Steven Spielberg

Bacon/Sedgwick The Latest Madoff Victims - Posted December 30, 2008
Kevin Bacon and wife Kyra Sedgwick (who is now with "The Closer" definitely the bread-winner in that household) were taken by Bernie Madoff and his $50 billion Wall Street swindle, New York mag reports. They join an illustrious list of such Hollywood royalty as Steven Spielberg and Jeffrey Katzenberg. But FBLA can't... [FishBowlLA]

Is DreamWorks In The Middle Of A Nightmare? - Posted December 17, 2008
DreamWorks, in its new form with co-chairs Steven Spielberg and Stacey Snider, is having a tough time raising the money to cover their half of the deal with India's Reliance Big Entertainment, according to Variety. Reliance will ideally put up $500 million against $750 million that DreamWorks would raise. But credit issues... [FishBowlLA]

Bernie Madoff's Ponzi Victims Include Mort Zuckerman - Posted December 15, 2008
As if newspapers didn't have enough to worry about already! Probably by now you're at least somewhat aware of Bernie Madoff — he may have got a little lost in all the Blago of last week but some background here — he's the Wall St. investor to billionaires whose recent... [FishBowlNY]

Spielberg One Of Many Victims Of Madoff Swindle - Posted December 15, 2008
Steven Spielberg was one of many ultra-rich Hollywood and Wall Street types whom Bernard Madoff scammed in a $50 billion Ponzi scheme, Associated Press reports. The alleged victims who sunk cash into veteran Wall Street money manager Bernard Madoff's investment pool include real estate magnate Mortimer Zuckerman, the foundation of Nobel laureate... [FishBowlLA]

DreamWorks 2.0 Announces First Deal -- The Walter and Laurie Show - Posted November 13, 2008
DreamWorks 2.0 announced its first deal in its new incarnation with India's Reliance Big Entertainment money: the studio will work in a two-year deal with former production heads (and producers) Walter Parkes and Laurie MacDonald, Variety says. Production pact is the company's first since principals Stacey Snider and Steven Spielberg left Paramount... [FishBowlLA]

Spielberg And Will Smith May Re-Do A Korean Epic - Posted November 7, 2008
Will Smith and Steven Spielberg may enact their first partnership on the remake of a Korean thriller, Chan Wook Park's "Oldboy," for DreamWorks and Universal Pictures, Variety says. The film would mark one of the earlier DreamWorks/Universal efforts in the new deal between the two studios. DreamWorks will secure the remake rights... [FishBowlLA]

Mamet, Rudin, Nichols And Their Egos To Take On Kurosawa - Posted October 29, 2008
Screenwriter David Mamet, producer Scott Rudin and director Mike Nichols may well end up not just remaking another Kurosawa epic "High and Low" for Miramax Films, but becoming the subjects. The storage-closet egos of this trio are likely to take center stage. Talk about "Rashomon" revisited. And don't forget Martin Scorsese, who originally... [FishBowlLA]

Geffen Leaving DreamWorks: Nobody Knows Why - Posted October 27, 2008
DreamWorks partner and resident billionaire David Geffen has decided to bow out of DreamWorks 2.0, the new DreamWorks production arm financed by Indian money through Reliance Inc., according to the New York Times. The Times says that co-partner Steven Spielberg "actually stammered a bit in trying to explain his erstwhile business partner's... [FishBowlLA]

Stiller May Direct 'Chicago 7' - Posted October 23, 2008
Ben Stiller, who has no relationship to Chicago whatsoever other than having shot a movie or two there, may take the directing reins of Aaron Sorkin's script "The Trial of the Chicago 7," according to the Hollywood Reporter. Stiller has had prelim meetings with DreamWorks about the project, though DreamWorks sources... [FishBowlLA]

EXCLUSIVE: DreamWorks May Stay Put With Universal -- re: Distribution - Posted October 9, 2008
Though no declarations have been made, an inside source at DreamWorks tells FBLA that the company is likely to stay put with Universal for its distribution deal. "We're actually on the Universal lot in the old Amblin studio space," the source said. "It's just easier to maintain with Universal. Paramount will still... [FishBowlLA]

MGM May Be Looking to India for $$$$...Like DreamWorks - Posted October 1, 2008
MGM, with president Mary Parent at the helm, may be following DreamWorks down the money line to India with a deal with Reliance ADA Group, according to the New York Post. MGM needs cash to deal with a $3.7 billion that comes due in 2012. As the studio hasn't had many... [FishBowlLA]

Spielberg Also Gives Cash to Fight Prop. 8 - Posted September 23, 2008
As we reported earlier heartthrob Brad Pitt gave a $100k to combat Proposition 8 that wishes to change the California constitution to ban gay marriage. Now as Ted Johnson of Variety is reporting Steven Spielberg and Kate Capshaw have matched that amount. Variety reports: Spielberg and Capshaw said in a statement, "By... [FishBowlLA]

LAT In 90 Seconds - Posted September 19, 2008
What Would Allah Blog? Jeffrey Fleishman has a terrifically interesting piece about religious and secular Muslims duking it out on Facebook throughout the Middle East. We think our culture wars are hot -- kids in Cairo give secular counterparts wake-up calls so they don't miss the dawn prayers. How Bad Is... [FishBowlLA]

