Movies, Hollywood, Entertainment and gaming - casino news; WWE, pro wrestling, James Bond Skyfall, WWE Studios...
The Media Man agency has another piledriver and bodyslamming look at the entertainment and pro wrestling industry, plus more hot updates from the casino, gaming, bodyart - bodypainting - creative arts world. Then there's our friends over at Marvel Entertainment and Comic-Con happenings. All this and more from our web of extreme entertainment.
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Everybody wants to dress up as The Avengers this Halloween...
Bring out the body paint and the robot outfit lying at the back of the closet: The Avengers are this year's most popular choices for movie-inspired Halloween costumes.
According to a poll of 1000 film fans by US website Fandango, Thor (Chris Hemsworth), Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr), Captain America (Chris Evans, The Hulk (Mark Ruffalo) and Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) are the hottest movie-inspired outfits for the annual happening. Superheroes are not a big part of Halloween the world over, and Australia is no different.
Even Edward Cullen from Twilight doesn't even get a look-in in the top 10 list, and he's older than most of the comic-book-turned-movie-heroes. Vampires are now aged ok.
Here are the top 10 costumes based on 2012 films according to the poll:
For men:
1. Thor (The Avengers)
2. Iron Man (The Avengers)
3. Captain America (The Avengers)
4. Hulk (The Avengers)
5. Batman (The Dark Knight Rises)
6. James Bond (Skyfall)
7. Ted the Raunchy Teddy Bear (Ted)
8. Gandalf (The Hobbit)
9. Magic Mike (Magic Mike)
10. Wreck-It-Ralph (Wreck-It Ralph)
For women:
1. Catwoman (The Dark Knight Rises)
2. Katniss Everdeen (The Hunger Games)
3. Snow White (Snow White and the Huntsman)
4. Queen Ravenna (Snow White and the Huntsman)
5. Black Widow (The Avengers)
6. Red-Eyed Bella the Vampire (The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 2)
7. Effie Trinket (The Hunger Games)
8. Selene (Underworld: Awakening)
9. Merida (Brave)
10. Alice (Resident Evil: Retribution)
For those considering more classic costumes, Indiana Jones, Batman, Dracula, Dorothy from The Wizard of Oz and Belle from Beauty and the Beast are top of the pile, according to Fandango voters.
Tempted to dress up and need some help? Australians can check out what's on offer from the team at Human Statue Bodyart - for bodyart, superhero costumes and much more.
'Avengers' tops Hollywood-inspired Halloween costumes...
What do Thor, Captain America and Batman have in common? (Hint: we're not talking about their spandex.)
All three characters, along with Iron Man and the Hulk, made the top five guys' picks in this year's list of the most in-demand movie-inspired Halloween costumes, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Meanwhile, women picked Catwoman, who was seen this summer in "The Dark Knight Rises," as their No. 1 costume choice.
Katniss from "The Hunger Games," Snow White and Queen Ravenna from "Snow White and the Huntsman," and "The Avengers' " Black Widow rounded out the top five choices for the ladies.
The survey, conducted by Fandango, is based on more than 1,000 responses and also includes a "classic" costume category, with favorites such as Dorothy from "The Wizard of Oz" and Indiana Jones.
The rest of the top costume picks are more varied, including heart-of-gold hunks ("Magic Mike"), heart-of-gold princesses (Merida from "Brave") and super-specific vampires ("Red-Eyed Bella the Vampire").
Marvel Entertainment Avengers costumes #1..
Considering Marvel’s The Avengers made over $1.5 billion at the box office this year we’re not too surprised to hear the superhero characters will be filling the streets this Halloween. Yes, they even beat Batman. Again.
Fandango surveyed 1000 moviegoers on which film-related costumes they’d be sporting on Halloween. “Among 2012 releases, Avengers characters took the top four spots with males, with Chris Hemsworth’s Thor edging out the other characters from summer’s box office hit for the No. 1 spot. Robert Downey Jr.’s Iron Man came in second, followed by Chris Evans’ Captain America and Mark Ruffalo’s Hulk,” according to The Hollywood Reporter. Batman was #5.
You can probably guess which female characters the women said they were most likely to dress as for Halloween but here are the stats. “Meanwhile, action heroines dominated the women’s choices, with Anne Hathaway’s Catwoman, also from The Dark Knight Rises, coming in at No. 1, followed by Jennifer Lawrence’s Katniss from The Hunger Games. Rounding out the top five were Kristen Stewart’s Snow White and Charlize Theron’s Queen Ravenna from Snow White and the Huntsman and Scarlett Johansson’s Black Widow from Avengers.” Effie Trinket and Merida were also on the list.
When it comes to costumes not originating from the 2012 box office, men favored Indiana Jones while women chose Dorothy from The Wizard of Oz.
Happy Halloweening.
'Skyfall' debuts at No. 1 in 25 foreign countries, grosses $77.7M...
Sony Pictures is spying a hit in its latest James Bond film, as "Skyfall" debuted at No. 1 in 25 foreign countries this weekend.
The film, starring Daniel Craig in the 23rd entry featuring 007, collected an impressive $77.7 million overseas this weekend, according to an estimate from Sony, which is distributing the film internationally. "Skyfall," financed by Sony and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer for just under $200 million, doesn't hit U.S. theaters until Nov. 9.
Of the 25 international markets the film played in this weekend, it easily did best on Bond's home turf, the United Kingdom. The picture sold $32.4 million worth of tickets there — the biggest opening of the year so far and 30% ahead of the opening for Craig's last Bond film, 2008's "Quantum of Solace."
Business was also strong in France, where the movie grossed $9.1 million, and in Russia, where receipts amounted to $8.6 million. The last installment in the franchise, "Solace," ultimately collected $417.7 million abroad — roughly 71% of its worldwide gross.
The strong international bow for "Skyfall" bodes well for its U.S. prospects, especially since early reviews have been exceptionally positive. As of Sunday, the movie had earned a 94% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
Bullet To The Head...
Sylvester Stallone stars in the new film from director Walter Hill.
Shot some time back, but having had its release put back to early 2013, Sylvester Stallone's next movie is Bullet To The Head. In it, he's playing a hitman who teams up with a New York cop, on the hunt of bad people. A simple enough set-up.
What gives us hope that Bullet To The Head might just turn out to be a treat is the presence of director Walter Hill behind the camera. Hill's CV features many favourites, such as The Warriors, 48 Hrs, Last Man Standing, Red Heat and the TV show Deadwood. Hopefully, he can inject the necessary quality into Bullet To The Head, too.
Hulk Hogan Settles Lawsuit With Bubba The Love Sponge, Bubba Issues Statement...
Hulk Hogan has settled his lawsuit with former best friend Todd Alan Clem, a.k.a. Bubba the Love Sponge. Terms of the settlement are confidential, however Clem issued a public apology to Hogan on his radio show this morning.
"I am now convinced that Hulk Hogan was unaware of the presence of the recording device in my bedroom," Clem said. "I am convinced [Hulk Hogan] had no knowledge that he was being taped...It is my belief that Hulk is not involved, and has not ever been involved, in trying to release the video, or exploit it, or otherwise gain from the video's release in any way."
Hogan's attorney, David R. Houston, stated that his client was "pleased" with Bubba telling the truth and apologizing.
Hogan's lawsuit against Gawker.com remains pending, and a hearing for his request for an injunction will be held next Thursday, November 8th. (Wrestling Inc)
WWE Studios and ABC Family Set Christmas Bounty...
WWE Studios and ABC Family today announced that they are partnering to develop an upcoming television movie, Christmas Bounty, for a 2013 world premiere during ABC Family’s popular “25 Days of Christmas” programming event. WWE Superstar, The Miz, is attached to star in a lead role.
Christmas Bounty is said to be an action-filled comedy about a former bounty hunter turned elementary schoolteacher. Determined to have a normal life, and keep her bounty hunter past a secret, she reluctantly returns home for Christmas to help save the family business by catching the one bounty that got away. But when her fiancĂ© follows her home for the holiday, she struggles to hide her wild family business and a bounty hunter ex-boyfriend she thought she’d left behind. Written by Andrew Black & Vivian Lee, and James Berg & Stan Zimmerman, the movie is scheduled to go into production in early 2013.
“We are so pleased to partner with a tremendous network like ABC Family,” said Michael Luisi, President, WWE Studios. “25 Days of Christmas is one of the biggest cable programming events of the year and is the perfect release platform for this engaging holiday title.”
“ABC Family is the destination for holiday programming and is known for great original holiday movies. We’re thrilled to partner with WWE Studios and bring WWE’s passionate fan base to ABC Family and our wonderful 25 Days of Christmas programming event with such a fun movie,” added Kate Juergens, Executive Vice President, Original Series Programming and Development, ABC Family.
The Miz has been a devoted WWE fan his whole life, and most recently starred in WWE’s film The Marine 3: Homefront. MTV’s Real World alum Mike “The Miz” Mizanin competed on the fourth season of WWE’s reality show Tough Enough in hopes of winning a contract to become a WWE Superstar. After finishing as the runner-up, The Miz didn’t give up on his dream and continued to train once the show concluded. Now, his hard work is being rewarded as the reality TV Star with the frat boy looks, sophomoric humor and explosive intensity is living out his dream at the top of the WWE roster.
Comic-Con Staying In San Diego Until 2016...
The annual geek gathering and Mayor Jerry Sanders announced today that Comic-Con has extended its stay in San Diego one more year. Comic-Con had been contractually committed to remain at the San Diego Convention Center until 2015, and event organizers had indicated they might leave their long-time home if an expansion of the Convention Center did not occur. While building has not started, the city today committed to a $500 million plan. Comic-Con was started in 1970 as the Golden State Comic Book Convention. The July gathering now attracts more than 130,000 attendees and has proven an important marketing launchpad for studios and broadcasters. Comic-Con 2013 is scheduled to run July 18-21.
WWE® Declares Quarterly Dividend...
STAMFORD, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- WWE (NYS: WWE) announced that its Board of Directors today declared the Company's regular quarterly dividend of $0.12 per share for all Class A and B shares of common stock. The record date for the dividend will be December 14, 2012, and the payment date will be December 26, 2012.
About WWE
WWE, a publicly traded company (NYS: WWE) , is an integrated media organization and recognized leader in global entertainment. The company consists of a portfolio of businesses that create and deliver original content 52 weeks a year to a global audience. WWE is committed to family friendly entertainment on its television programming, pay-per-view, digital media and publishing platforms. WWE programming is broadcast in more than 145 countries and 30 languages and reaches more than 600 million homes worldwide. The company is headquartered in Stamford, Conn., with offices in New York, Los Angeles, Miami, London, Mumbai, Shanghai, Singapore, Istanbul and Tokyo.
Additional information on WWE (NYS: WWE) can be found at wwe.com and corporate.wwe.com. For information on our global activities, go to http://www.wwe.com/worldwide/.
