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Here's What 'Star Wars' Would Look Like If Made By Fans

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star-wars-uncutType “Star Wars" into the YouTube search bar and you'll get over 450,000 results.
 
The saga has inspired parodies from Darth Vader subway scenes to Jedi kittens piloting X-wings and Tie fighter planes. Adidas has even done their own version of the famous bar scene from "A New Hope" in 2010—but you've never seen anything like this two-hour-long handmade video before.

Imagine what it would look like if you took everyone's homemade "Star Wars" clips and strung them together to reproduce Lucas' "Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope."

The result is “Star Wars Uncut,” a re-creation of Episode IV by fans that has been two years in the making. Using action figures, original animation, cats, beer bottles, legos, pez dispensers and more, fans produced 473 original scenes to re-imagine the 1977 classic.

In 2009, Casey Pugh first asked fans to participate in the project on his blog starwarsuncut.com. The idea was simple: split the film into 15 second scenes, have fans claim a scene to re-shoot however they like, and Pugh's seven-man team would stitch the clips together.

Each scene was assigned to several fans and when they were all uploaded, fans were invited back to vote for the scenes that made the final cut.

The entire project was originally finished back in August 2010; however, Pugh released the final, more seamless, uncut version to the public two days ago. If you don't have time to watch the entire two-hour feature, you can check out individual scenes here and compare them to the originals here. You can even watch all of the original scenes people put together.

Some of our favorites include decorated paper bag Luke and R2D2, the Cantina bar scene with Mo from “The Simpsons” as the bartender, Darth Vader as a bottle of Johnny Walker, and small monkey stuffed animals subbing in for the Jawas.

The team's efforts won them a 2010 Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Creative Achievement in Interactive Media - Fiction.

So does Lucasfilm think imitation is the sincerest form of flattery?
 
Yes, they love it. In a 2010 statement, Lucasfilm said they "hope that someday 'Star Wars Uncut' can air on Spike," most likely during their annual Star Wars Fan Movie Challenge.

And, it doesn't stop here. With five more films in the series, we can expect more re-creations in the pipeline.

The "Star Wars Uncut" team plans to roll out their own version of "Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back" in the future. Although, there's no set date for production to begin, we can't wait.
 
Watch the video below:

 

Now, check out VW's New "Star Wars" Super Bowl ad >>

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A Near-Bankrupt Synagogue Has Asked Mel Gibson For A Large Donation

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MEl Gibson

One California synagogue on the brink of bankruptcy has asked for financial help from an unlikely donor: Mel Gibson.

Congregation Beth Shalom in Corona, Calif., wrote a letter to the embattled actor asking to help their flailing synagogue, TMZ reports:

“Our proposal to you, Mr. Gibson, is since you have been cited as an Anti-Semitic, and have denied those allegations, what better way to prove to all your fans and the nay Sayers — than to endorse and help raise funds for our cause — SOS, Save Our Synagogue.”

But the best part of the letter is the last line:  ”Mr. Gibson, we offer you to be a Mensch and make a sizable contribution to our cause.”

The embattled actor’s anti-Semitic tirade to a police officer after being pulled over for a DWI was caught on tape.

In the 2006 police report of the incident, Gibson is cited as yelling: “Fucking Jews… The Jews are responsible for all the wars in the world.” Gibson then asked a police officer, “Are you a Jew?”

Gibson’s film, “The Passion of the Christ,” was viewed by some critics as having anti-Semitic undertones.

Gibson has denied allegations of anti-Semitism.

This post originally appeared at The Daily Caller. 

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Top Celebrity Tweets O' The Week

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Rihanna Seal HeidiSeal pours his (broken) heart out to Ellen, Rihanna shows off her new ink and another celebrity gets mixed up in a death hoax.

Plus, Courtney Cox, Chris Brown and Ron Howard all have something to celebrate. 

From Ashton Kutcher to Katy Perry, here's this week in celebrity tweets. 

