- Stephen Spielberg may be looking to channel his wrath.
Specifically, the legendary producer and director is reportedly negotiating with the estate of author John
Steinbeck to secure rights to his classic novel "The Grapes of
Wrath." The filmmaker and DreamWorks are trying to finalize the deal,
although Spielberg's spokesman has cautioned that these are simply
"discussions at this point." The book was written in 1939 and adapted
for the screen in 1940 by John Ford, whose film earned seven Oscar nominations
– including one for Ford as best director. The iconic Henry Fonda starred as
Tom Joad, whose poor farming family was forced to leave Oklahoma during the
Great Depression for California in hope of a better life. Anyone with
access to a calendar can see that the
75th anniversary of the novel is approaching next year, meaning it’s a perfect
chance to revive the film and rake in loads of cash in the process. Even more
glaring is the fact that there hasn’t been a remake or sequel for the first
movie and it has now been 73 years and counting. By modern Hollywood standards,
73 years in Hollywood times with no remake of a successful film is like 7,000
years for any normal human being. There is no guarantee that Spielberg will
secure the rights to the novel, as he is reportedly one of many who wanted to
buy the rights to the project. Interestingly enough, even if Spielberg does win
the bidding war, he is not expected to be in the director's chair for this one.
Most industry observers believe he will serve only in a producing capacity and
will leave the directing up to someone else……..
- The winds of monarchial change are blowing across
northern Europe. Two months after Queen Beatrix of
the Netherlands stepped down after 33 years and was succeeded by her son, King
Willem-Alexander, Belgium's King Albert II has announced that he will abdicate
the throne and will be succeeded by his son, Crown Prince Philippe, on July 21.
The decision comes at a time that coincides with the nation's independence day
celebration on July 21 for the kingdom of 10.5 million people. The 79-year-old
Albert gave a televised address to the nation on Wednesday to address a wave of
speculation that he would be stepping down in favor of his son, Philippe, 53.
By stepping down, he becomes the first of the six monarchs in Belgium history
to abdicate the throne. In his speech, he hit all of the expected notes and
benchmarks that a leader who knows he has aged out of his role must hit when
relinquishing his throne. Albert said it was time to "pass on the torch to
the next generation,'' and that Philippe was "well-prepared" to
succeed him and cited his health as his reason for stepping down. By leaving
power on July 21, Albert will not hit the two-decade mark of his rule. He
became the sixth king in Belgium's history in August of 1993 after his brother,
King Baudouin, died at 62 and has remained in the largely ceremonial post ever
since. Having two rulers retire from power in the span of months has sparked
thoughts that perhaps Queen Elizabeth II of England might do the same, but she
has shown no inclination to do so thus far…….
- The dream lives again. The PED-using baseball nomad known
as Manny Ramirez, a.k.a. Man-Ram, is once again poised to make a return to
Major League Baseball. After two suspensions for PED use and quitting without
telling his team following the second suspension, Ramirez made a failed attempt
to earn his way back to the majors in 2012. He played in the minors for
Oakland before asking for his release last June and went on to play this season
for Taiwan's EDA Rhinos of the Chinese Professional Baseball League. The
12-time All-Star batted .352 with eight home runs, 13 doubles and 43 RBIs
before he was removed from the Rhinos' active roster on June 19 at his request.
It seemed Ramirez was intent on playing in the majors again at the age of 41
and as of Wednesday, one MLB team was willing to give him a chance to earn his
way back. The Texas Rangers took what general manager Jon Daniels called a
"flier" on Ramirez, agreeing to terms on a minor league deal with the
troubled slugger. Ramirez was assigned to Triple-A Round Rock and reported to
the team on Thursday. The Rangers are in contention in the AL West and also in
need of a right-handed bat. According to Daniels, the team plans to monitor
Ramirez's progress and then see whether there is any reason to give him an
opportunity in the big leagues. "He has to earn our consideration
first," Daniels said. The seven top-six finishes Ramirez has amassed in
the Most Valuable Player balloting and his career numbers of a .312 batting average, .411 on-base
percentage and .585 slugging percentage that make him one of six players in
major league history with minimums in those categories, will do him no good now.
