able to compose new tweets as well. Typing would be tough using a controller unless you have Xbox's glass app installed on a phone or tablet.

Here's how that will look:twitter xbox onetwitter xbox one

Microsoft's Xbox briefing will take place will take place June 9 at 12:30 p.m. EST. It will be streamed live on Xbox.com.

Here's the full list of apps coming to the consoles.

  • Antena 3
  • ChiliTV
  • Comedy Central
  • Crunchyroll
  • ENCORE Play
  • EPIX
  • Filmbox Live
  • Fox Play
  • Frightflix
  • FXNOW
  • Gol TV
  • GoPro
  • HBO GO
  • iHeartRadio
  • Infinity
  • IVI
  • KDrama
  • maxdome
  • MLG
  • MOVIEPLEX Play
  • MTV
  • NBA
  • NHL
  • Now TV
  • Picturebox
  • Popcornflix
  • ShowTime Anytime
  • Sky News
  • Sky Online
  • STARZ Play
  • STV
  • Syfy Now
  • Target Ticket
  • TuneIn
  • TV2
  • Twitter
  • USA Now
  • VEO
  • Vevo
  • VH1
  • Vine
  • WATCH ABC
  • WATCH Disney Channel
  • WATCH Disney Junior
  • WATCH Disney XD
  • Watchever 

SEE ALSO: "Batman: Arkham Knight" is delayed until 2015

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The Actors From 'Shawshank Redemption' Still Make A 'Steady' Income Off TV Residual Checks

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Bob Gunton Shawshank RedemptionWhen "The Shawshank Redemption" hit theaters in 1994, it opened to little box office success but much critical acclaim.

Since then, the prison drama has gone one to become the most re-run movie on television (tying with "Scarface"), accounting for 151 hours of basic cable air time last year alone, according to research firm IHS.

After initially bringing in just $18 million at the box office, "Shawshank" gained popularity when it was nominated for seven Academy Awards in 1995, but didn't win one.

After the Oscars, Warner Bros. re-released the film and it grossed an additional $10 million, according to The Wall Street Journal.

The re-release primed the movie for a video release  which at the time, was still a big business. People discovered it on video, making it the most rented movie of 1995. 

After all of the video rentals and TV air time, the film's actors are still earning a healthy residual income from the movie they shot two decades ago.

Bob Gunton, who played the mean prison warden, told WSJ's Russell Adams that the film is still generating a very substantial income for him. 

Gunton told Adams that he still gets residual payments — "not huge, but steady, close to six figures by the film's 10th anniversary in 2004." Since then, he has continued to get "a very substantial income," which is highly unusual for so many years later.

"I suspect my daughter, years from now, will still be getting checks," he said.

The film's bigger name stars, such as Tim Robbins and Morgan Freeman, likely make far more than Gunton, who says he still gets recognized almost daily from the role.

"It's an incredible moneymaking asset that continues to resonate with viewers," Jeff Baker, executive vice president and general manager of Warner Bros. Home Entertainment theatrical catalog, told WSJ.

The turning point for the film's run on TV first came in 1997, when Ted Turner's TNT channel got the cable-broadcast rights to the film and made "Shawshank" an anchor of its "New Classics" campaign.

After grossing $28 million domestically and another $30 million overseas around the time of its 1994 release, "Shawshank" went on to make around $80 million in sales on the video rental market, Warner Bros' Mr. Baker told WSJ.

Warner Bros. wouldn't say how much money it has earned from the movie, but did reveal it's one of the top movies that drive much of their library's value, current and former Warner Bros. executives revealed to WSJ.

But as Russell interestingly points out in his WSJ article, the slow-to-grow "Shawshank" strategy may be worth it after all.

The movie's profits to date may sound small in a world where some films gross $100 million in a single weekend. But such figures only begin to show a movie like "Shawshank"'s long-term importance for a studio's financial picture. That's why there are six big studios: Smaller ventures that lack a reservoir of films have trouble surviving flops.

SEE ALSO: 'The Shawshank Redemption' Accounted For A Huge Amount Of Cable Air Time In 2013

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The Bergdahl Saga Is Nothing Like 'Homeland'

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homeland carrie brody

"Homeland," Showtime's hit terrorism drama, is the go-to pop cultural touchstone for the still-unfolding story of Army sergeant Bowe Bergdahl's capture and upcoming return to the U.S.