If you have additional questions, please contact WWE Investor Relations via e-mail at investor.relations@wwecorp.com.
Trademarks: All WWE programming, talent names, images, likenesses, slogans, wrestling moves, trademarks, logos and copyrights are the exclusive property of WWE and its subsidiaries. All other trademarks, logos and copyrights are the property of their respective owners.
Forward-Looking Statements: This press release contains forward-looking statements pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, which are subject to various risks and uncertainties. These risks and uncertainties include, without limitation, risks relating to maintaining and renewing key agreements, including television and pay-per-view programming distribution agreements; the need for continually developing creative and entertaining programming; the continued importance of key performers and the services of Vincent McMahon; the conditions of the markets in which we compete and acceptance of the Company's brands, media and merchandise within those markets; our exposure to bad debt risk; uncertainties relating to regulatory and litigation matters; risks resulting from the highly competitive nature of our markets; uncertainties associated with international markets; the importance of protecting our intellectual property and complying with the intellectual property rights of others; risks associated with producing and travelling to and from our large live events, both domestically and internationally; the risk of accidents or injuries during our physically demanding events; risks relating to our film business; risks relating to increasing content production for distribution on various platforms, including the potential creation of a WWE Network; risks relating to our computer systems and online operations; risks relating to the large number of shares of common stock controlled by members of the McMahon family and the possibility of the sale of their stock by the McMahons or the perception of the possibility of such sales; the relatively small public float of our stock; and other risks and factors set forth from time to time in Company filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Actual results could differ materially from those currently expected or anticipated. In addition, our dividend is dependent on a number of factors, including, among other things, our liquidity and historical and projected cash flow, strategic plan (including alternative uses of capital), our financial results and condition, contractual and legal restrictions on the payment of dividends, general economic and competitive conditions and such other factors as our Board of Directors may consider relevant.
Team Punk Vs. Team Foley Announced For WWE's Survivor Series PPV...
WWE has announced that Team CM Punk vs. Team Mick Foley in a traditional Survivor Series match will main event November's Survivor Series pay-per-view. Here are the teams:
Team Punk: CM Punk, Cody Rhodes, Damien Sandow, The Miz, Alberto Del Rio
Team Foley: Ryback, Randy Orton, Kofi Kingston, Kane, Daniel Bryan
Survivor Series takes place on November 18th from Indianapolis, Indiana.
Hulkamania Online Slot Game Launches...
Keep checking your favorite online casinos for the slot game based on legendary pro wrestler, Hulk Hogan.
Hulk Hogan, is an American professional wrestler, actor and television personality. He is a 12-time world champion and the second longest-reigning WWF Champion of all time. Play as the greatest wrestler of all time in this 20 line slot game, and try to reach the 2 bonus rounds!
Australian casino king James Packer defends Sydney casino bid process; Entering virgin territory...
Tycoon James Packer has defended the way he and the New South Wales Government have gone about securing a second Sydney casino at a new harbour-side development.
Recently the New South Wales Government gave a preliminary tick of approval for the casino-hotel proposal at the Barangaroo site.
The Government says any new casino will not be allowed to start operation until 2019 because of an exclusivity arrangement with Star Casino.
And the project will not go out to tender - although Mr Packer insists he would have won any tender had it been conducted.
Recently Packer told a business dinner in Sydney that he was not just interested in making money, but wanted to build something "special" on the site at Barangaroo.
"I spent a lot of time in casinos as a kid with my dad, and I ended up thinking, f***, this must be a good business," he said.
"My dad was a lot smarter than I am and a lot more successful than I'll ever be, but he got his adrenalin rushes from going to a casino.
"That's the customer that we want. And there are a lot people out there who can afford it, and who you're selling adrenalin to, and they're happy to pay for that experience."
Mr Packer and his gaming company Crown Limited are having an especially good run of luck.
He says the latest project has been given the preliminary tick not because of lobbying, but because it is a really good idea.
This is more than just about money for me. My dad was a larger-than-life figure and I think this is my chance to do something that is special.
"The Labor Party and the Liberal Party were prepared to look at this – or the Labor Party especially – in a bipartisan manner and Premier O'Farrell was willing to say 'let's just do it'," he said.
"There's three stages, and we've got to get through stages two and three ... Premier O'Farrell's made it very clear that we're not done and I don't think we're done, we're a long way from done, but we've had a very good day."
Mr Packer also defended his decision not to wait for a competitive tender process.
"The unsolicited proposal legislation was designed for good ideas and this is a good idea and we took advantage of the legislation that was in place," he said.
"So I think frankly if there was a tender it would be very hard to see how we wouldn't have won it."
So far, the gaming venue has been touted as one that would lure high rollers, especially international tourists, and it would not have pokies.
But Mr Packer says that could change.
"This is not an economic no-brainer," he said.
"You know, there has never been a casino in the world built for a billion dollars without slot machines.
"So we're entering virgin territory, and we're sitting there and saying we'll wait until 2019, as we should."
At the same time as promising to give Sydney an economic kickstart, he says he wants to be the one to leave a legacy in keeping with his father's.
"This is more than just about money for me," he said.
"I am a great believer in Sydney, this country has been incredibly kind to my family, this city has been incredibly kind to my family.
"My dad was a larger-than-life figure and I think this is my chance to do something, you know, that is special."
NWA Response to Australia controversy...
The NWA professional wrestling organization issued a response to the incident that occurred in Australia over the weekend, where their champion Adam Pearce tossed the world title down and quit the organization. 411mania.com reported on Oct. 29 that NWA president R. Bruce Tharpe sent out a press release teasing a new champion.
"The NWA World Heavyweight Title has been vacated. The Board of Governors wish former champion Adam Pearce the best in his future endeavors. There will be a new NWA World Heavyweight Champion crowned on Friday, November 2nd in Clayton, New Jersey."
The entire situation came to a head when champion Adam Pearce defended his world title against Colt Cabana in a "Seven Levels of Hate" challenge series. Pearce said if he lost, he would leave the NWA forever. The series was tied at 3-3 and the seventh match took place last weekend.
However, the NWA had a falling out with their Los Angeles affiliate so Pearce and Cabana moved their match to Australia. Apparently, the decision was for Cabana to win the match and become the new NWA World Champion.
The problem is that the NWA is ran by a governing body and they decide as a voting body who the champion will be. They refused to sanction the match as a title match, therefore proclaiming they would not back Colt Cabana as their champion.
When the match ended, and Cabana won, both men took turns on the microphone to bury the NWA. Cabana said it was an organization ran by idiots who lived in the past and refused to represent them. Pearce tossed down the title saying that when they pushed out Cabana, they pushed him out too.
With both men leaving, it is unclear who the NWA plans to put in the match for the title in November.
bwin.party Gaming Platforms to Be Powered by Lightstreamer Real-Time Technology...
The Lightstreamer Technology Will Be Used by bwin.party, a Global Leader in Digital Entertainment, for Pervasive Live Data Delivery Over the Web
MILAN, ITALY--(Marketwire - Oct. 29, 2012) - Weswit, a global leader in real-time web solutions, today announced that bwin.party (LSE:BPTY), the global online gaming company, has re-selected Lightstreamer to power its world-class gaming and betting platforms.
bwin.party, which has millions of customers worldwide and pro forma net revenue in 2011 of EUR816.0 million, will progressively deploy Lightstreamer in its online poker, casino, and bingo product verticals.
Lightstreamer is a massively scalable solution for pushing live data over WebSockets and other web protocols, to millions of users. With a growing number of customers ranging from start-ups to Fortune 500 companies, the Lightstreamer technology enables the streaming of real-time gaming data and messaging across multiple channels and apps, including HTML5, Android, iPhone, iPad, and many other platforms.
"Lightstreamer was the clear scalable solution to handle the complex real-time data communication required by our state-of-the-art gaming products," commented Tod Martin, bwin.party's Group Technology Director. "We are confident the Lightstreamer solution will provide the highest quality gaming experience for our customers."
"We are honoured that Lightstreamer will be part of bwin.party's online gaming platforms," declared Mauro Fantechi, Co-CEO and Chairman at Weswit. "Being deployed in such well-known, cross-platform gaming environments, our solution keeps confirming its value for the betting and entertainment industries, which are at the forefront of technological development and innovation."
"It is truly exciting to know that bwin.party has selected our Lightstreamer real-time web technology," added Alessandro Alinone, co-CEO and CTO at Weswit.
"Lightstreamer takes care of all the complexity of delivering real-time data over the web, reducing the technological risks and drastically enhancing the pervasiveness of games."
Lightstreamer is made up of a high-performance server, which routes the real-time messages over the web protocols, and a rich set of client libraries, which easily enable any application to send and receive live data in an efficient and reliable way. Lightstreamer can reach any desktop and mobile client, whatever connectivity the user experiences, passing through any kind of proxies and firewalls. Features include bandwidth optimisation, adaptive throttling, data conflation, delta delivery, and total control over the quality of service.
About Weswit
Weswit, with its flagship product Lightstreamer, is a global leader in real-time web streaming solutions. Since the beginning, Weswit has been focused on real-time technologies aimed at making the Web a live environment, and superseding the traditional web paradigm, where any update had to be "pulled" by the client, rather than "pushed" by the server.
Weswit has provided Lightstreamer to a growing number of companies ranging from small size startups to Fortune 500 corporations, including top-tier financial institutions, as well as aerospace, military, energy, gaming, sporting, and entertainment companies. In 2012, Weswit has been recognized as a "Cool Vendor in Application and Integration Platforms" by Gartner, the world's leading information technology research and advisory company.
Weswit has thousands of free users and hundreds of customers worldwide, including Bank of America Merrill Lynch, J.P. Morgan, Morgan Stanley, NASA, Sony Music, Honeywell, SocGen, UBS, IG Group, City Index, ICAP, and Fixnetix.
www.weswit.com
www.lightstreamer.com
About bwin.party digital entertainment
bwin.party digital entertainment plc (LSE:BPTY) is a global online gaming company, formed from the merger of bwin Interactive Entertainment AG and PartyGaming Plc on 31 March 2011. Incorporated, licensed and regulated in Gibraltar, the Group also has licences in France, Italy, Spain and Denmark. With offices in Europe, India, Israel and the US, the Group generated total pro forma revenue of EUR816.0m and pro forma Clean EBITDA of EUR199.3m in 2011. bwin.party commands leading market positions in each of its four key product verticals: online sports betting, poker, casino and bingo with some of the world's biggest online gaming brands including bwin, PartyPoker, PartyCasino and Foxy Bingo. The Group's scale, technology and strong portfolio of games collectively differentiate its customer offer from those of its competitors. bwin.party is a constituent member of the FTSE 250 Index and the FTSE4Good Index Series, which identifies companies that meet globally recognised corporate responsibility standards.
CALIFORNIA ONLINE POKER ASSOCIATION COLLAPSES...
They certainly had noble intentions, but the ride is over for the California Online Poker Association after several million dollars spend and a handful of failed legislative bills caused the organisation to cease its lobbying efforts.