 

Cundiff and Williams weren't the only one's dealing with heartache this week.


video platform
video managementvideo solutionsvideo player



While Demi Moore was in rehab, Ashton was partying it up in Sao Paulo...

 



Katy Perry sang her heart out dedicating her final concert in Manila to a fan who passed away.



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The Top Movie Franchises Led By Women

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Rooney-Mara-Neve-Kristen-Stewart

In the grand tradition of Hollywood franchises, audiences have seen everything from battles in outer space, such as "Star Wars" or "Star Trek" to clever heists like the  A-list "Ocean's Eleven."

With each unique franchise, a new actor has rises through the ranks to emerge as a top-earning Hollywood heavt hitter—but as the saying goes: behind every man, there is a great woman.

And there is a growing list of women who are leading high-earning film franchises.

With the upcoming release of "The Hunger Games" and the critical success of the "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo," it looks like more and more women are coming to the forefront.

So here we toast the women who head their own movies and sequels. There are some extremely badass chicks, but there are some chick-flicks too.

"The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo," Rooney Mara

1 film so far, Box Office: $95,281,409

It seemed like a ridiculous idea at first, turning Stieg Larsson's beloved series into a Hollywood blockbuster after it had already been made into a Swedish series. But after the announcement of David Fincher as director and the pitch-perfect casting of Rooney Mara, the result was more than effective. While the first movie made a little less than expected, there are still two movies to go. And those promise to be just as violent, dangerous and intriguing as the first.

"The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" and its subsequent books follow Lisbeth Salander's journey from aloof, goth chick hacker to investigator of murder and more. She is one of the most interesting women leads in movie history and is easily more badass than her male counterpart Mikael Blomkvist (Daniel Craig in the remake).

We can't wait to see "The Girl Who Played with Fire" and "The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest."



"Bridget Jones," Renée Zellweger

2 films, Box Office: $111,769,642

This 2001 Renée Zellweger flick is based on a famous rom-com novel about an overweight, overly clever woman who is trying to find love. It's charming, funny and is adapted from "Pride and Prejudice"; a smart move considering that Jane Austen novel is one of the most popular female-driven stories ever.

The first film was a box office and critical success, raking in close to $72,000,000 domestically alone and garnering a Best Actress nomination for Zellweger at the Oscars.



"Underworld," Kate Beckinsale

3 films starring Beckinsale, Box Office: $143,837,846

This supernatural action film was a big surprise winner at the box office from day one and gave Kate Beckinsale a chance to rise from her independent films and period pieces. Beckinsale stars as Selene, a vampire who specializes in hunting Lycans (werewolves) as they murdered her family when she was younger.

The original movie has now spawned three sequels, Beckinsale sat out for the third movie and has now come back to take over the box office with the fourth film "Underworld: Awakening."

If the films keep doing this well, it wouldn't be surprising if we see many more.



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How Demi Moore Went From Hollywood's Highest Paid Actress To Hospitalization

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Demi Moore

In the 1980s, a young Demi Moore quickly turned her "General Hospital" TV stardom into a full fledged movie career that made her one of the top actors of the decade, part of a group the media dubbed the Brat Pack.

By 1990, with a $12 million per film paycheck, Moore was the highest paid actress in Hollywood and remained so with box office hits such as "Ghost," "A Few Good Men" and "G.I. Jane."

After marrying husband number two, Bruce Willis, in 1987, the couple had three daughters together and enjoyed a family life outside of Hollywood at their shared Idaho home.

With the break up of their marriage in 1998, Moore re-entered Hollywood as a hot mama, taking on roles such as a scorned, seriously toned angel in 2003's "Charlie's Angels" and dating a slew of younger men in her personal life.

In 2003, Moore met Ashton Kutcher, sixteen years her junior, and surprised everyone when their 2005 marriage lasted a whopping six years—until it came crashing down in late 2011 amidst rumors that Kutcher was cheating.

Since then, Moore has been on an apparent downward spiral that last week landed her in the hospital.