And the similarities seem valid, at least superficially: "Homeland" told the story of sergeant Nicholas Brody, a newly-freed American prisoner of war "turned" and then convinced to commit an act of terror in the U.S. during his captivity by Al Qaeda in Iraq. Bergdahl apparently abandoned his unit in Afghanistan, and spent the next five years as a prisoner of the Taliban. Members of his unit have accused him of actively reaching out to the enemy. 

The comparison is all over Twitter. And the Washington Post's Alyssa Rosenberg writes that "Homeland" and "'The Manchurian Candidate' ... offer valuable lessons to consider about Bergdahl and his return in the days and weeks to come."

In fact, "Homeland" reveals almost nothing about Bergdahl's capture and return. "Homeland" is about a conspiracy spanning continents, and ropes in everyone from the head of Al Qaeda to the director of the CIA. It takes place in a fictional Washington where any kind of overbaked intrigue seems possible. In constrast, the Bergdahl story is about one individual and his decisions, and "Homeland" isn't useful in understanding either.

Even in its widely-lauded first season, "Homeland" was a work of conspiracism that invited viewers into a world that simply didn't exist — one where terrorists fought the CIA on the streets of Washington, DC and the U.S. intelligence community is nearly omnipotent.

At its best, "Homeland" tried to use these conspiratorial flights of fancy as a pathway into deeper and more real issues, like the dilemmas of the U.S.'s War on Terror, or the moral and emotional harm that war inflicts on the people who fight it.

Even then, the show could be badly out of sync with reality — perhaps even perniciously so. "Brody is portrayed as this broken, hamstrung individual suffering from post traumatic stress and his captivity ordeal, and that leads him to betray his country. That's an unhelpful stereotype," says Robert Caruso, a former Navy cryptological technician and an Iraq and Afghanistan veteran. 

For Brody, the trauma of war translates into actual treason. But he's not just a traitor. He's a victim as well, spurred to terrorism partly because he witnesses the collateral damage of the U.S.'s targeted killing program. "The victim narrative is the lynchpin," explains Alex Horton, a writer and Iraq War veteran, "because you don't have the fundamental shift in world view or the moral problems without being subject to the dastardly ways of American foreign policy. You're just a victim and a tool to be used." 

"Brody's a helpful character for Americans to understand only in the context that there are deep moral complexities to war and combat," says Horton. But the soldier-turned-potential-terrorist still represents a rehash of the vengeful, traumatized veteran stereotype of the post-Vietnam era, epitomized in films like "Taxi Driver" — a figure that war has left without personal agency or even much of a moral compass. "They've been victimized and have to take their revenge on someone or something," says Horton.

Comparisons to "Homeland" gloss over the Bergdahl case's complexities in a way that could be used to soft-pedal Bergdahl's behavior. "In examining individual prisoners of war, we should not lose sight of the conflicts that lead to their captivity," Alyssa Rosenberg writes in explaining Homeland's applicability to the Bergdahl saga. At the same time, Bergdahl's captivity is something of a unique case. It was the result of perhaps-illegal actions that left Bergdahl's unit vulnerable to attack, far more than it was a typical or even necessary outcome of the Afghanistan conflict writ large. 

Bergdahl's case doesn't jibe with "Homeland's" simplistic and often-overblown messaging about war and its impact. It's unclear why Bergdahl wandered off-base; after five years, it may be impossible to ascertain his mental state or decision-making process the night he was captured.

And whether he endangered his fellow soldiers, or violated the Uniform Code of Military Justice, Bergdahl might represent something more mundane and more challenging than "Homeland's" worldview could allow for.

"The comparisons are easy surface-level pop culture connections, and I think that they obscure more than they explain," says Horton.

On the central questions of Bergdahl's actions, mental state, and decision-making process, "Homeland" and its narrow, even conspiratorial view of war and those who fight are far from illuminating.

SEE ALSO: Taliban publishes video of the moment Bowe Bergdahl was released

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New Trailer For Best-Selling Novel 'The Giver' Shows An Eerie World Without Color

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the giver brenton thwaites

A new trailer for best-selling novel "The Giver" is out and it looks more true to the book than the first trailer we watched a few months ago.