COPA had poured a lot of money into ensuring that online poker was both legalised and regulated in the state, but after spending $1.2 million on its efforts in the first half of 2012 alone without making any headway, it was decided that the group must fold.
Despite outspending companies like Chevron and the California Teachers Association, COPA’s two-year run saw a handful of proposed bills fall through the legislative cracks as interest dissipated or the state could not agree on the financial rewards for those who were involved.
COPA’s operating agreement had stated that the organisation would dissolve if significant progress had not been made by January 2013, but the decision was made to pull the plug ahead of schedule earlier this month, with Ryan Hightower, the group’s spokesman, confirming: “The decision was based upon insufficient progress within the legislature towards the passage of an online poker bill.”
The San Manuel and Morongo tribe who had affiliated themselves with COPA, however, are not giving up the fight just yet and have stated that they believe it is only a matter of time before online gambling happens in California. If legislation does change after 2013’s proceedings, don’t be surprised to see the efforts of COPA and its partners reassessed in light of the new online climate.
Spider-Man Inspired By Masked Luchadors...
In The Amazing Spider-Man, which hit theaters Tuesday, Peter Parker is inspired to create a mask after winding up inside a wrestling ring surrounded by posters of masked luchadors. It is not the first wrestling connection in the movie franchise as in the premiere film released in 2002, Peter enters a wrestling tournament and squares off against a character portrayed by the late Randy "Macho Man" Savage.
Spider-Man movie has strong ties to pro wrestling; "Macho Man" Randy Savage connection...
The Amazing Spider-Man was released during the Independence Day week and so far the flick has performed well.
The Spider-Man franchise is awesome, it is something else which has pro wrestling fans excited about the latest reboot of the superhero franchise.
In the original film, starring Tobey Maguire, we witnessed Spider-Man enter a pro wrestling match in order to win a sum of cash which would allow him to purchase a used car he thought would impress Mary Jane.
Initially, Peter Parker wanted to be called The Human Spider, but Bruce Campbell put a stop to that nonsense and sent him down to the ring as Spider-Man.
As if seeing the man most famously known as Ash Williams wasn't enough, we were treated to a second cameo within seconds.
Spidey was facing off against Bonesaw McGraw, who was played by the late, great Randy "Macho Man" Savage.
It was here where Spidey first faced off against a foe who put him through hell.
This cameo by the legendary "Macho Man" was warmly welcomed by wrestling fans who had missed Savage. The new film, featuring Andrew Garfield as the webby one has gone back to its roots and given Peter Parker another wrestling-based inspiration.
At one point in the film Peter Parker is walking away from a group of hoodlums he had just schooled when he falls through a roof, landing in the middle of a wrestling ring.
When he stood up and looked around he saw what provided him with the inspiration for his signature mask.
The small arena was filled with signs featuring Lucha Libre masks, one of which catches Parker's eye more than the others.
The mask is red with dark-colored designs surrounding the eyes, nearly an exact copy of Spidey's look sans the webbing all over the face area.
Director Marc Webb made a lot of wrestling fans happy by inserting another inspiration for Spider-Man which is based in the world of pro wrestling.
Wrestling fans and comic book fans have a large cross over audience which these film makers have smartly plugged into - further casting their own web, to help increase net profits of course.
Comics and pro wrestling have a few elements in common. They both feature people dressed in fancy outfits, have signature attacks / finishing moves, and have a good VS evil theme for the most part.
Both Marc Webb and Sam Raimi chose to use wrestling as a launching pad for Peter Parker is also another point that wrestling fans are high on.
This latest part of the Hollywood - pro wrestling connection has gone over well and may even lead to the wrestling themes been further cast out in the Hollywood movie web and the movie industry wrestles attempting to get back some of the glory and money it used to make.
Marvel Entertainment Movies: Amazing Spider-Man, Thor 2, The Avengers Et Al Boost Popularity Of Marvel Slot Games...
The Media Man agency reports that Marvel themed online slot games across the network, and featured at partner, PartyCasino.com , are boosting the popularity of the superhero themed online slot games. Bwin.Party currently offers The Incredible Hulk, Thor, The Amazing Spider-Man and Fantastic Four, with more expected to soon hit the popular gaming and entertainment website destination.
WWE Keen To Work With UFC Fighter; Ties To C.M Punk And "Stone Cold" Steve Austin...
Various news media has reported that WWE is interested in working with 35 year old UFC fighter "The American Gangster" Chael Sonnen. There's been mixed reports on whether Sonnen will one day try his hand at pro wrestling, post MMA, following the lead of 'King Mo' who now wrestles in TNA Wrestling. Oh, did you hear... Batista may soon be returning to professional wrestling WWE style - watch this space, and be sure to check him out in the new flick 'The Man With The Iron Fists', where he plays 'Brass Body'.
Back to the talented big mouth fighter Sonnen...he has ties to WWE as he is mates with WWE Champion CM Punk. Punk was ready to accompany Sonnen to the Octagon for a fight several months back but that was nixed.
Sonnen is also close to WWE Hall of Famer Steve Austin. Austin has been bringing Sonnen out to his Broken Skull Ranch in Texas to help him with strength and conditioning training.
Ric Flair may soon return to WWE; Next Monday on Raw?...
Various pro wrestling websites and "dirt sheets" are reporting that folks close to Ric Flair are stating that he will be returning WWE at the October 29th RAW from Charlotte, North Carolina. Many fans are of course hoping this rumour is true.
The general understanding is that he will be getting involved in the storyline with AJ Lee, Vickie Guerrero and John Cena.
Flair will be a most welcome addition to the roster which is thin on depth at the moment, with big name iconic wrestlers such as The Rock, The Undertaker and Brock Lesnar nowhere to be seen. Lots of internet buzz about a potential return to the WWE from Dave Bautista, but nothing's 100% until it happens.
Hardcore and casual fans are excited about seeing Flair work with his modern day equivalent of sorts - Dolph Ziggler. How cool what that be? You can smell the improved TV ratings already.
WWE needs to pull a rabbit or two out of the hat, and the likes of Flair, Bautista, The Rock and The Undertaker are just what the doctor ordered. 'Stone Cold' Steve Austin is also strongly rumoured to make some WWE appearances in 2013, which may or may not result in a fued or match with CM Punk.
Lot's of rumors around and all up it should make a more entertaining that usual Raw, and new WWE program, Main Event, would also do well to see legendary wrestlers return.
Yes fans, there's a lot of buzz and excitement around at the moment, so let's hope that the WWE powers that be do what is required to get some legendary wrestlers back on the active roster.
One more thing for us Ryback fans, and there's millions - Feed Me More!
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Tuesday, October 30, 2012
Monday, October 22, 2012
Robert Pattinson comes to Sydney for The Twilight Saga; Premiere tonight - 22nd October 2012
The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn; Sydney, Australia red carpet premiere...
Profiles
Movies Hollywood Television Entertainment Sydney Australia
ROBERT PATTINSON COMES TO SYDNEY FOR THE TWILIGHT SAGA...
ROBERT PATTINSON TO TOUR SYDNEY FOR THE TWILIGHT SAGA: BREAKING DAWN - PART 2
HOYTS DISTRIBUTION is thrilled to announce that ROBERT PATTINSON, star of the upcoming release of THE TWILIGHT SAGA: BREAKING DAWN - PART 2 will be coming to Australia to promote the final instalment in the global phenomenon.
As part of the Sydney only tour later this month, Robert will be participating in media interviews to support the NOVEMBER 15 release of the film, and will appear at a fan event on Monday 22nd October, details of which will be revealed in the coming weeks.
The astonishing conclusion to the TWILIGHT SAGA franchise, THE TWILIGHT SAGA: BREAKING DAWN - PART 2, illuminates the secrets and mysteries of this spellbinding romantic epic that has entranced millions.
Academy Award® winner Bill Condon directed both the first and second part of the two-part finale starring KRISTEN STEWART, ROBERT PATTINSON and TAYLOR LAUTNER. The film, based on the fourth novel in author Stephenie Meyer's "Twilight" series, was written by MELISSA ROSENBERG with WYCK GODFREY, KAREN ROSENFELT and STEPHENIE MEYER producing.
About THE TWILIGHT SAGA film series
THE TWILIGHT SAGA film series stars Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson & Taylor Lautner and tells the story of 17-year-old Bella Swan who moves to the small town of Forks, Washington to live with her father, and becomes drawn to Edward Cullen, a pale, mysterious classmate who seems determined to push her away. But neither can deny the attraction that pulls them together...even when Edward confides that he and his family are vampires. The action-packed, modern day vampire love story TWILIGHT, the first film in the series, was released in Australian theatres on December 11, 2008 to a blockbuster reception. The second instalment of the film franchise, THE TWILIGHT SAGA: NEW MOON was released November 19, 2009, the third instalment, THE TWILIGHT SAGA: ECLIPSE was released July 1, 2010, and THE TWILIGHT SAGA: BREAKING DAWN - PART 1 was released on November 17, 2011.
About Hoyts Distribution
In July 2012 STUDIOCANAL acquired HOYTS DISTRIBUTION Pty Ltd, one of Australia & New Zealand's leading independent film distributors.
Hoyts Distribution has been operating a successful film distribution business in Australia and New Zealand for over 10 years, becoming one of Australia's leading independent film distribution companies. Hoyts Distribution boasts a film library that contains over 120 titles, including four films from the highly successful SAW series and all of the films from the enormously popular Twilight franchise, including the final instalment, The Twilight Saga: BREAKING DAWN - PART 2, which opens in cinemas November 15.
News Update from Entertainment Quarter, Fox Studios, Moore Park, Sydney...
Strong rain.
Hundreds of fans.
Dozens of news media, most well behaved, some not.
RP's Twilight co-stars are making their own global appearances. Kristen Stewart is reportedly jetting off to Japan, while Taylor Lautner heads to Brazil.
The whole crew will then gather for the Los Angeles premiere in mid November - the first red carpet together for Pattinson and Stewart since their cheating scandal earlier this year.
The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 2 is in cinemas from 15th November.
Promo...
After the birth of Renesmee, the Cullens gather other vampire clans in order to protect the child from a false allegation that puts the family in front of the Volturi.
Director: Bill Condon Writers: Melissa Rosenberg (screenplay), Stephenie Meyer (novel) Stars: Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson and Taylor Lautner
Websites
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ROBERT PATTINSON COMES TO SYDNEY FOR THE TWILIGHT SAGA...
ROBERT PATTINSON TO TOUR SYDNEY FOR THE TWILIGHT SAGA: BREAKING DAWN - PART 2
HOYTS DISTRIBUTION is thrilled to announce that ROBERT PATTINSON, star of the upcoming release of THE TWILIGHT SAGA: BREAKING DAWN - PART 2 will be coming to Australia to promote the final instalment in the global phenomenon.