But whether it's a "Striptease" for theater-goers or her Twitter followers, we know Demi Moore is always good for a bikini-clad comeback and we're rooting for her to get well soon.

1976: After moving nearly 40 times throughout her childhood, Demi's family settles in Los Angeles. After attending Fairfax High School for a brief time, she drops out at age 16 to become an actress.



1980: At age 18, Demi married singer Freddy Moore and changes her name from Demi Guynes to Demi Moore.



1981: Demi makes her film debut in "Choices," a deaf teen drama in which she plays a football player's girlfriend.



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The Biggest Jaw-Droppers From Last Night's SAG Awards—Here's Today's Buzz

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Katrina Bowden

  • Hey "30 Rock" fans, Katrina Bowden (aka the hottest chick on the show) just got engaged in real life.
  • Strokes drummer Fabrizio Moretti threw a party for his Oscar-nominated girlfriend, Kristen Wiig, at the Jane Ballroom in NYC. Could bride be the next role for this "Bridesmaid"?
  • Meanwhile, it's going to be a long time before Brad Pitt's six children with Angelina Jolie know that their dad was ever even married to Aniston—because they aren't allowed to google him.
  • Former "Bachelor" winner (and daughter of soap star, Lorenzo) Shayne Lamas has a baby—signs her up for an endorsement deal at 11-weeks-old.

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9 Things We Learned When Alec Baldwin Interviewed Lorne Michaels

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lorne michaels

Alec Baldwin's podcast, "Here's The Thing," has him interviewing a number of different people in show business and politics.

This week he points the microphone at Saturday Night Live producer Lorne Michaels.

Michaels is famously hesitant to appear in public forums, so we were excited to hear the two in conversation -- Baldwin is a longtime SNL host, so Michaels opens up to him quite easily.

They go over Michaels's entire career, from his early days in radio to his present work developing shows for cable.

And of course, Saturday Night Live.

He started out in radio.

"It was a show called 'Five Nights a Week at This Time' and we did political satire. Every week we thought we were potentially bringing down the government, and the fact that no one was listening didn’t occur to us for at least the first year, but we loved doing it."



He started in television after getting fired from radio.

"The funny part about the show, 'The Russ Thomson Show,' was at a certain point five or six months into it the producer of the show came in and met with us and he said, "The show’s not working. We don’t know whether it’s you guys or Russ, so we thought we’d start with you guys.'"



When he wrote on "Laugh-In," the accomodations were modest.

"On 'Laugh-In,' the writers would write and then it would be edited by a head writer and then we did not go to the read-through. We were at a motel in Burbank and we would all have lunch together and that was fun and --"

"You didn’t even have offices?"

"No, we had offices but they were in a motel."



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CBS Just Picked Up A TV Pilot That Takes Place At Groupon

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Groupon

Brace yourselves: CBS just picked up a TV pilot that's set at Groupon, Entertainment Weekly reports.

The synopsis for "Friend Me" is as follows:

Twenty-something best friends, Evan and Rob, move from their hometown of Bloomington, Indiana to Los Angeles to begin their exciting new lives working at Groupon. Evan is having trouble breaking his old slothful habits and rather than go out after work to explore LA and meet new people, prefers to play online poker with his buddies back home. Rob has different plans and is determined to drag Evan, kicking and screaming, along with him.

It's from the creator of current sitcom "Raising Hope" and a few other people.

Looks like Groupon's trying to diversify its revenue a bit. We're skeptical.

UPDATE: Jeff Bercovici from Forbes called Groupon, and apparently a spokesman told him Groupon's not involved with the show in any way. He thinks that means the company's likely the butt of a joke.

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Rapper Drake's Dream Acting Role Is President Obama

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Drake Obama

When you think of who should play President Barack Obama in the movie version of his life (not that there is even a project in the works), 25-year-old Canadian-born rapper Drake isn't exactly the first person who comes to mind.

But he wants to be.

"I hope somebody makes a movie about Obama’s life soon because I could play him. That's the goal," Drake revealed to VH1 News at the Sundance Film Festival last week.