The 1993 young-adult novel from Lois Lowry showcases a dystopian world devoid of color where everyone is given a specific role to play.

One day a one young boy, Jonas (Brenton Thwaites), meets The Giver (Jeff Bridges), a man in charge of the community's memories. Soon afterward he slowly starts seeing the world as it really is.

Fans of the novel may have been bummed the first trailer showed a world in color since the world is seen in black and white through the main character's eyes for a period of the book.

This second trailer for The Weinstein Company movie stays true to that showing Jonas as he starts to see the world in color.

It looks pretty cool.the giver color black and white

Thwaites and Bridges star alongside Meryl Streep, Katie Holmes, and Alexander Skarsgard.

"The Giver" is due out in theaters August 15.

Check out the trailer below:

SEE ALSO: The only 10 shows you should watch this summer

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11 Classic Movies That Were Originally Box-Office Bombs

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wizard of oz

How much money a movie makes at the box office isn't always an indicator of whether it will become a classic.

Some of Hollywood's greatest films were financial flops that took years before they were fully embraced by audiences.

From arguably the greatest film ever made, "Citizen Kane," to the cult hit "The Big Lebowski," these are the classic films that bombed at theaters.

"Donnie Darko" (2001)

"Donnie Darko" may have helped launch the career of Jake Gyllenhaal, but it was a huge flop when it came out in theaters.

The indie film, which cost an estimated $6 million to make, debuted to $110,494It didn't help that the film — which features a plane crash — opened not long after the Sept. 11 attacks. The movie wasn't released internationally for another year.

Theatrically, "Donnie Darko" went on to make $1.2 million. After its DVD release in 2002, it started playing as a midnight movie for over two years at New York's Pioneer Theater and became enough of a cult classic to release a "director's cut."



"Fight Club" (1999)

When "Fight Club" first hit theaters in 1999, it didn't just perform poorly — the film made just $37 million domestically— but also received mixed reviews.

Entertainment Weekly gave it a "D" calling it a "dumb and brutal shock show" while according to the film's commentary Rosie O'Donnell hated it so much that she went as far to ruin the film's twist ending on national television.

It wasn't until the DVD release that the film took off (it sold over 6 million copies) allowing a wider audience to catch the hidden details that made it a dark classic.



"Office Space" (1999)

1999's "Office Space" may have understood office life, but it failed to understand the box office.

After weak reviews and a poor marketing campaign, the film failed to reach an audience making only $10.8 million in theaters.

Director Mike Judge chalked it up to the movie being a tough sell.

"Office Space isn't like American Pie," Judge told Entertainment Weekly. "It doesn't have the kind of jokes you put in a 15-second television spot of somebody getting hit on the head with a frying pan. It's sly. And let me tell you, sly is hard to sell."

The film eventually found its niche on DVD becoming a top rental, and was later ranked fifth by EW in its list of the greatest comedies of the last 25 years.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider






The 3 Things 'Silicon Valley' Copied From Google For Its Office Set

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Sunday marked the season finale of HBO's new hit comedy, "Silicon Valley."

One reason the show was successful and renewed for a second season is that it portrayed what life in Silicon Valley is really like.

Production designer Richard Toyon worked hard to make everything feel realistic — from the "hacker hostel" house the main characters share to the Google-like campus (Hooli, as it's called in the show) they frequent throughout the season.

But at the advertising agency where the show often filmedit wasn't easy making an entire office interior look like Google.hooli office silicon valley

Toyon says he followed Google's rule of the three "H's" when constructing the Hooli office set: "Health, hygiene, and hunger."

"Supposedly they work hard to keep you satisfied in those three areas," Toyon tells Business Insider. "It’s all about productivity so you can come in at 10 a.m. and leave at midnight, or you can work 24 hours a day and still be able to take a nap, take a shower, exercise, and be fed."

Toyon explains, "For the health part, Hooli had a sports court and a mountain-climbing wall. The quad area always had people bicycling around the campus."Google Campus bikes

"The hygiene we never really showed in the shower rooms or anything like that. It was implied."

As for "hunger," Toyon says the series showed "micro-kitchens" that were "not more than 150 feet from where the characters were working."hooli kitchen silicon valley

Production had a say in everything, down to the drinks characters consumed on camera.

"We did a lot of ground work where we found out from a local beverage distributor how much they’re selling, or what particular products they’re selling to Google, and we tried to use those."