As part of the Sydney only tour later this month, Robert will be participating in media interviews to support the NOVEMBER 15 release of the film, and will appear at a fan event on Monday 22nd October, details of which will be revealed in the coming weeks.
The astonishing conclusion to the TWILIGHT SAGA franchise, THE TWILIGHT SAGA: BREAKING DAWN - PART 2, illuminates the secrets and mysteries of this spellbinding romantic epic that has entranced millions.
Academy Award® winner Bill Condon directed both the first and second part of the two-part finale starring KRISTEN STEWART, ROBERT PATTINSON and TAYLOR LAUTNER. The film, based on the fourth novel in author Stephenie Meyer's "Twilight" series, was written by MELISSA ROSENBERG with WYCK GODFREY, KAREN ROSENFELT and STEPHENIE MEYER producing.
About THE TWILIGHT SAGA film series
THE TWILIGHT SAGA film series stars Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson & Taylor Lautner and tells the story of 17-year-old Bella Swan who moves to the small town of Forks, Washington to live with her father, and becomes drawn to Edward Cullen, a pale, mysterious classmate who seems determined to push her away. But neither can deny the attraction that pulls them together...even when Edward confides that he and his family are vampires. The action-packed, modern day vampire love story TWILIGHT, the first film in the series, was released in Australian theatres on December 11, 2008 to a blockbuster reception. The second instalment of the film franchise, THE TWILIGHT SAGA: NEW MOON was released November 19, 2009, the third instalment, THE TWILIGHT SAGA: ECLIPSE was released July 1, 2010, and THE TWILIGHT SAGA: BREAKING DAWN - PART 1 was released on November 17, 2011.
About Hoyts Distribution
In July 2012 STUDIOCANAL acquired HOYTS DISTRIBUTION Pty Ltd, one of Australia & New Zealand's leading independent film distributors.
Hoyts Distribution has been operating a successful film distribution business in Australia and New Zealand for over 10 years, becoming one of Australia's leading independent film distribution companies. Hoyts Distribution boasts a film library that contains over 120 titles, including four films from the highly successful SAW series and all of the films from the enormously popular Twilight franchise, including the final instalment, The Twilight Saga: BREAKING DAWN - PART 2, which opens in cinemas November 15.
News Update from Entertainment Quarter, Fox Studios, Moore Park, Sydney...
Strong rain.
Hundreds of fans.
Dozens of news media, most well behaved, some not.
RP's Twilight co-stars are making their own global appearances. Kristen Stewart is reportedly jetting off to Japan, while Taylor Lautner heads to Brazil.
The whole crew will then gather for the Los Angeles premiere in mid November - the first red carpet together for Pattinson and Stewart since their cheating scandal earlier this year.
The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 2 is in cinemas from 15th November.
Promo...
After the birth of Renesmee, the Cullens gather other vampire clans in order to protect the child from a false allegation that puts the family in front of the Volturi.
Director: Bill Condon Writers: Melissa Rosenberg (screenplay), Stephenie Meyer (novel) Stars: Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson and Taylor Lautner
Websites
Breaking Dawn movie official website
Hoyts
Eva Rinaldi Photography Flickr
Eva Rinaldi Photography
Music News Australia
NixCo
Media Man News
Sunday, October 21, 2012
Marvel Entertainment news; Marvel Entertainment VS DC Comics / Warner Bros; 2005 movie previews...
Marvel Entertainment news, Hollywood, Australia, gaming and more...
What an exciting time for Marvel Entertainment, Marvel Comics and movie fans. There's also the latest on Marvel Entertainment themed video games, celeb gossip and news and much more. The Media Man agency with the latest...
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Marvel movie plots uncovered; Thor: The Dark World and Iron Man 3!...
Disney and Marvel Studios have released the official synopsis for Thor: The Dark World and for Iron Man 3. And without further ado, here are the details on the upcoming comic book-inspired films:
Thor: The Dark World plot: Marvel's Thor: The Dark World continues the big-screen adventures of Thor, the Mighty Avenger, as he battles to save Earth and all the Nine Realms from a shadowy enemy that predates the universe itself. In the aftermath of Marvel's Thor and Marvel's The Avengers, Thor fights to restore order across the cosmos...but an ancient race led by the vengeful Malekith returns to plunge the universe back into darkness. Faced with an enemy that even Odin and Asgard cannot withstand, Thor must embark on his most perilous and personal journey yet, one that will reunite him with Jane Foster and force him to sacrifice everything to save us all.
Iron Man 3 plot: "Marvel Studios' Iron Man 3 pits brash-but-brilliant industrialist Tony Stark/Iron Man against an enemy whose reach knows no bounds. When Stark finds his personal world destroyed at his enemy's hands, he embarks on a harrowing quest to find those responsible. This journey, at every turn, will test his mettle. With his back against the wall, Stark is left to survive by his own devices, relying on his ingenuity and instincts to protect those closest to him. As he fights his way back, Stark discovers the answer to the question that has secretly haunted him: does the man make the suit or does the suit make the man?"
Iron Man 3 arrives on May 3, 2013 followed by Thor: The Dark World hits theaters on or around November 8, 2013.
‘Iron Man 3’ Spoilers: Plot Synopsis Allegedly Released...
In 2008, “Iron Man” kicked off the new Marvel Cinematic Universe and since then has been breaking box office records in the sequel “Iron Man 2” and the crossover “The Avengers” and the franchise will likely keep the pace in the three-quel “Iron Man 3.” Stitch Kingdom posted what they claim to be the full synopsis from Walt Disney Studios, Marvel Studios, Paramount Pictures and DMG Entertainment; both IGN and Slash Film allege that this is an official plot synopsis.
“Marvel Studios’ Iron Man 3 pits brash-but-brilliant industrialist Tony Stark/Iron Man against an enemy whose reach knows no bounds. When Stark finds his personal world destroyed at his enemy’s hands, he embarks on a harrowing quest to find those responsible,” the official plot synopsis reads, reports Stitch Kingdom. “This journey, at every turn, will test his mettle. With his back against the wall, Stark is left to survive by his own devices, relying on his ingenuity and instincts to protect those closest to him. As he fights his way back, Stark discovers the answer to the question that has secretly haunted him: does the man make the suit or does the suit make the man?”
The film directed by Shane Black and starring a returning Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark/Iron Man is set to be released on May 3 of next year, being followed by “Thor: The Dark World” in Nov. 2013, as well as a second “Captain America” film, and an “Avengers” sequel in the coming years, among other movies.. Stich Kingdom notes that the seventh film of the Marvel Cinematic Universe will be available in Digital 3D and RealD.
Along with Downey Jr. reprising his role as the genius, playboy, philanthropist, the cast includes Guy Pearce as Aldrich Killian, Gwyneth Paltrow as Pepper Potts, Paul Bettany as the voice of Jarvis, Ben Kingsley as the main villain, The Mandarin, Jon Favreau as Happy Hogan, Rebecca Hall as Maya Hansen, and Don Cheadle as James Rhodes /War Machine, among other actors listed on IMDB. Director Black and Drew Pearce are adapting the screenplay from comics written by Stan Lee, Don Heck, Larry Lieber and Jack Kirby.
Box Office Mojo reports that the original “Iron Man” film grossed $318.4 million, and “Iron Man 2” took in $312.4 million. Both films’ revenues were dwarfed by May’s epic crossover “The Avengers” which included Iron Man, Thor, Captain America and the Hulk, and earned $623.3 million.
'Justice League' & 'The Avengers 2' coming to the movies in 2015...
Warner Bros. won a major victory this week with its legal battle against Superman cocreator Joel Shuster resulting in the studio announcing plans to move ahead with its 'Justice League' live action movie to be released in the summer of 2015. This is great news for fans and lovers of the league's superheroes. But it also raises the question of a coming superhero battle. It seems, coincidentally (or not), Marvel Studios has already announced a release date of May 1, 2015, for 'The Avengers 2.' And to up the stakes, Marvel also just announced November 6, 2015 as a release date for 'Ant-Man,' So the battle will be on in 2015, Marvel vs. DC as superheroes go up against each other at the box office.
The script for the 'Justice League' movie will be darker than the comic book series and will start production in 2013. A director has not been named and no stars have signed on yet, but news should be coming soon on who has been cast.
Warner Bros. next franchise, after Christopher Nolan's highly successful Batman 'Dark Knight Trilogy', will be the new Superman 'Man of Steel' movie coming out next summer (June 14, 2013). It looks like Warner Bros. will also be releasing superhero spin-off movies in the future that could include characters like Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, Aquaman, Cyborg, The Flash and Green Lantern, just to name a few.
New York Comic-Con gaming newsflash...
At the Games Panel at NYCC, Marvel Entertainment announced new characters and content for the mobile brawler Avengers Initiative and the hit Facebook game Marvel: Avengers Alliance.
MARVEL unveils NEW CHARACTERS AND GAMEPLAY FOR HIT MOBILE AND FACEBOOK GAMES
· Ghost Rider’s Spec Op 4 Chapter Coming to Marvel: Avengers Alliance
· Captain America Announced as Next Playable Character for Mobile Brawler Avengers Initiative
· Connected Marvel XP Promotion Awards Players Across Titles
During the Marvel Video Games Panel, Marvel revealed several new characters and gameplay additions for its hit mobile and social games. The announcements include:
Avengers Initiative (Mobile Game): Captain America will be the next playable Super Hero in the hit mobile brawler game Avengers Initiative. Fans will be able to play through the game using the First Avenger’s abilities and alternate costumes. Captain America was announced with a brand new trailer available here: http://bit.ly/Rm6Dqg
Marvel: Avengers Alliance (Social Game): In the spirit of Halloween Marvel also revealed a brand new Spec Ops mission for the hit Facebook game, Marvel: Avengers Alliance, featuring the flame-skulled Ghost Rider. The Spirit of Vengeance is the ultimate reward for players who complete Spec Op 4 by defeating Baron Mordo, Satana and Mephisto. Six brand new Super Heroes were also announced that will be coming out over the coming months, including Cable, Vision, Black Knight, Captain Britain, Union Jack and Psylocke.
Marvel XP: Marvel: Avengers Alliance and Avengers Initiative will be the first Marvel gamesto be interconnected through the MarvelXP platform, where for the first time in Marvel games, players can connect their play experiences across games and platforms. Through the Marvel XP platform, players who beat Hulkbuster Iron Man in Avengers Initiative will unlock the Iron Man Mark V armor for free in Marvel: Avengers Alliance. Players will need to sign-up to Marvel XP for alerts on when this promotion will go live.
For up-to-the-minute news and updates about Avengers Initiative, players can visit the Official Marvel XP Fanpage at http://www.facebook.com/MarvelXP.
Join the millions of social gamers and Marvel fans who have already joined S.H.I.E.L.D by playing Marvel: Avengers Alliance at: http://www.facebook.com/avengersalliance.
The game is one of the top rated games in Facebook’s App Center. Fans can also play Marvel: Avengers Alliance at www.playdom.com.