"I watch all the addresses," added the rapper, who actually bares some resemblance to the current president. "Any time I see him on TV, I don’t change the channel. I definitely pay attention and listen to the inflections of his voice. If you ask anyone who knows me, I’m pretty good at impressions."

While it may sound like a lofty goal, Drake did start his career in acting as the wheelchair-bound Jimmy Brooks in the popular Canadian teen drama, "Degrassi: The Next Generation."

And now you can add "writer" to the actor/rapper's resumé as well.

"I've been reading scripts for awhile," said Drake. "I want to do something great. I want to do something for my culture: The younger people who are still in tune with everything going on. I’m actually writing with my friends right now."

And he does voiceovers, too! Drake can next be heard as a voice in "Ice Age: Continental Drift," due out later this year.

But before jumping into Obama's polished loafers, we think Drake should show us all what a good impression of the president he does by making a "Saturday Night Live" cameo.

Casting agents shmasting agents, let's let "SNL" viewers decide if Drake is right for the presidential role.

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This Week's Box Office Roundup—'The Grey' Leads The Way

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Selene-Underworld-Kate-BeckinsaleKate Beckinsale's slipped from the number one spot, Cuba Gooding Jr.'s "Tails" takes a dive, and "Man on a Ledge" stays stagnant. 

Is "Beauty and the Beast" doing as well as "The Lion King" in 3D and did Oscar nominations help George Clooney's "The Descendants" and Tom Hank's post-9/11 "Extrememly Loud and Incredibly Close" rake in at theaters?

Check out this weekend's winners and losers at the box office. 

(Source: Box Office Mojo

10. Rounding out the top ten this week was Steven Soderbergh's "Haywire," dropping from last week's top six with only $4 million.



9. "Beauty and the Beast (3D)" dropped during it's third week on screen. The film brought in $5.3 this weekend, bringing its estimated box office total to $41.1 million, slightly more than half of what "The Lion King (3D)" took in by week three with $79.2 million.



8. Mark Wahlberg's "Contraband" drops from its third spot last weekend bringing in over half of what it made last weekend with $6.5 million.



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WATCH: David Beckham Strips Down To His Skivvies For H&M's Super Bowl Ad

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David Beckham has a new underwear line with H&M and its television ad is making a debut at the Super Bowl this weekend.

H&M released a preview of the commercial complete with fully tattooed-up Beckham dancing around in his tighty whiteys for the commercial.

Watch:

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These Ads Drawn By Dr Seuss Before He Was Famous Are Utterly Charming

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Dr Suess

Before Dr. Seuss became "Dr. Seuss," he was Theodore Seuss Geisel, an ad agency illustrator who worked on campaigns for Ford, GE and NBC, in addition to once-giant but now forgotten brands such as Standard Oil, Flit and Schaefer Beer. (Oh wait, that last one still exists.)

The ads—which appeared from 1927 through the 1940s—are strikingly similar to the illustrations in his children's books.

What makes them fascinating is that in their advertising form they were aimed at adults, not kids. The New York Times noted that many of Seuss's characters first appeared in ads.

In 1932, an ad he drew for the Warren Telechron clock company featured the same man who would ride the cart down Mulberry Street. For Daggett and Ramsdell beauty products, he drew a machine that made women beautiful and looked a lot like Mr. McMonkey McBean’s Star On and Star Off machines from “The Sneetches” 40 years later.

Nearly 85 years later, most of these ads are as charming and engaging today as they were when they were first published.

Flit was a brand of insect repellent. The slogan 'Quick, Henry, the Flit!" was a household catchphrase in its day.



Holly Sugar



Standard Oil's Esso brand



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WHERE ARE THEY NOW: Whatever Happened To The Original ESPN Stars? (DIS)

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Chris-Berman-ESPN

ESPN has become as big a player in contemporary sports culture as many of the actual leagues are.

Don't believe us?