Toyon adds: "We found that a lot of people seem to like Dos Equis, so we used a lot of Dos Equis, but also tried to use craft and local beers as much as possible. And then there’s the overabundance of energy drinks."

One thing Toyon and show creator Mike Judge found particularly interesting about Google when they visited the campus were the "multiple heights of desks and the multiple things people sit on, stand on, or work on."silicon valley

"Google has a great department of ergonomics so when you’re a new employee they will come over and measure you and figure out what your posture is and your height and will work with you in terms of being comfortable as possible at your work space," says Toyon.

"So when you look at any Hooli environment there is a variety of those things," adds Toyon. "They’ll be multiple monitors, the monitor systems will be up some, will be down some, some will be regular chairs, some will be standing, some will be a high chair. So that was really signature, so we wanted to make sure we captured that."silicon valley HBO show

Toyon says that "one of the things you see at Google are the Energy Pods, which are one of those sleeping couches that have the bubble around them and inside they have some very subdued lighting and subdued music and sounds and you can put in."

"They’re around Google and Mike Judge really liked that," adds Toyon. "We really worked to put one of those into our set."energy pod

SEE ALSO: How 'Silicon Valley' Turned A College Campus Into A Google-Like Exterior

MORE: Here's How 'Silicon Valley' Chose Which Tech Gadgets To Use On The Show

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It Took Over 4 Months To Build The Elaborate Battle Suits Worn In 'Edge Of Tomorrow'

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Tom Cruise, Edge of TomorrowThe only items more prominent than Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt in their new movie "Edge of Tomorrow" are the giant functional battle suits used by the military in the film. 

Called ExoSuits, Major William Cage (Cruise) and Sergeant Rita Vrataski (Blunt) use them to wage war on aliens known as Mimics.edge of tomorrow tom cruise

The suits come in different shapes and sizes, and while you may think some of the suits are CGI or visual effects added in over actors, they are very real.

While the ExoSuits are never explained in depth in the film, a huge amount of detail and time went into creating them.

The film's production notes break down the process that went into making the intricate gear.edge of tomorrow tom cruise

Since it was necessary for actors to move around in the suits, director Doug Liman had a few requirements for the design. First, it would have to be an open suit rather than a complete body suit. It would also need to adhere to the working joints of the human body for movement.

"We were looking for something high tech, but in the style that the military would arrive at," said director Doug Liman. "The military is not trying to sell their product to anyone, so they have a much more utilitarian approach and attitude to design. That is how I wanted the armor to look, simplified and raw, not like something sleek."

Production designer Oliver Scholl and costume designer Kate Hawley oversaw the production of 70 ExoSuits. Another 50 suits were made out of softer material.edge of tomorrow exosuit

"Just building the ExoSuits alone took four to five months," said Liman. "Once we committed to a design, we couldn't come up with a new idea and expect it to happen any time soon."

Cruise himself also helped develop the battle suits. He said the average suit weighed around 85 pounds; however, depending on the suit it could weigh up to 120 or 125 pounds.

A total of three different types of suits were made categorized as "grunts," "tanks," and "dogs." Each one included different weapons. 

For example, the "dog" suit includes rocket-launching guns that pop up from the suit.tom cruise edge of tomorrow

The tank features huge machine guns while the grunt has smaller pistols. 

Special attention was given to make Emily Blunt's suit stand out from the rest. Since her character Rita is seen as a symbol of the fight against the Mimics, production wanted to avoid making her suit look too "girly."

To accomplish that, red slash marks were put on the chest of her suit. They're supposed to show Rita's journey "to hell and back."emily blunt edge of tomorrow

In addition to guns, Rita was also given a sword made out of the rotor blade from a helicopter.

Once the suits were complete, it took a team of four people to get each individual cast member into their suit. edge of tomorrow filming

Cruise said it initially took 30 minutes to get into his suit and another 30 to get out. He eventually started timing the entire crew until they could get in and out of the garb in 30 seconds.

"Creating a fully-functioning ExoSuit was such a complicated process, but in the end we were all incredibly proud of the work we did," said Hawley. "'Form follows function' was the lesson we learned in the end.'"

SEE ALSO: Warner Bros. abruptly delayed one of its biggest movies of the summer until next year

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