About Marvel Entertainment
Marvel Entertainment, LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company, is one of the world’s most prominent character-based entertainment companies, built on a proven library of over 8,000 characters featured in a variety of media over seventy years. Marvel utilizes its character franchises in entertainment, licensing and publishing.
Justice League set for 2015 release...
'Justice League' is to go head-to-head with the 'Avengers Assemble' sequel after the DC Comics movie was given a prospective release date of summer 2015.
The DC Comics movie - which will star superhero characters Superman, Wonder Woman and Batman - is due to start filming next year ahead of its prospective release in three years, which is when Marvel is planning to put out a follow up to this year's 'Avengers Assemble'.
Warner Bros. won the rights to use Superman in the motion picture earlier this week and the studio already has 'Gangster Squad' scribe Will Beall working on a script for 'Justice League', but the film still requires a director and a cast to fill the lead roles.
Jeff Robinov, President of Warner Bros. Pictures, has already reportedly tried to persuade Christopher Nolan to produce 'Justice League', but the helmer - who is producing Superman movie 'Man of Steel' next year - wasn't convinced enough to sign up for the role.
While there is yet to be anyone officially cast in the DC Comics movie, Armie Hammer looks to be favourite to land the role of Batman, which comes after the 'The Lone Ranger' star was initially down to play the caped crusader in an earlier edition of the project before it fell apart.
The 'Avengers Assemble' sequel looks set to see a number of stars reprise their superhero roles with Chris Hemsworth (Thor), Robert Downey Jr. (Iron Man), Jeremy Renner (Hawkeye) and Scarlett Johansson (Black Widow) all linked to the project.
Stan Lee Media sues Disney for billions over Marvel rights...
Stan Lee Media, a company that says it controls the rights to Marvel characters including Spider Man and Iron Man, has filed suit in U.S. District Court in Colorado against the Walt Disney Co seeking "billions of dollars of profits."
Stan Lee, no longer associated with the company, created many of Marvel's stable of comic book characters. The company claims Lee assigned it his rights to those characters in 1998 but then agreed a month later to assign the same rights to Marvel Enterprises.
Disney acquired Marvel Enterprises, which had been renamed Marvel Entertainment, in 2009 for $4.3 billion.
"The Walt Disney Company has represented to the public that it, in fact, owns the copyright to these characters as well as hundreds of other characters created by Stan Lee," the suit alleges. "Those representations made to the public by the Walt Disney Company are false."
The lawsuit focuses on successful movies based on Marvel characters that Disney has released since its Marvel acquisition. Those films include "The Avengers," which has grossed more than $1.5 billion in worldwide sales and is second only to "Avatar" and "Titanic," according to movie site Box Office Mojo.
"This lawsuit is without merit," Walt Disney said in a statement. "It arises out of the same core facts and legal claims that have been rejected by three federal district court judges."
Stan Lee Media, which said it was created in 1999 to "sue to recover damages to its assets," has been involved in what it called a "somewhat tortured history" of litigation dating from 2001 over corporate governance issues and the characters rights in cases filed in Colorado, New York and California.
They include suits between the company, its shareholders and Lee.
The latest suit claims that Stan Lee Media owns the rights "to the billions of dollars that Disney has generated, or allowed others to generate". It cites more than $3.5 billion from motion pictures, and what it calculates is more than $2 billion from "other media," merchandising and the Broadway show "Spiderman: Turn off the Dark."
According to the Hollywood Reporter, the lawsuit states that “SLMI is entitled to proceed with this copyright infringement lawsuit against Disney, based upon Disney's independently actionable conduct which occurred after April 2009, regardless of the outcome of SLMI's appeal to the 9th Circuit in the 2007 Case."
Joss Whedon: 'The Avengers isn't a perfect movie'...
Joss Whedon has claimed that The Avengers isn't "a great movie".
The film has met with critical acclaim and outstanding commercial success, becoming the third highest-grossing film of all time in just a few months, but Whedon, the superhero blockbuster's writer and director, is determined to keep his feet on the ground.
In an interview with Vulture, the 48-year-old claimed that the box office numbers became, ultimately, "meaningless".
He said: "They're large, and you can't really count that high."
Describing what his goals were with The Avengers, he claimed: "I felt like I had a particular mission in making what I felt was a slightly old-fashioned movie, because I grew up wanting to make summer movies and wanting to make superhero movies, and I got to do both at once.
"I felt like summer movies haven't been what I remember them to be, so I felt like I would love to evoke something that's less hip and ironic and more heartfelt and character-driven, and apparently, other people cared about that in a large way."
The Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Firefly creator then conceded: "I don't think it's a perfect movie. I don't even think it's a great movie. I think it's a great time, and I'm proud of it, but for me, what was exciting is that people don't go to see a movie that many times unless it's pulling on something from within, unless there's a need there. That's very gratifying."
Whedon will oversee a Marvel-produced SHIELD television show for ABC, before starting work on the Avengers sequel, due for a summer 2015 release.
The Avengers Crosses $1.5 Billion At Worldwide Box Office...
While the re-release of The Avengers at the U.S. box office might have failed to break into the top ten Labor Day weekend movies, it did help The Avengers reach another major milestone. The Avengers has become the third movie in history to cross the $1.5 billion mark at the worldwide box office.
While retaining its number three position on the worldwide box office list, The Avengers took in another estimated $1.7 million over Labor Day weekend, which brought The Avengers U.S. box office total to $619.5 million and The Avengers worldwide box office total to $1.501 billion.
Interestingly enough, The Dark Knight Rises also reached a milestone recently, surpassing $1 billion at the worldwide box office, which means that combined The Avengers and The Dark Knight Rises have accounted for $2.5 billion at the worldwide box office this year. If you add in The Amazing Spider-Man, which currently sits at number four on the 2012 worldwide box office list with $734.9 million, then the total rises to $3.2 billion. It’s definitely a good time to be in the superhero movie making business.
New Trailer For Marvel Heroes...
Gazillion Entertainment is proud to show off a new trailer for Marvel Heroes. The new trailer announces 3 new playable heroes in the game – Daredevil, Punisher, and Squirrel Girl. The trailer made its debut at the Marvel Heroes panel at PAX 2012. The panel featured Gazillion President David Brevik (one of the creators of Diablo!), legendary Marvel writer Brian Michael Bendis (Ultimate Spider-Man! Avengers vs. X-Men! And) and Marvel’s mighty VP of Games Production TQ Jefferson. If you look closely, you’ll also see a bunch of villains were also revealed in the trailer, including Mr. Fisk the notorious crime lord.
Website:
http://www.youtube.com/marvelheroesonline
About Marvel Heroes...
Marvel Heroes is a FREE-TO-PLAY action-packed massively multiplayer online game created by David Brevik, the visionary behind Diablo and Diablo 2. Set in the iconic Marvel Universe, Marvel Heroes combines the core game-play style of Diablo and MMOs with the expansive library of heroes from the Marvel Universe. In the game, players can collect and play as their favorite Marvel Superheroes (including Iron Man, Thor, Wolverine, Hulk, Spider Man, Captain America and many others). Team up with friends and try to stop Doctor Doom from devastating the world with the power of the Cosmic Cube in a story crafted by comic-book super-scribe Brian Michael Bendis.
CM Punk writes introduction to Marvel Comics' 'Avengers vs. X-Men'
As evidenced by his historic “pipe bomb” and succeeding WWE Championship reign, CM Punk is a revolutionary and controversial figure in WWE's history. As such, it’s only fitting that mighty Marvel Comics sought out The Second City Saint when it came time to write an introduction for the publisher’s historic and controversial universe-spanning event, “Avengers vs. X-Men.”
The book, which will be released in a special hardcover edition that collects all 12 issues of the record-breaking sales juggernaut series, set the comics world on fire in 2011 and into 2012, as it pit Marvel’s two premiere super hero teams against each other. For comics fans, the thought of seeing X-Men leader Cyclops and his band of usually merry mutants take a very firm stand against the likes of Captain America, Spider-Man and Thor presents a dream matchup akin to seeing, say, CM Punk square off against WWE Hall of Famer “Stone Cold” Steve Austin.
Axel Alonso, editor-in-chief of Marvel Comics, took time out of his insane schedule at the recently concluded New York Comic Con to talk about the upcoming release and reigning WWE Champion's involvement in the project. For his part, Punk, a noted comic book fan, certainly brought his A-game to the intro. “It’s funny, he provides great context, and he understands the heart of what we were doing and I couldn’t be happier,” Alonso said. “If I had to describe my writing style,” The Second City Saint told USA Today in a recent interview, “it's very sarcastic and self-deprecating.” About the series itself, Marvel’s head honcho stated, simply, “Avengers vs. X-Men” (or, as it’s become known online and in comic shops, “AvX”), is "the biggest event Marvel’s done in a decade.”
“It’s a fight that transforms the Marvel Universe,” Alonso explained. “There was a winner and loser, and it was as big an event as you could possibly imagine.”
“AvX” is a unique event for a number of different reasons. As Alonso told WWE.com, “AvX” marks “the first time [Marvel] did a universe-spanning event that was equally important to both the Avengers and the X-Men.”
It was a story so grandiose, in fact, that it took a group of creators to see the vision through to fruition. Written by five of the top writers in the industry — Brian Michael Bendis, Jason Aaron, Matt Fraction, Jonathan Hickman and Ed Brubaker — and with art by comic book luminaries John Romita Jr., Olivier Coipel and Adam Kubert, “AvX” is unlike anything the comics landscape has witnessed in a long time.
“Because we knew we were doing a story that was so big,” Alonso said, “It just felt like it needed to be powered by more than one brain. Our motto was, ‘five fingers make a fist.’ ” Broken down into three distinct acts, each issue of “AvX” was handed off to the writer/artist team best suited for the events of that particular issue. The results speak for themselves, as the series was both a commercial and critical success.
In addition to presenting the entire story in one massive hardcover book for the first time, the upcoming “Avengers vs. X-Men” collection will have an assortment of special features, including behind-the-scenes peeks, AR applications and previously digital-only Infinite Comics supplemental material.
“Topping it all off,” Alonso added, “What is a good collection without a great introduction?”
The editor-in-chief continued, “CM Punk wrote the introduction — it’s fantastic, it’s pitch-perfect, because who understands two teams getting into the ring and going at one another for all the stakes more than CM Punk?”
“I worked really hard to get to where I'm at and it's cool to be afforded opportunities like this,” Punk told USA Today. “To me, it's hard work paying off and I'm having a lot of fun right now.” (Credit: WWE) http://www.wwe.com/inside/overtheropes/cm-punk-writes-introduction-to-marvel-comics-avengers-vs-x-men-26059962
Upcoming Marvel movies boosting Marvel slot game popularity...