At this point, the network, based in Bristol, CT, is worth more than the NFL, and worth more than the NHL, NBA, and MLB combined. 

We learned this previous fact from the fantastic book "Those Guys Have All the Fun: Inside the World of ESPN," by James Andrew Miller and Tom Shales, which was published last year.

"Those Guys Have All the Fun" tells the booze-soaked underdog story of ESPN from its inception in 1979, when it was owned by an oil company and dedicated hours to sports like slow-pitch softball and Irish bicycling.

Drawing from the book, and other sources on the web, we took a look at where the original ESPNers ended up nearly 33 years later.

Father-son team Bill and Scott Rasmussen came up with the idea for ESPN and managed to get Getty Oil to fund it. But the professionals who were brought in eventually forced the Rasmussens out. Don't feel too bad for them, though — they managed to net $3,414,866 off a $39,000 investment.



Scott went on to become a political commentator, author and the founder/president of Rasmussen Reports. Bill has consulted on television operations, wrote a book about founding ESPN and now mostly does speaking engagements.



Stuart Evey was the Getty Oil executive who convinced the company to sign on with ESPN after he heard Rasmussen's pitch. When Getty sold ESPN to ABC in 1984, Evey's involvement ended. The book presents Evey as a hard drinker who clashed with those he brought in to run the company, but also deserves much of the credit for its initial direction and success. Evey wrote a book about ESPN, and he now consults and does speaking engagements.



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Check Out This Norwegian Bank's Genius Ad Campaigns Featuring George Clooney And Choir Boys

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Norwegian bank DNB knew customers were fed up with the robotic telephone prompts on its customer service line.

So it came up with a unique solution (via Fast Co.Create).

For the month of December, the bank's telephone prompts were recorded by the Norwegian Broadcasting Boy’s Choir (it just so happens DNB is a supporter of the choir).

Here are the amusing results:

Not that DNB is any stranger to breaking the mold for bank ads. 

Here's the one they released featuring George Clooney:

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Here's What Comcast And NBCU's Merger Looks Like One Year Later

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Comcast NBCU

As the Comcast-NBC Universal merger mixing the monolithic cable company with film and TV assets hits its one-year mark, it would be hard to deny how effectively one hand is washing the other.

Not that everything has gone swimmingly since the Jan. 29, 2011 marriage. The Peacock's first fall season under the new ownership has been mostly a snooze, with a handful of the new offerings already canceled.

Despite a few hits, the box office has seen a string of flops, led by the costly "Cowboys & Aliens." And charges of discrimination still haunt the halls.

But Comcast's traditional cable operation -- with an almost fully digital network in place and its combined video, voice and data customer growth proceeding nicely in low double digits -- gives the company an ever-wider reach into America’s homes, while the core cable networks are unmatched in reach.

And the film studio and the network are part of a burgeoning On Demand content supply that includes 30,000 choices on TV, many more online, and a healthy supply on the XFINITY app.

What's more, there’s a comfortable logic in how the merged company handles its winnings. The NBCU cash flow is largely set aside to handle future payoffs to former owner G.E., while the Comcast side is pouring most if its cash into returning capital to shareholders -- over $900 million worth.

“Our primary focus,” CEO Brian Roberts told Wall Street analysts and the usual online audience of shareholders in early November during a third-quarter earnings call, “has been on great operational execution and on extending our industry leadership.” 

And by Street measures, it’s hard to find fault with the big picture over the past 12 months.  As Standard & Poor’s entertainment analyst Tuna Amobi says, the company’s share price “has actually increased meaningfully since the deal was closed a year ago, it’s up about 15 percent in 12 months.

THE BIG SCREEN

Though the film studio's marginally successful 2011 slate made it across the billion-dollar mark, you can't call it a terrific year.  Hits including  "Fast Five," which took in $626 million worldwide  at the box office, were offset by a series of high-price flops like "Cowboys and Aliens" ($174.8 million worldwide on a $163 million budget) and “The Dilemma” ($69.7  million worldwide with a production budget of about the same.)

