Screen Icon Elizabeth Taylor Dead at 79

Academy Award-winning actress Elizabeth Taylor, a forever monument to the power and majesty of the Golden Age of Hollywood, has died of complications from congestive heart failure. She was 79.

A striking beauty whose personal life held as much interest as her films, Taylor captivated audiences in some of the most iconic films of the '40s, '50s and '60s, including National Velvet, Giant, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Butterfield 8, Who's Afraid of Virgina Woolf and Cleopatra.

Born in London, England, Taylor and her family moved to Los Angeles when she was seven. By age 10, she had her first screen role and the following year she appeared in 1942's Lassie Come Home, a film that would lead MGM to make her a contract player. In 1943, she appeared in National Velvet and became a star at age 12. Velvet grossed a then-astronomical $4 million and made Taylor a Hollywood staple for the next three decades.

Taylor won her first Oscar for 1960's Butterfield 8 and 20th Century Fox capitalized on that success by offering her the title role in 1963's Cleopatra, a film that would not only pay her a record million-dollar salary but introduce her to future-husband Richard Burton.

Burton and Taylor became Hollywood royalty, were married for 10 years, had a child and then divorced, only to remarry a year later and then divorce again.

In later years, Taylor become a much-publicized companion of singer Michael Jackson and a crusader for AIDS awareness after the death of friend Rock Hudson.

If you haven't seen Miss Taylor's work, do yourself a favor and seek out any of the aforementioned titles. One of my favorites is Cat on a Hot Tin Roof with Paul Newman and Burl Ives.

New Strokes Album Amazon Mp3 Deal Of The Day

The Strokes new album, Angles, is the Amazon's Mp3 Deal of the Day - 10 tracks for only $3.99.

Sounds pretty good at first listen.

And Happy Birthday to William Shatner. Still going strong at 80.

Top 5 Irish Gangster Flicks

Happy St. Pat's. And Happy Birthday to my favorite Leprechaun Kelly who turns 20 and a half again today.

I don't know about you, but we like to celebrate the day with a tasty breakfast Shepherd's Pie, a nice corned beef and cabbage dinner and a good Irish gangster flick over a cold Guinness.

The Italians get all the credit for the best gangster films but the Irish can crack heads with the best of them. Below are five of my favorites.


1. Miller's Crossing ( 1990 ) - Not only the best Irish mob film ever, the best Coen Brothers' film period. The language. The look. Albert Finney. Gabriel Byrne. "Danny Boy" playing over machine-gun battles. Enough said.

2. The Departed ( 2006 ) - Martin Scorsese's Oscar-winning tale of two moles, one an undercover cop ( Leonardo DiCaprio ) who infiltrates an Irish mobster's (Jack Nicholson ) operation, the other a state police investigator ( Matt Damon ) working for said mobster, is a great cat-and-mouse thriller with a slam-bang finale that hits you like a Mack truck.

3. Road to Perdition ( 2002 ) - A '30s-era Irish mob enforcer (an underrated Tom Hanks) seeks revenge against his former employers (Daniel Craig and Paul Newman) for the murder of his wife and son. Great Oscar-winning cinematography. Great score. Great film.

4. State of Grace ( 1990 ) - Undercover cop Sean Penn returns to his old Hell's Kitchen stomping grounds to put away childhood friend Gary Oldman and his crimelord brother Ed Harris. Great shoot-out finale in an Irish pub.

5. Mystic River ( 2003 ) - Ok, not a true gangster flick per se, but Clint Eastwood's Oscar-winning story of three Boston boyhood friends, one a former gangster (Sean Penn) seeking the truth about his daughter's murder, remains a gritty crime thriller that compliments the occasion nicely.


Honorable Mentions: The Friends of Eddie Coyle ( 1973) , Gangs of New York ( 2002) , The Town ( 2010 )

Star Wars Ep 1 3D Gets A Release Date

Lucasfilm announced today that Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace will return to theaters in 3D on Feb 10, 2012.

Though not confirmed by Lucasfilm, the general word is that Ep II - VI will follow in order, one per year, through 2017, the 40th anniversary of the original film.

While much has been made over the general lack of quality films converted to 3D have displayed, you have to believe Lucasfilm will take the utmost pride and care in making sure all six episodes look nothing short of amazing.

Should be fun. Any chance to see the original trilogy on the big screen, 2D or 3D, is fine by me.

Oscar: The Morning After

Interesting Oscar telecast last night. First, congratulations to The King's Speech on its four awards, including Original Screenplay, Director, Actor and Picture. It's nice to actually have a film worthy of being called Best Picture again. I think the Academy forgot what that title meant the last couple of years.