The Media Man agency reports that as has been the case for the past few years, whenever a new Marvel themed movie is coming up for release the popularity of Marvel Comics online slot games goes up. The Media Man website recommends to check out the PartyCasino review for more about the world class offers where players can play Marvel games for free or for money. PartyCasino is part of Bwin.Party Digital Entertainment which is established for over 10 years and has a b2b agreement with Marvel Entertainment.
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What an exciting time for Marvel Entertainment, Marvel Comics and movie fans. There's also the latest on Marvel Entertainment themed video games, celeb gossip and news and much more. The Media Man agency with the latest...
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Marvel movie plots uncovered; Thor: The Dark World and Iron Man 3!...
Disney and Marvel Studios have released the official synopsis for Thor: The Dark World and for Iron Man 3. And without further ado, here are the details on the upcoming comic book-inspired films:
Thor: The Dark World plot: Marvel's Thor: The Dark World continues the big-screen adventures of Thor, the Mighty Avenger, as he battles to save Earth and all the Nine Realms from a shadowy enemy that predates the universe itself. In the aftermath of Marvel's Thor and Marvel's The Avengers, Thor fights to restore order across the cosmos...but an ancient race led by the vengeful Malekith returns to plunge the universe back into darkness. Faced with an enemy that even Odin and Asgard cannot withstand, Thor must embark on his most perilous and personal journey yet, one that will reunite him with Jane Foster and force him to sacrifice everything to save us all.
Iron Man 3 plot: "Marvel Studios' Iron Man 3 pits brash-but-brilliant industrialist Tony Stark/Iron Man against an enemy whose reach knows no bounds. When Stark finds his personal world destroyed at his enemy's hands, he embarks on a harrowing quest to find those responsible. This journey, at every turn, will test his mettle. With his back against the wall, Stark is left to survive by his own devices, relying on his ingenuity and instincts to protect those closest to him. As he fights his way back, Stark discovers the answer to the question that has secretly haunted him: does the man make the suit or does the suit make the man?"
Iron Man 3 arrives on May 3, 2013 followed by Thor: The Dark World hits theaters on or around November 8, 2013.
‘Iron Man 3’ Spoilers: Plot Synopsis Allegedly Released...
In 2008, “Iron Man” kicked off the new Marvel Cinematic Universe and since then has been breaking box office records in the sequel “Iron Man 2” and the crossover “The Avengers” and the franchise will likely keep the pace in the three-quel “Iron Man 3.” Stitch Kingdom posted what they claim to be the full synopsis from Walt Disney Studios, Marvel Studios, Paramount Pictures and DMG Entertainment; both IGN and Slash Film allege that this is an official plot synopsis.
“Marvel Studios’ Iron Man 3 pits brash-but-brilliant industrialist Tony Stark/Iron Man against an enemy whose reach knows no bounds. When Stark finds his personal world destroyed at his enemy’s hands, he embarks on a harrowing quest to find those responsible,” the official plot synopsis reads, reports Stitch Kingdom. “This journey, at every turn, will test his mettle. With his back against the wall, Stark is left to survive by his own devices, relying on his ingenuity and instincts to protect those closest to him. As he fights his way back, Stark discovers the answer to the question that has secretly haunted him: does the man make the suit or does the suit make the man?”
The film directed by Shane Black and starring a returning Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark/Iron Man is set to be released on May 3 of next year, being followed by “Thor: The Dark World” in Nov. 2013, as well as a second “Captain America” film, and an “Avengers” sequel in the coming years, among other movies.. Stich Kingdom notes that the seventh film of the Marvel Cinematic Universe will be available in Digital 3D and RealD.
Along with Downey Jr. reprising his role as the genius, playboy, philanthropist, the cast includes Guy Pearce as Aldrich Killian, Gwyneth Paltrow as Pepper Potts, Paul Bettany as the voice of Jarvis, Ben Kingsley as the main villain, The Mandarin, Jon Favreau as Happy Hogan, Rebecca Hall as Maya Hansen, and Don Cheadle as James Rhodes /War Machine, among other actors listed on IMDB. Director Black and Drew Pearce are adapting the screenplay from comics written by Stan Lee, Don Heck, Larry Lieber and Jack Kirby.
Box Office Mojo reports that the original “Iron Man” film grossed $318.4 million, and “Iron Man 2” took in $312.4 million. Both films’ revenues were dwarfed by May’s epic crossover “The Avengers” which included Iron Man, Thor, Captain America and the Hulk, and earned $623.3 million.
'Justice League' & 'The Avengers 2' coming to the movies in 2015...
Warner Bros. won a major victory this week with its legal battle against Superman cocreator Joel Shuster resulting in the studio announcing plans to move ahead with its 'Justice League' live action movie to be released in the summer of 2015. This is great news for fans and lovers of the league's superheroes. But it also raises the question of a coming superhero battle. It seems, coincidentally (or not), Marvel Studios has already announced a release date of May 1, 2015, for 'The Avengers 2.' And to up the stakes, Marvel also just announced November 6, 2015 as a release date for 'Ant-Man,' So the battle will be on in 2015, Marvel vs. DC as superheroes go up against each other at the box office.
The script for the 'Justice League' movie will be darker than the comic book series and will start production in 2013. A director has not been named and no stars have signed on yet, but news should be coming soon on who has been cast.
Warner Bros. next franchise, after Christopher Nolan's highly successful Batman 'Dark Knight Trilogy', will be the new Superman 'Man of Steel' movie coming out next summer (June 14, 2013). It looks like Warner Bros. will also be releasing superhero spin-off movies in the future that could include characters like Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, Aquaman, Cyborg, The Flash and Green Lantern, just to name a few.
New York Comic-Con gaming newsflash...
At the Games Panel at NYCC, Marvel Entertainment announced new characters and content for the mobile brawler Avengers Initiative and the hit Facebook game Marvel: Avengers Alliance.
MARVEL unveils NEW CHARACTERS AND GAMEPLAY FOR HIT MOBILE AND FACEBOOK GAMES
· Ghost Rider’s Spec Op 4 Chapter Coming to Marvel: Avengers Alliance
· Captain America Announced as Next Playable Character for Mobile Brawler Avengers Initiative
· Connected Marvel XP Promotion Awards Players Across Titles
During the Marvel Video Games Panel, Marvel revealed several new characters and gameplay additions for its hit mobile and social games. The announcements include:
Avengers Initiative (Mobile Game): Captain America will be the next playable Super Hero in the hit mobile brawler game Avengers Initiative. Fans will be able to play through the game using the First Avenger’s abilities and alternate costumes. Captain America was announced with a brand new trailer available here: http://bit.ly/Rm6Dqg
Marvel: Avengers Alliance (Social Game): In the spirit of Halloween Marvel also revealed a brand new Spec Ops mission for the hit Facebook game, Marvel: Avengers Alliance, featuring the flame-skulled Ghost Rider. The Spirit of Vengeance is the ultimate reward for players who complete Spec Op 4 by defeating Baron Mordo, Satana and Mephisto. Six brand new Super Heroes were also announced that will be coming out over the coming months, including Cable, Vision, Black Knight, Captain Britain, Union Jack and Psylocke.
Marvel XP: Marvel: Avengers Alliance and Avengers Initiative will be the first Marvel gamesto be interconnected through the MarvelXP platform, where for the first time in Marvel games, players can connect their play experiences across games and platforms. Through the Marvel XP platform, players who beat Hulkbuster Iron Man in Avengers Initiative will unlock the Iron Man Mark V armor for free in Marvel: Avengers Alliance. Players will need to sign-up to Marvel XP for alerts on when this promotion will go live.
For up-to-the-minute news and updates about Avengers Initiative, players can visit the Official Marvel XP Fanpage at http://www.facebook.com/MarvelXP.
Join the millions of social gamers and Marvel fans who have already joined S.H.I.E.L.D by playing Marvel: Avengers Alliance at: http://www.facebook.com/avengersalliance.
The game is one of the top rated games in Facebook’s App Center. Fans can also play Marvel: Avengers Alliance at www.playdom.com.
About Marvel Entertainment
Marvel Entertainment, LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company, is one of the world’s most prominent character-based entertainment companies, built on a proven library of over 8,000 characters featured in a variety of media over seventy years. Marvel utilizes its character franchises in entertainment, licensing and publishing.
Justice League set for 2015 release...
'Justice League' is to go head-to-head with the 'Avengers Assemble' sequel after the DC Comics movie was given a prospective release date of summer 2015.
The DC Comics movie - which will star superhero characters Superman, Wonder Woman and Batman - is due to start filming next year ahead of its prospective release in three years, which is when Marvel is planning to put out a follow up to this year's 'Avengers Assemble'.
Warner Bros. won the rights to use Superman in the motion picture earlier this week and the studio already has 'Gangster Squad' scribe Will Beall working on a script for 'Justice League', but the film still requires a director and a cast to fill the lead roles.
Jeff Robinov, President of Warner Bros. Pictures, has already reportedly tried to persuade Christopher Nolan to produce 'Justice League', but the helmer - who is producing Superman movie 'Man of Steel' next year - wasn't convinced enough to sign up for the role.
While there is yet to be anyone officially cast in the DC Comics movie, Armie Hammer looks to be favourite to land the role of Batman, which comes after the 'The Lone Ranger' star was initially down to play the caped crusader in an earlier edition of the project before it fell apart.
The 'Avengers Assemble' sequel looks set to see a number of stars reprise their superhero roles with Chris Hemsworth (Thor), Robert Downey Jr. (Iron Man), Jeremy Renner (Hawkeye) and Scarlett Johansson (Black Widow) all linked to the project.
Stan Lee Media sues Disney for billions over Marvel rights...
Stan Lee Media, a company that says it controls the rights to Marvel characters including Spider Man and Iron Man, has filed suit in U.S. District Court in Colorado against the Walt Disney Co seeking "billions of dollars of profits."
Stan Lee, no longer associated with the company, created many of Marvel's stable of comic book characters. The company claims Lee assigned it his rights to those characters in 1998 but then agreed a month later to assign the same rights to Marvel Enterprises.
Disney acquired Marvel Enterprises, which had been renamed Marvel Entertainment, in 2009 for $4.3 billion.
"The Walt Disney Company has represented to the public that it, in fact, owns the copyright to these characters as well as hundreds of other characters created by Stan Lee," the suit alleges. "Those representations made to the public by the Walt Disney Company are false."
The lawsuit focuses on successful movies based on Marvel characters that Disney has released since its Marvel acquisition. Those films include "The Avengers," which has grossed more than $1.5 billion in worldwide sales and is second only to "Avatar" and "Titanic," according to movie site Box Office Mojo.
"This lawsuit is without merit," Walt Disney said in a statement. "It arises out of the same core facts and legal claims that have been rejected by three federal district court judges."
Stan Lee Media, which said it was created in 1999 to "sue to recover damages to its assets," has been involved in what it called a "somewhat tortured history" of litigation dating from 2001 over corporate governance issues and the characters rights in cases filed in Colorado, New York and California.
They include suits between the company, its shareholders and Lee.