Still, the willingness of the brass to renew the deal of key film and parks honcho Ron Meyer through 2015—still reporting to Steve Burke, the NBC Universal CEO since the merger went through—and his able colleague and film chairman  Adam Fogelson, who reupped through 2014 and is in turn  keeping colleague Donna Langley on board with a re-up to 2014, demonstrates a certain faith in the future.

"The films figure has been very volatile, but I think they knew what they were buying," Amobi told TheWrap.

"I wouldn't necessarily call the studio a disappointment; but it hasn't really been a factor so far. Yet that's no different from some of the other studios.”

The film division already scored one hit this year with the Mark Wahlberg-starring "Contraband," which eclipsed its production cost in its first weekend. And with big bets like summer’s  "Battleship" and a couple offerings from Judd Apatow and his cabal, box office should improve this year.

THE SMALL SCREEN

With the demise of such entrants as Free Agents,” “The Playboy Club” and “Prime Suspect” and the under-performance of “Whitney” and others shows, “We had a really bad fall,”   entertainment chairman Robert Greenblatt  admitted at a Television Critics Association presentation recently. "Worse than I had hoped for, but about what I expected … we have a long road ahead of us, so bear with me."

But if the miseries of the primetime TV slate have served as what analysts call the “flip side” to the company’s other successes, insiders point out that the entire broadcast spectrum fares better when weighed as a Comcast whole.

Roberts can point to the status of longtime cable leader USA as boasting seven of the top 10 scripted series on basic cable, including “Royal Pains,” “Necessary Roughness” and “Burn Notice,” which  have powered that network to double-digit gains over the previous year.

And in October the company’s Telemundo division in October bought the Spanish-language rights to the World Cup soccer finals for seven years, beginning in 2015. As the company is striving to catch up to Spanish language giant Univision (which holds 80 percent of the market compared to Telemundo’s 20 percent), and to fight off Fox’s newly launching Fox Mundo, the soccer franchise should serve as a real asset.

But even in broadcast, there are some bright spots on the horizon. "We're at the very start of a process that we all expect to take another three or four years," an NBCU spokesperson told TheWrap. "But we've taken a few first steps in the right direction with the big start for 'The Voice' last season and a couple new shows this season like 'Grimm' and 'Up All Night' ... and we've got some very promising new shows including 'Smash' and 'Awake' coming the second half of the season."

Indeed, NBCU sees much riding on the success of the highly hyped "Smash," a "Glee"-like musical that follows the production of a fake Broadway musical based on the life of Marilyn Monroe. Though even if it tanks, Greenblatt said, “It isn't like we’re going into receivership.”

He added that “one of our many challenges is that fact that we have few strong lead-ins,” Greenblatt can be consoled by the fact that “Smash” will take off with turbo rockets by immediately following the Super Bowl, and subsequently follow star performer “The Voice.” 

Not to mention the Super Bowl's record cornucopia of ad dollars based on a top rate of $4 million per 30-second spot. Finally, this year’s Summer Olympics on NBC, while a costly acquisition, should help the network promote a bevy of new shows (which they sorely need in time for the fall primetime season.) 

With the robust ratings they’ve gotten from their sports programing raising the revenue for NBC, said Amobi, "what they've done is to demonstrate that this is a very, very valuable asset, which they got arguably at the bottom of the market when advertising was in the dumpster.”  

NOR HAS THE ROAD BEEN FREE OF SQUABBLES

Amidst the growth, there have been legal stumbles, including criticism of the merged company’s handling of the Tennis Channel, which successfully sued to be treated on an equal basis with other Comcast sports programming. 

The channel had sued over what it said was discrimination in favor of competing sports channels Versus and the Golf Channel. “We’ve built a significant business with a foot on our necks since day one,"  Tennis Channel CEO Ken Solomon told the New York Times,  and said his channel would add over 20 million households under a late December ruling by an FCC administrative law judge.