If he does make it back to the major-league level, he will look a bit different
when he gets there. As part of his deal, Ramirez has agreed to abide by the
Rangers' minor league rules, which means he will have to cut his hair.
"We'll see what happens," Daniels said. Here’s hoping Man-Ram in all
of his kookiness gets back to MLB for the first time since 2011……..
- The hunt is on for the thirsty/greedy person or persons
responsible for thieving more than 4,500 bottles of Spirit of the Tsars Golden Vodka from
a Miami area customs warehouse. The pricey booze, an amber liquid distilled in
and imported from Ukraine, retails for $249 in liquor stores but can fetch
$1,200 a bottle at trendy clubs. The company is offering a $5,000 reward to
anyone with information about the vodka’s whereabouts, just enough to buy four
bottles of its overpriced product at a South Beach club on a Saturday night. According
to Spirit of the Tsars, last month thieves grabbed 752 cases of their booze by
punching a case-sized hole through a concrete wall at the warehouse. That allowed
those responsible to steal a total of $1.1 million in vodka, giving the company
a chance to say that its product has become "the newest Holy Grail for
collectors and connoisseurs." "We call it golden vodka for a
reason. It's an amber color, a golden color. It's aged in cognac barrels for
three years," said Mark Owens, Spirits of the Tsars Vodka president. The
bottles containing the liquor are made in France and a portion of the label is
a 24-carat gold veneer, giving even more value to the product. Owens believes the
thieves knew what precisely what they were after when they hit the warehouse on
June 22. The hole they created in the wall was right where the vodka was being
stored and once inside, they ignored other high-value items in the warehouse,
including art, precious metals and cars. "I couldn't believe it at first,
that they actually broke through a concrete wall. They obviously crawled
through that hole and handed the vodka out to their team," Owens added in
a company statement. A surveillance video from the warehouse showed the thieves
arriving in a glass-roofed Mercedes sedan about 11 p.m. and later revealed a panel
van and a large box truck carting off the last of the vodka about 4:30 a.m.
Losing 4,500 bottles takes a big chunk out of Owens’ American business, as only
5,000 bottles of the vodka are produced for export to the United States every
year. Those with tips about the theft can call in an anonymous tip to
786-629-2022, the company's reward flier says. If their information pans out,
their reward will be paid in cash…….
- Cockatoos: nature’s safe crackers or just a
misunderstood species of bird? According to the University of Oxford, the University of
Vienna and the Max Planck Institute, cockatoos can pick their way through a series of locks to reach a reward. Professor
Alex Kacelnik from the University of Oxford's department of zoology and his
team presented 10 birds with a box containing a cashew nut treat that could
only be accessed by removing five different interlocking devices. One of the
birds in the study, named Pipin, solved the complex mechanical puzzle
unassisted within two hours. Pipin proved to be the smartest of the flock, as several
other birds mastered the task after observing peers or being presented with the
locks incrementally. The process of reaching the nut involved removing a pin,
then a screw and a bolt before turning a wheel and moving a latch sideways. "The
progress of the birds towards the solution is unaffected by the fact that the
goal is very distant," Kacelnik said. "We cannot prove that the birds
understand the physical structure of the problem as an adult human would, but
we can infer from their behavior that they are sensitive to how objects act on
each other." The results of the project indicated that once a bird had
mastered how to remove a lock, it could remove it again without any error. To
further probe the birds’ cognitive skills, the researchers mixed up the order
of the lock sequence and removed or disabled some of the devices. When the
sequence was modified, the birds responded by working on the new first step to
unlock the box, rather than applying the technique they had learned before. "That
tells us they are capable of innovating new sequences without any further
trial," Kacelnik added. "They are not simply repeating what has been
rewarded before, but they are creating new series of actions without any
practice." The birds in the study are a species of Indonesian parrot known
for their sociability and playful, inquisitive behavior. Now they have a reputation for being excellent thieves as well……..
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