Posted on Friday, February 25th, 2011 by Angie Han
As someone who grew up on Beetlejuice and The Nightmare Before Christmas, I almost find it difficult to imagine Tim Burton as anything other than the world-famous director he is today. But every success story has to start somewhere, and once upon a time, Burton was just an ordinary teenager hoping to make something of his art. As a high schooler in 1976, he sent his completed children’s book, The Giant Zlig, to Walt Disney Productions along with a cover letter asking them to consider publishing it. He got a very gentle rejection in response. Read the letters and see images from The Giant Zlig after the jump.
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When director Paul Thomas Anderson announced that his next film was going to be about Scientology, everyone’s ears perked up. We love a good scandal and Scientology is full of them. Unfortunately, it doesn’t look like that film is going to happen any time soon. Another major director though, Paul Haggis, has already told his Scientology story and it might be out this summer…in bookstores everywhere.
Haggis, who won two Oscars for Crash was a member of the Church of Scientology for 35 years before publicly defecting in 2009. He’s been mum on the subject ever since, reportedly saving his thoughts for an upcoming profile in The New Yorker by Lawrence Wright. According to Gawker, that article has actually spawned a book called The Heretic of Hollywood: Paul Haggis vs.The Church of Scientology that will explore the history of the Church “through Haggis’s eyes” including “the appeal of Scientology, especially to talented and ambitious members of the entertainment industry.” There are accusations and more after the break. Read More »
It Books has published Simpsons World – The Ultimate Episode Guide: Seasons 1-20 written by Simpsons creator and executive producer Matt Groening. The 1200 page hardcover book features comprehensive episode synopses and information of every episode of the first 20 seasons of The Simpsons.
Look what you get in this cromulent compendium! Comprehensive episode synopses for 20 seasons of Simpsons, including 128 new gut-busting episodes never before covered! Stuff you may have missed! More screen shots than ever before! Over four hundred character profiles! Every chalkboard phrase Bart has ever written! Nifty new art throughout! Quotes and quips from all your favorite characters! Two or more jam-packed pages devoted to every episode! As well as: Every couch gag, A complete filmography of “Itchy & Scratchy”, Every “D’oh” or “Mmm…” Homer has ever uttered, Every song ever sung by the citizens of Springfield, Every marquee message from the First Church of Springfield, A tribute to star of stage, screen, infomercials, and filmstrips, Troy McClure, The largest collection of Krusty the Clown merchandise outside of Bart’s bedroom
A complete list of celebrity guest stars, and much, much more… Packaged in the ultimate wraparound slipcase and weighing in at a hefty 8.8 pounds, Simpsons World The Ultimate Episode Guide (Seasons 1-20) is meant for reading, not throwing!
Amazon is selling the book for $90, 40% off the retail list price of $150. Hit the jump to see some sample pages.
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You probably know Rhett Reese as the co-screenwriter of Zombieland. Along with his writing partner Paul Werneck, Rhett have since worked on a few drafts of G.I. Joe 2, Marvel’s Deadpool, a Venom Spider-Man spin-ff movie, and a sequel to Zombieland. If that wasn’t enough, Reese has also been hard at work writing his first novel, a black comedy/horror book titled Anxiety.
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One thing is for sure, LucasFilm knows how to produce some awesome books. Their latest is a collection of Star Wars-inspired art called “Star Wars: Visions“.
Just as George Lucas drew upon the work of N. C. Wyeth and Norman Rockwell for his own visual inspiration, he has now invited more than 100 well-known and promising artists to draw upon the entire Star Wars galaxy for inspiration. Star Wars: Visions collects these magnificent artworks for the first time. Featuring pieces by renowned artists such as Amano, Allan R. Banks, Harley Brown, Gary Carter, James Christensen, Michael Coleman, Kinuko Craft, Jim Dietz, Phillipe Druillet, Donato Giancola, Ann Hanson, H. R. Giger, Daniel Greene, Ron Kleeman, Arantzazu Martinez, Syd Mead, Moebius, Paul Oxborough, Alex Ross, Anthony J. Ryder, Dolfi Stoki, William Stout, Dan Thompson, Julie Bell and Boris Vallejo, Scott Waddell, and Jamie Wyeth, Star Wars: Visions is a breakthrough tribute to the worldwide inspiration that is Star Wars.
Check out a sample of the art to be included in the book after the jump. The 176-page book hit stores on November 1st 2010, and is available for preorder on Amazon now for only $26.40 (34% off the $40 msrp).
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How awesome is the AMC television series Mad Men? The fictional drama is beginning to jump off the small screen into reality. If you’ve been watching the television series, then you know that John Slattery‘s character Roger Sterling has been writing his memoir titled Sterling’s Gold.Well it appears that Grove Press is actually going to publish the 176-page hardcover book on November 16th 2010. You can now preorder Sterling’s Gold on Amazon for $11.43 (33% off the $17 cover price). Here is the official product description from the back cover:
Advertising pioneer and visionary Roger Sterling, Jr., served with distinction in the Navy during World War II, and joined Sterling Cooper Advertising as a junior account executive in 1947. He worked his way up to managing partner before leaving to found his own agency, Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce, in 1963. During his long and illustrious career, Sterling has come into contact with all the luminaries and would-be luminaries of the advertising world, and he has acquired quite a reputation among his colleagues for his quips, barbs, and witticisms. Taken as a whole, Roger Sterling’s pithy comments and observations amount to a unique window on the advertising world—a world that few among us are privileged to witness first—hand—as well as a commentary on life in New York City in the middle of the twentieth century.
Read more after the jump.
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When Disney purchased Marvel everyone thought of the ways the Mouse would incorporate and promote Marvel characters but few thought of the flip side. One of the first examples is yet another piece of TRON: Legacy marketing (and there has been a lot). Several of Marvel’s most popular comic book characters – Spider-Man, Iron Man, Wolverine, etc – are set to be “TRON-ified” on variant covers of upcoming issues. After the break, we’ve got all the covers as well as which issues you need to buy and their release dates. Read More »
Warner Bros has announced the release of the Danny Elfman & Tim Burton 25th Anniversary Music Box, a limited edition set which celebrates 25 years of creative collaboration between the duo. The box set features more than 19 hours of music, including fan-requested expansions of 13 film scores (in CD cases featuring artwork created by Burton), plus seven hours of previously unreleased music, a Tim Burton-designed USB skeleton Flash Drive containing MP3s of the whole collection, and a bonus DVD featuring an exclusive conversation between Elfman and Burton.
Not only that, but the set which is limited to only 1000 copies, includes Danse Macabre: 25 Years of Danny Elfman and Tim Burton, a “meticulously researched, lavishly illustrated 250+ page fine linen-wrapped hardbound book, entitled with gold foil stamping, and featuring a foreword by Johnny Depp. The book also includes rare photos, stories, and interviews from the cast and crew behind the scenes of this classic music”. The set is boxed in something that is “designed to evoke a treasure chest found in a mysterious attic” — a large scale, tin-covered music box complete with an embedded music chip playing “The Music Box Suite” arranged and performed by Elfman specifically for this historic collection. And to literally top it all off, with a flip of the lid, a delightful working zoetrope is revealed featuring strips of art and photos by Burton and Elfman that come to animated life with a spin.
The set will be released in December 2010 and is available for preorder on www.elfmanburton.com for $499.99 (plus shipping). Looks amazing, but I can’t justify that high of a price. And at that price it should come signed by both Elfman and Burton (the set is hand numbered but not signed). Check out photos and more information after the jump.
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