Meanwhile, NBCU has been dogged by accusations it has thwarted diversity, with major African American figures like Oprah Winfrey (on behalf of her OWN network) and Russell Simmons (who had sought to buy the Style channel) complaining theirs were just the most visible of numerous minority enterprises the cable company has undervalued. 

NBCU has vowed, publicly,and specifically to the FCC, to enhance diversity in its choices and employment practices: “Hopefully you will see statistics going in our favor as time goes on,” said NBC’s Greenblatt at the August TCA gathering.

Keenly aware of heeding the initial roadblocks the FCC and Department of Justice put before Comcast as the merger threatened to spread its tentacles through both distribution and content, the company on Thursday installed  lawyer Lynn Charytan -- a former legal colleague of high-ranking FCC operative William Lake -- as vice president of a new group, Legal Regulatory Affairs. 

MOVING FORWARD...

Something many observers didn’t factor into the original merger deal was the increasing retransmission reapings from payments for programming from various cable operators. 

Those monies are starting to ramp up and throw off free cash that the company has used to pay more than $900 million in dividends, further boosting the stock. “With that tailwind of retransmission,” says Amobi, “and then you throw in the digital revenues from the likes of Netflix and Amazon and Hulu, you begin to see that NBC, will [accrue profit]  and should be OK in the long term.”

A variety of other businesses the emerged company is pursuing demonstrate some efficiencies of scale:

>> In early December, SpectrumCo -- a joint venture between Comcast, Time Warner Cable and Bright House Networks -- was sold to Verizon Wireless, netting Comcast a profit of around $1.4 

billion for its 63 percent share. Not only is that a nice score, noted Comcast Cable President Neil Smit, together with various Wi-Fi plans it gives the company a leg up on the mobile market, especially the key Xfinity services. 

“This allows them to strike a deal that could enable Comcast to bundle Verizon Wireless 3G and 4G service into the Comcast Triple Play, which could make the bundle potentially more sticky," Amobi said. "A partner like Verizon all of a sudden opens up a lot of possibilities down the road -- so that deal was applauded on Wall Street.”

>> Early this month, Comcast announced a joint deal with Disney to access the Mouse House's content -- including ABC, ESPN, the Disney Channel and their related channels -- for Xfinity subscribers to watch live or on-demand and across multiple platforms. In effect, that sets up a pay wall and helps shoulder the likes of Netflix and other middlemen out of the lucrative market for the Disney programming.

>> Comcast is party to what’s dubbed the “TV Everywhere” initiative, enabling cable subscribers to access their television favorites via online  streaming, which innovation it’s been leading with others like Apple’s iPad juggernaut.

“So they're not sitting around on the cable system side waiting for Netflix and others to eat their lunch,” said Amobi. "You've got the whole theme of vertical integration, which, really, I doubted could  come to fruition so quickly when the deal was announced."

Even the sober-sided Brian Roberts betrayed some enthusiasm on that one: “And so very, very exciting for the road map of innovation, when you move the brains out of the box into the cloud.”

For someone who came late to the content party as the industry version of a work-boots-on-the-ground cable guy -- necessary but not that inspiring -- Roberts, and his suitcase of synergy derived from Comcast, is definitely showing some moves.

This post originally appeared at The Wrap

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FINALLY: Business Insider Is Launching Its Careers Vertical!

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Vivian GiangWelcome to the latest addition to Business Insider, a vertical devoted entirely to Careers.

We already cover business strategy on War Room, and now we're focusing on what YOU need to do personally to make it in this competitive economy.

We'll provide you with advice from top career experts and offer first-hand accounts about what it's like to have a specific job—such as being a member of the Teach For America Corps—or to launch a company.

We'll reveal the psychology behind success at work, like how to become a charismatic leader and be more innovative, as well as résumé and interviewing tips. We'll also keep a sharp eye out for the latest studies and research to help you stay at the top of your professional game. Our single goal is to provide you with a blueprint for success.