The latest suit claims that Stan Lee Media owns the rights "to the billions of dollars that Disney has generated, or allowed others to generate". It cites more than $3.5 billion from motion pictures, and what it calculates is more than $2 billion from "other media," merchandising and the Broadway show "Spiderman: Turn off the Dark."
According to the Hollywood Reporter, the lawsuit states that “SLMI is entitled to proceed with this copyright infringement lawsuit against Disney, based upon Disney's independently actionable conduct which occurred after April 2009, regardless of the outcome of SLMI's appeal to the 9th Circuit in the 2007 Case."
Joss Whedon: 'The Avengers isn't a perfect movie'...
Joss Whedon has claimed that The Avengers isn't "a great movie".
The film has met with critical acclaim and outstanding commercial success, becoming the third highest-grossing film of all time in just a few months, but Whedon, the superhero blockbuster's writer and director, is determined to keep his feet on the ground.
In an interview with Vulture, the 48-year-old claimed that the box office numbers became, ultimately, "meaningless".
He said: "They're large, and you can't really count that high."
Describing what his goals were with The Avengers, he claimed: "I felt like I had a particular mission in making what I felt was a slightly old-fashioned movie, because I grew up wanting to make summer movies and wanting to make superhero movies, and I got to do both at once.
"I felt like summer movies haven't been what I remember them to be, so I felt like I would love to evoke something that's less hip and ironic and more heartfelt and character-driven, and apparently, other people cared about that in a large way."
The Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Firefly creator then conceded: "I don't think it's a perfect movie. I don't even think it's a great movie. I think it's a great time, and I'm proud of it, but for me, what was exciting is that people don't go to see a movie that many times unless it's pulling on something from within, unless there's a need there. That's very gratifying."
Whedon will oversee a Marvel-produced SHIELD television show for ABC, before starting work on the Avengers sequel, due for a summer 2015 release.
The Avengers Crosses $1.5 Billion At Worldwide Box Office...
While the re-release of The Avengers at the U.S. box office might have failed to break into the top ten Labor Day weekend movies, it did help The Avengers reach another major milestone. The Avengers has become the third movie in history to cross the $1.5 billion mark at the worldwide box office.
While retaining its number three position on the worldwide box office list, The Avengers took in another estimated $1.7 million over Labor Day weekend, which brought The Avengers U.S. box office total to $619.5 million and The Avengers worldwide box office total to $1.501 billion.
Interestingly enough, The Dark Knight Rises also reached a milestone recently, surpassing $1 billion at the worldwide box office, which means that combined The Avengers and The Dark Knight Rises have accounted for $2.5 billion at the worldwide box office this year. If you add in The Amazing Spider-Man, which currently sits at number four on the 2012 worldwide box office list with $734.9 million, then the total rises to $3.2 billion. It’s definitely a good time to be in the superhero movie making business.
New Trailer For Marvel Heroes...
Gazillion Entertainment is proud to show off a new trailer for Marvel Heroes. The new trailer announces 3 new playable heroes in the game – Daredevil, Punisher, and Squirrel Girl. The trailer made its debut at the Marvel Heroes panel at PAX 2012. The panel featured Gazillion President David Brevik (one of the creators of Diablo!), legendary Marvel writer Brian Michael Bendis (Ultimate Spider-Man! Avengers vs. X-Men! And) and Marvel’s mighty VP of Games Production TQ Jefferson. If you look closely, you’ll also see a bunch of villains were also revealed in the trailer, including Mr. Fisk the notorious crime lord.
Website:
http://www.youtube.com/marvelheroesonline
About Marvel Heroes...
Marvel Heroes is a FREE-TO-PLAY action-packed massively multiplayer online game created by David Brevik, the visionary behind Diablo and Diablo 2. Set in the iconic Marvel Universe, Marvel Heroes combines the core game-play style of Diablo and MMOs with the expansive library of heroes from the Marvel Universe. In the game, players can collect and play as their favorite Marvel Superheroes (including Iron Man, Thor, Wolverine, Hulk, Spider Man, Captain America and many others). Team up with friends and try to stop Doctor Doom from devastating the world with the power of the Cosmic Cube in a story crafted by comic-book super-scribe Brian Michael Bendis.
CM Punk writes introduction to Marvel Comics' 'Avengers vs. X-Men'
As evidenced by his historic “pipe bomb” and succeeding WWE Championship reign, CM Punk is a revolutionary and controversial figure in WWE's history. As such, it’s only fitting that mighty Marvel Comics sought out The Second City Saint when it came time to write an introduction for the publisher’s historic and controversial universe-spanning event, “Avengers vs. X-Men.”
The book, which will be released in a special hardcover edition that collects all 12 issues of the record-breaking sales juggernaut series, set the comics world on fire in 2011 and into 2012, as it pit Marvel’s two premiere super hero teams against each other. For comics fans, the thought of seeing X-Men leader Cyclops and his band of usually merry mutants take a very firm stand against the likes of Captain America, Spider-Man and Thor presents a dream matchup akin to seeing, say, CM Punk square off against WWE Hall of Famer “Stone Cold” Steve Austin.
Axel Alonso, editor-in-chief of Marvel Comics, took time out of his insane schedule at the recently concluded New York Comic Con to talk about the upcoming release and reigning WWE Champion's involvement in the project. For his part, Punk, a noted comic book fan, certainly brought his A-game to the intro. “It’s funny, he provides great context, and he understands the heart of what we were doing and I couldn’t be happier,” Alonso said. “If I had to describe my writing style,” The Second City Saint told USA Today in a recent interview, “it's very sarcastic and self-deprecating.” About the series itself, Marvel’s head honcho stated, simply, “Avengers vs. X-Men” (or, as it’s become known online and in comic shops, “AvX”), is "the biggest event Marvel’s done in a decade.”
“It’s a fight that transforms the Marvel Universe,” Alonso explained. “There was a winner and loser, and it was as big an event as you could possibly imagine.”
“AvX” is a unique event for a number of different reasons. As Alonso told WWE.com, “AvX” marks “the first time [Marvel] did a universe-spanning event that was equally important to both the Avengers and the X-Men.”
It was a story so grandiose, in fact, that it took a group of creators to see the vision through to fruition. Written by five of the top writers in the industry — Brian Michael Bendis, Jason Aaron, Matt Fraction, Jonathan Hickman and Ed Brubaker — and with art by comic book luminaries John Romita Jr., Olivier Coipel and Adam Kubert, “AvX” is unlike anything the comics landscape has witnessed in a long time.
“Because we knew we were doing a story that was so big,” Alonso said, “It just felt like it needed to be powered by more than one brain. Our motto was, ‘five fingers make a fist.’ ” Broken down into three distinct acts, each issue of “AvX” was handed off to the writer/artist team best suited for the events of that particular issue. The results speak for themselves, as the series was both a commercial and critical success.
In addition to presenting the entire story in one massive hardcover book for the first time, the upcoming “Avengers vs. X-Men” collection will have an assortment of special features, including behind-the-scenes peeks, AR applications and previously digital-only Infinite Comics supplemental material.
“Topping it all off,” Alonso added, “What is a good collection without a great introduction?”
The editor-in-chief continued, “CM Punk wrote the introduction — it’s fantastic, it’s pitch-perfect, because who understands two teams getting into the ring and going at one another for all the stakes more than CM Punk?”
“I worked really hard to get to where I'm at and it's cool to be afforded opportunities like this,” Punk told USA Today. “To me, it's hard work paying off and I'm having a lot of fun right now.” (Credit: WWE) http://www.wwe.com/inside/overtheropes/cm-punk-writes-introduction-to-marvel-comics-avengers-vs-x-men-26059962
Upcoming Marvel movies boosting Marvel slot game popularity...
The Media Man agency reports that as has been the case for the past few years, whenever a new Marvel themed movie is coming up for release the popularity of Marvel Comics online slot games goes up. The Media Man website recommends to check out the PartyCasino review for more about the world class offers where players can play Marvel games for free or for money. PartyCasino is part of Bwin.Party Digital Entertainment which is established for over 10 years and has a b2b agreement with Marvel Entertainment.
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Wednesday, October 10, 2012
Savages red carpet movie premiere at Event Cinemas, Sydney, Australia - 10th October 2012
Benicio Del Toro attends red carpet movie premier; Event Cinemas, Sydney, Australia
Profiles
Movies Hollywood Sydney Entertainment Australia
Savages enjoyed its red carpet premiere in Sydney, Australia tonight.
Savages star Benicio Del Toro told media meeting real ex-drug cartel members was a similar feeling to climbing the Sydney Harbour Bridge.
"You go in strapped and you go in protected in some ways but you don't want to get too goofy or something like that, or you might fall off the bridge. Or you might just end up chopped liver," Del Toro told press.
Del Toro, who's in Australia to promote Savages, plays sadistic Mexican cartel enforcer Lado in the movie.
It's been reported that Del Toro was the one who took director Oliver Stone to Mexico to meet some "heavies" - a piece of news he found surprising.
"I was the one with the connections?" he says.
"That's people that believe the characters that I play.
"No, actually we went down to Mexico, but I wasn't the one with the connections."
Regardless, he says the meeting was terrifying but invaluable to him and the cast.
"We met some people down there (in Mexico), we met some people in LA (Los Angeles) too, on both sides of this war on drugs, and it was very interesting, very informative for the preparation of the characters," he says.
ABOUT SAVAGES:
Laguna Beach entrepreneurs Ben (Taylor-Johnson), a peaceful and charitable Buddhist, and his closest friend Chon (Kitsch), a former Navy SEAL and ex-mercenary, run a lucrative, homegrown industry—raising some of the best marijuana ever developed. They also share a one-of-a-kind love with the extraordinary beauty Ophelia (Lively). Life is idyllic in their Southern California town…until the Mexican Baja Cartel decides to move in and demands that the trio partners with them.
When the merciless head of the BC, Elena (Hayek), and her brutal enforcer, Lado (Del Toro), underestimate the unbreakable bond among these three friends, Ben and Chon—with the reluctant, slippery assistance of a dirty DEA agent (Travolta)—wage a seemingly unwinnable war against the cartel. And so begins a series of increasingly vicious ploys and manoeuvres in a high stakes, savage battle of wills.
www.savagesmovie.com.au / www.facebook.com.au/universalpicturesau
Storyline:
Entrepreneurs Ben, a peaceful and charitable marijuana producer, and friend Chon, a former Navy SEAL, run a lucrative, homegrown industry - raising some of the best weed ever developed. They also share a one-of-a-kind love with Ophelia. Life is idyllic in their Southern California town... until the Mexican Baja Cartel decides to move in and demands that the trio partners with them. When the merciless head of the BC, Elena and her enforcer, Lado, underestimate the unbreakable bond of the three friends, Ben and Chon - with the reluctant assistance of a dirty DEA agent - wage a seemingly unwinnable war against the cartel. And so begins a series of increasingly vicious ploys and maneuvers in a high stakes, savage battle of wills.