No real surprises as far as awards. Now the program, that's a different story. Some observations below.

Can't say I was thrilled at the prospect of James Franco and Anne Hathaway hosting this year's show. Unfortunately, neither did anything last night to change that. Franco looked bored throughout the broadcast and Hathaway gushed over every presenter she introduced like some starstruck teenager. This isn't the MTV Movie Awards or the Golden Globes, it's the Academy Awards. Is it so hard to find an experienced host that can actually engage and entertain an audience? More on that in a second.

Nothing against Kirk Douglas, but was he really the best choice to present Best Supporting Actress? Where was last year's Best Supporting Actor, Christoph Waltz? Probably stuck in security behind last year's Best Supporting Actress, Monique.

It's obvious from his standing ovation that the Academy still loves Bill Crystal. I was seriously hoping he was going to do an intervention and take over hosting the show. He's still the best they've ever had. No one knows how to engage and entertain an audience like Crystal. Billy, other than 700 Sundays, I don't know what you've been doing for the past decade, but it's time for a comeback.

Was it really appropriate for Hilary Swank to assist Kathryn Bigelow in presenting Best Director? If Bigelow didn't want to speak, at least have another director present the award.

The Irving G. Thalberg Award is presented from time to time to individuals who have consistently maintained a high quality of film production over their careers. Past winners include Cecil B. DeMille, Walt Disney, Bill Wilder, Robert Wise and Steven Spielberg. This year's recipient was Francis Ford Coppola. This award is a big deal and deserves to be a an important part of the broadcast, not quickly referenced in highlights from a dinner three months ago.

One more plea, Billy. The Oscars need you. We need to party like it's 1991.

2011 Oscar Predictions

Picture: The King's Speech
Director: Tom Hooper, The King's Speech
Actor: Colin Firth, The King's Speech
Actress: Natalie Portman, Black Swan
Supporting Actor: Christian Bale, The Fighter
Supporting Actress: Melissa Leo, The Fighter
Original Screenplay: Christopher Nolan, Inception

Enjoy the show on Sunday. Check back Monday for a review and to see if I got any right.

It Can't Be Business As Usual For Book Chains Anymore

Sad day for the bookselling business. After weeks of speculation, Borders Group announced today it has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection and will close 200 stores by the end of April.

As someone who worked in the book trade for 15 years, this really should be a final wake-up call to the industry that the current superstore model just doesn't work anymore. Why would consumers want to pay full price on a $25 hardcover when they can get it on Amazon for $15 without paying a silly membership fee.

Today's book chains are more or less showrooms for Amazon. You go in, get a cup of coffee, browse the aisles, write down your titles, go home, order online and save 20-50%. About the only thing I ever buy at a superstore is a magazine or a mass-market paperback, and that's if I have a 30% coupon.

Back in the '80s and early '90s, chains like B. Dalton, Crown, Bookstar and even Borders discounted everything. You felt like they actually cared for their customers. But as the superstores grew, so did the overhead and soon we were back to paying the full list price. Oh, but if we bought their rewards card we could save 10%. Why should we have to pay anything to save money?

Buying anything, whether it's groceries, clothes or books, is all about price. We work hard for our money and have countless living expenses. When we do part with our limited disposable income it's not going to be for the full list price. Not when someone else has it for less.

Look at the music chains. Tower Records and Wherehouse all failed because they didn't adapt to a changing environment. Granted, digital sales were a major factor, but when you're selling CDs for $18.99 and Amazon has the same one for $9.99, your not going to stay in business for very long.

The book chains will say the turnaround is due to to emerging digital market, not price of product. That may be a small piece of the puzzle but readers, real readers, still prefer a physical book in their hands - the weight, smell of the paper, turning the page, discovering a title via an engaging cover on an actual bookshelf. I'm sorry but eReaders just don't offer the kind of intimacy true book lovers crave. Never will.

So should the remaining chains just pack up and let Amazon rule the day? No, bookstores are still viable. They just need to respect their customers more. Eliminate the pesky membership cards and go back to to offering discounts across the board - mass market, trade, hardcover. The sheer volume of stock you order from wholesalers and publishers keeps your cost per unit low. Pass some of the savings on to consumers. If you're store overhead can't support it, close stores. You don't need three in a five-mile radius. Give readers a reason not to go home and order from Amazon. Your discounts may not be as deep, but something's better than nothing and readers will respect the effort. Make going to a bookstore special again.