I'm Vivian Giang, and I'll be your guide to everything career-related. Drop me a line with story ideas at vgiang@businessinsider.com and be sure to follow us on Twitter @BI_Careers.

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HBO Just Released The First Trailer For 'Game of Thrones' Season 2

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game-of-thrones-Sean-Bean

HBO just released a teaser trailer for "Game of Thrones," their hit medieval drama which pits noble families fighting for control of mythical land Westeros.

And, it looks like things are about to get bloody.

Lady Stark wields a knife to Littlefinger, Joffrey threatens Sarsa with a bow, and don't mess with Tyrion—played by Emmy and Golden Globe winner Peter Dinklage—because he knows "how the game is played."

The show is based on the "A Song of Ice and Fire" best-selling novels by George R.R. Martin.

"Game of Thrones" returns to HBO April 1. Watch the trailer below: 
 

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NYC: If You're Paying Full Price For Broadway Tickets This Winter, You're Cheating Yourself

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Broadway Lion KingIf your thinning cash flow has kept you out of New York City's pricey Theater District this year, winter is primetime for scoring major discounts on tickets.

For starters, you might want to hop on the Broadway Week train.

Through this Friday, 20 blockbuster Broadway musicals and plays are offering two-for-one tickets for theatergoers.

It's the third Broadway Week promotion for the city, which sold 38,000 tickets during the last campaign in September.

You won't find the perpetually sold-out Book of Mormon on the list, but there are a ton of classics like "Chicago" and "The Lion King", along with new hits like Sex And The City alum Cynthia Nixon's widely-acclaimed turn in "Wit".

That's not to say we'll judge you for taking your date to the new Spider Man musical either. 

You've got till Feb. 4 to nab tickets for these shows over at NYCGo.com.

If you're looking for a more intimate setting, here's good news: Off-Broadway Week starts today, Jan. 30.

Through Feb. 17, dozens of off-Broadway shows like "Rent" and "Avenue Q" are offering the same two-for-one deal. See a full list of shows here.

Now, if you're willing to weather the cold and hedge your bets, there's a way to score even better discounts on shows this month. Check out the 20-for-20 promotion going on right now.

For off-Broadway plays, theaters are offering all leftover tickets for $20 to people who line up 20 minutes before showtime through Feb. 6. The best part is you're not roped into buying a pair of tickets if you only want one. 

20-for-20 has about the same line-up as the Off-Broadway week promotion, and it could be the better bargain.

I managed to score fourth-row seats to "Rent" that would have cost twice as much if I'd picked them up through the Off-Broadway Week promotion.  

Can't afford the theater? See 10 free and cheap things to do this winter >

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How Groupon Is Trying To Save Katherine Heigl's Movie Career

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Katherine Heigl

After Katherine Heigl traded in her "Grey's Anatomy" scrubs for "27 Dresses," the actress is faced with "The Ugly Truth" of the current state of her film career.

After 2007's box office success "Knocked Up," Heigl has appeared in only five films—and we just listed the three most popular.

And thanks to Groupon, Heigl's latest film, "One for the Money," can ironically be seen by two people for less than the price of one ticket.

In some cities, the mark down to see Heigl as a gun-toting brunette in the crime comedy was up to 60 percent off of original ticket prices.

But even with the Groupon deal, Heigl's flick came in third at the box office over the weekend—falling behind Liam Neeson's "The Grey" which took the number one spot, and Kate Beckinsale's "Underworld: Awakening," which has been in theaters for over a week.

But you know it's a bad sign when the film studio won't even screen the project early for critics.

This isn't the first time Lionsgate, the studio responsible for Heigl's latest starring vehicle, which currently has a 3 percent rating on Rottentomatoes.com, has promoted their projects with a Groupon deal.

Last March, the studio also went the discount route with Matthew McConaughey's "Lincoln Lawyer," which debuted in fourth place and earned $13.2 million at the box office.

"One for the Money" has made $11.8 million.

With zero films in the development pipeline for the actress, looks like Heigl should start saving up her "Money."

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