Spielberg wants Bollywood - Posted August 11, 2008
Steven Spielberg, ever the iconoclast, is just saying NO to the studios these days. As has been reported over and over, he's doing a deal with India's Reliance ADA Group. The India contingent is putting up a billion bucks to give Spielberg carte blanche (or however that translates to Indian) to make... [FishBowlLA]

LAT In 90 Seconds - Posted June 19, 2008
Celebrity Splits: Claudia Eller likens the breakup of DreamWorks SKG and Viacom Inc.'s Paramount Pictures to a divorce, saying "the only issue now is who gets custody of the children. Like custody battles anywhere, this one could get nasty." At stake, hundreds of movie projects and employees who work for DreamWorks. Hollywood... [FishBowlLA]

LAT In 90 Seconds - Posted April 21, 2008
Mary McNamara Is Sorry: She knew that George Washington served two terms. She just forgot. We're guessing she will never forget again. Yet Another Actor Who Thinks He Knows More Than He Does: Eddie Izzard is thinking about getting into politics in Europe. Because starring in Valkyrie is all the prep you... [FishBowlLA]

LAT In 90 Seconds - Posted February 8, 2008
Remember Brad Refro? In all the rending of garments and gnashing of teeth over Heath Ledger, Brad Renfro's death has been almost an afterthought (E! couldn't even get his name right). But in this astute culture/profile piece, Rachel Abramowitz makes you remember that another actor suffered a tragic death recently --... [FishBowlLA]

Peter Jackson Heads Back To Middle Earth - Posted December 18, 2007
According to Deadline Hollywood Daily: The Hobbit and its sequel will finally be made back-to-back for New Line and MGM the way they should be -- under the Academy-Award-winning creative vision of Mr. Lord Of The Rings. But Jackson won't be directing this time out, because of his previous commitments to DreamWorks... [FishBowlLA]

Watch the Box: Changes, Ch-ch-ch-changes - Posted October 19, 2007
CMT has ordered 6 episodes of Gone Country. Bobby Brown, Carnie Wilson, Dee Snider, Diana DeGarmo, Julio Iglesias Jr, Maureen McCormick and Sisqo are slated to see if who can become the next big country superstar. Barry Gibb made a country album, you know. So did Ray Charles, not that... [FishBowlLA]

LAT In 90 Seconds - Posted September 21, 2007
More Sumner Madness: Getting sick of Hollywood's least-lovable codger, David Geffen and Steven Spielberg will likely be splitting from Paramount Pictures, less than two years after selling DreamWorks SKG to the Viacom outfit. SAG Elections Results: Incumbent Alan Rosenberg narrowly won a second term as president of the Screen Actors Guild. 72-year-old... [FishBowlLA]

LAT in 90 Seconds - Posted July 19, 2007
A Little Welcome Wagon: Tom Cruise and Will Smith will team up to throw the Beckhams a welcome-to-LA bash on Sunday for 600 of their closest friends, including Oprah Winfrey, George Clooney, Jim Carrey, Anjelica Huston, Steven Spielberg, David Geffen, producers Jerry Bruckheimer and Brian Grazer, Warner Bros. President Alan Horn... [FishBowlLA]

LAT in 90 Seconds - Posted July 13, 2007
Lee Baca's Paris: The Sheriff's Dept. has launched an internal investigation to see whether Paris Hilton got special treatment in the slammer. So far, they've found that she had access to a cordless phone at all hours and that the heiress "received daily visits from top brass at the Lynwood facility... [FishBowlLA]

ClearPlay Gets Rid of Sex, But Keeps Plenty of Hubris Around - Posted May 8, 2007
ClearPlay is very, very proud of itself. After distancing itself from companies that create "family-friendly" versions of hit films, the DVD manufacturer sent a press release with this headline: ClearPlay 1, Steven Spielberg 0 Powerful words, little company. The press release goes on to tout ClearPlay as the stick-our-fingers-in-your-eye victor of a Congressional... [FishBowlLA]

LAT in 90 Seconds - Posted May 8, 2007
The Guy Who Sent Paris To the Slammer: LAT profiles Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Michael T. Sauer, a veteran judge who must have pissed off somebody along the way because he went from trying cases in front of the U.S. Supreme Court to handling misdemeanor DUIs. Wonder what's going to... [FishBowlLA]

Morning Reading List, 05.02.07 - Posted May 2, 2007
Good morning Washington. Dana Perino on life at the top. An ABC release announced that "World News with Charles Gibson" was "the #1 evening newscast among Total Viewers, Households and Adults 25-54 for the week of April 23." Averaging 8.20 million Total Viewers, "World News" outperformed NBC's "Nightly News" by 310,000 Total... [FishBowlDC]

Sundown on Sunset -- The Oscars Edition - Posted February 23, 2007
It's a cross between the Westminster Dog Show and your high school prom, but for whatever reason, we all go ga-ga over the Oscars. Here's a roundup of this week's Oscars coverage: The Envelope put out an Oscars preview issue that included too much Elizabeth Snead... which is to say any at... [FishBowlLA]

Spielberg Gets Cranky - Posted February 5, 2007
According to the NYT, Steven Spielberg is pissed at his Paramount overlords for treating him the way they treat every other director: As food to devour completely.... [FishBowlLA]