Cast...
Blake Lively ... O Taylor Kitsch ... Chon Aaron Taylor-Johnson ... Ben (as Aaron Johnson) Jana Banker ... Volleyball Girl Candra Docherty ... Grow House Girl Patrick Fourmy ... Marijuana Distributor Gary Stretch ... Badass Biker Benicio Del Toro ... Lado
Director: Oliver Stone
Writers: Shane Salerno (screenplay), Don Winslow
Websites
Savages
Universal Pictures Australia
Eva Rinaldi Photography
Eva Rinaldi Photography Flickr
Music News Australia
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Movies Hollywood Sydney Entertainment Australia
Savages enjoyed its red carpet premiere in Sydney, Australia tonight.
Savages star Benicio Del Toro told media meeting real ex-drug cartel members was a similar feeling to climbing the Sydney Harbour Bridge.
"You go in strapped and you go in protected in some ways but you don't want to get too goofy or something like that, or you might fall off the bridge. Or you might just end up chopped liver," Del Toro told press.
Del Toro, who's in Australia to promote Savages, plays sadistic Mexican cartel enforcer Lado in the movie.
It's been reported that Del Toro was the one who took director Oliver Stone to Mexico to meet some "heavies" - a piece of news he found surprising.
"I was the one with the connections?" he says.
"That's people that believe the characters that I play.
"No, actually we went down to Mexico, but I wasn't the one with the connections."
Regardless, he says the meeting was terrifying but invaluable to him and the cast.
"We met some people down there (in Mexico), we met some people in LA (Los Angeles) too, on both sides of this war on drugs, and it was very interesting, very informative for the preparation of the characters," he says.
ABOUT SAVAGES:
Laguna Beach entrepreneurs Ben (Taylor-Johnson), a peaceful and charitable Buddhist, and his closest friend Chon (Kitsch), a former Navy SEAL and ex-mercenary, run a lucrative, homegrown industry—raising some of the best marijuana ever developed. They also share a one-of-a-kind love with the extraordinary beauty Ophelia (Lively). Life is idyllic in their Southern California town…until the Mexican Baja Cartel decides to move in and demands that the trio partners with them.
When the merciless head of the BC, Elena (Hayek), and her brutal enforcer, Lado (Del Toro), underestimate the unbreakable bond among these three friends, Ben and Chon—with the reluctant, slippery assistance of a dirty DEA agent (Travolta)—wage a seemingly unwinnable war against the cartel. And so begins a series of increasingly vicious ploys and manoeuvres in a high stakes, savage battle of wills.
www.savagesmovie.com.au / www.facebook.com.au/universalpicturesau
Storyline:
Entrepreneurs Ben, a peaceful and charitable marijuana producer, and friend Chon, a former Navy SEAL, run a lucrative, homegrown industry - raising some of the best weed ever developed. They also share a one-of-a-kind love with Ophelia. Life is idyllic in their Southern California town... until the Mexican Baja Cartel decides to move in and demands that the trio partners with them. When the merciless head of the BC, Elena and her enforcer, Lado, underestimate the unbreakable bond of the three friends, Ben and Chon - with the reluctant assistance of a dirty DEA agent - wage a seemingly unwinnable war against the cartel. And so begins a series of increasingly vicious ploys and maneuvers in a high stakes, savage battle of wills.
Cast...
Blake Lively ... O Taylor Kitsch ... Chon Aaron Taylor-Johnson ... Ben (as Aaron Johnson) Jana Banker ... Volleyball Girl Candra Docherty ... Grow House Girl Patrick Fourmy ... Marijuana Distributor Gary Stretch ... Badass Biker Benicio Del Toro ... Lado
Director: Oliver Stone
Writers: Shane Salerno (screenplay), Don Winslow
Websites
Savages
Universal Pictures Australia
Eva Rinaldi Photography
Eva Rinaldi Photography Flickr
Music News Australia
Media Man News
Website Network
Media Man Int
Media Man
Media Man News
Media Man Entertainment
Sunday, October 7, 2012
Joss Whedon: 'The Avengers isn't a perfect movie'
Entertainment news, WWE, Hollywood, Australia, Sin City, Las Vegas, gaming and more...
What an exciting time for entertainment, movies, gaming and wrestling fans. WWE new angles and storylines, plus Main Event hits Australian TV, Bwin.Party has just released a new game, and you must check out the new Marvel Heroes online game. We've also got Hollywood box office reports, pro wrestling scoops, celebrity news and lots more. The Media Man agency with the latest...
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Movies Hollywood WWE Wrestling Entertainment Marvel Entertainment The Wolverine The Avengers Marvel Games James Bond Casinos Affiliate Programs Advertising
Joss Whedon: 'The Avengers isn't a perfect movie'...
Joss Whedon has claimed that The Avengers isn't "a great movie".
The film has met with critical acclaim and outstanding commercial success, becoming the third highest-grossing film of all time in just a few months, but Whedon, the superhero blockbuster's writer and director, is determined to keep his feet on the ground.
In an interview with Vulture, the 48-year-old claimed that the box office numbers became, ultimately, "meaningless".
He said: "They're large, and you can't really count that high."
Describing what his goals were with The Avengers, he claimed: "I felt like I had a particular mission in making what I felt was a slightly old-fashioned movie, because I grew up wanting to make summer movies and wanting to make superhero movies, and I got to do both at once.
"I felt like summer movies haven't been what I remember them to be, so I felt like I would love to evoke something that's less hip and ironic and more heartfelt and character-driven, and apparently, other people cared about that in a large way."
The Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Firefly creator then conceded: "I don't think it's a perfect movie. I don't even think it's a great movie. I think it's a great time, and I'm proud of it, but for me, what was exciting is that people don't go to see a movie that many times unless it's pulling on something from within, unless there's a need there. That's very gratifying."
The film is set to increase its box office even further this weekend, after being re-released in the US to take advantage of the Labour Day holiday.
Whedon will oversee a Marvel-produced SHIELD television show for ABC, before starting work on the Avengers sequel, due for a summer 2015 release.
The Avengers Crosses $1.5 Billion At Worldwide Box Office...
While the re-release of The Avengers at the U.S. box office might have failed to break into the top ten Labor Day weekend movies, it did help The Avengers reach another major milestone. The Avengers has become the third movie in history to cross the $1.5 billion mark at the worldwide box office.
While retaining its number three position on the worldwide box office list, The Avengers took in another estimated $1.7 million over Labor Day weekend, which brought The Avengers U.S. box office total to $619.5 million and The Avengers worldwide box office total to $1.501 billion.
Interestingly enough, The Dark Knight Rises also reached a milestone today, surpassing $1 billion at the worldwide box office, which means that combined The Avengers and The Dark Knight Rises have accounted for $2.5 billion at the worldwide box office this year. If you add in The Amazing Spider-Man, which currently sits at number four on the 2012 worldwide box office list with $734.9 million, then the total rises to $3.2 billion. It’s definitely a good time to be in the superhero movie making business.
Jim Carrey joins Kick-Ass 2 cast...
Jim Carrey has been offered the role of Colonel Stars in Jeff Wadlow's superhero comedy, director Jeff Wadlow has strongly hinted.
Director Jeff Wadlow and creator Mark Millar have hinted that the 50-year-old funnyman has landed the coveted role of Colonel Stars in the sequel to 2010's wacky superhero comedy.
Jeff tweeted: "6 days till we start shooting... and we officially have our Colonel. Alrighty f'n then! @ChloeGMoretz @MintzPlasse @donald_faison #kickass2. (sic)"
After Christopher Mintz-Plasse replied asking who his new co-star was going to be, the original comic book's author Mark replied: "Clue - he lives with 200 raccoons and parrots, owns the mask of Loki and named by spielberg as a genius. (sic)"
During Jim's 1994 film 'Ace Ventura: Pet Detective', which sees him play the titular character, his alter-ego is a private investigator who specialises in the retrieval of captive animals.
'The Mask' star Jim is reportedly a big fan of the original 'Kick-Ass' film by Matthew Vaughn and was being courted to play the born again Christian superhero, who assembles a motley crew of superheroes to help fight evil.
The sequel will see several new additions to the cast, including 'Scrubs' actor Donald Faison as Doctor Gravity and John Leguizamo as Red Mist's bodyguard, Javier.
The comedy will begin shooting this Friday (07.08.12) and sees Aaron Johnson returning as the lead Kick-Ass, while co-stars Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Chloe Moretz and Nicolas Cage are also reprising their roles from the first film.
'Kick-Ass 2' is set for release in June 2013.
Aussie actors Crowe and Jackman at war...
Russell Crowe and Hugh Jackman are at war!
According to various news reports, the actors having been fighting like catty tween girls while shooting the new Les Miserables movie.
“They refuse to be in the same room – trying to get them to promote a film together is a nightmare,” a source tells Star magazine.
“They’ve known each other for a decade, but during this shoot, any shred of civility was thrown aside. They can’t stand each other, each calling the other an embarrassment to the profession.
“Russell sneers at Hugh’s musical-theater background. But Hugh says Russell embarrassed his country with his bad reputation in Hollywood.”
Costar Anne Hathaway has tried to mend fences, but the actors won’t budge.
“Producers hope she can convince them to come to a truce, but it’s not looking very promising,” said the source.
Idea of the moment: Crowe VS Jackman at WWE WrestleMania (Jackman is a known massive WWE fan and has participated in a physical WWE angle in the past, so here's hoping).
Howzat: Kerry Packer's war on cricket may be missing Dennis Lillee...
Many in media and sports circles are now buzzing that the true founding father of one-day cricket was not Kerry Packer but Dennis Lillee - yet the TV smash Howzat! whitewashes him from history, one of the original World Series directors has revealed.
In an rocket on Channel 9's ratings blockbuster, World Series Cricket director Austin Robertson - who also featured as a character in the mini-series - said Australians should thank Lillee for creating the one-day game.
In response, the show's producers launched a broadside of their own, claiming they asked Lillee to contribute but the bowling superstar refused to because he wouldn't get any money.
Mr Robertson, who worked closely with the former Nine king and the rebel team, also defended "the Big Fella" and said he was not the bully he was portrayed to be. Nor was the late batting star David Hookes the simpering and indecisive vacillator depicted in the show.
Mr Robertson said Howzat! was great entertainment and brilliantly produced but riddled with inaccuracies.
"The producers made a nonsense of the way they treated the man really responsible for the whole thing - Dennis Lillee," he said.
"Dennis was visible enough but he is not given the acknowledgement for having the idea in the first place, and his contribution in putting the entire thing together. Other people have put their hands up for having the brainchild of WSC but I am here to say that, without Lillee, it would never have happened at the time.
"Though Packer was determined to get the precious television rights, they would never have been delivered at that time without having the best fast bowler in the world in his corner.
"Curiously, the producers of the show, in the curtain-call of the program, in the segment 'Where are the main players today,' DKL was again overlooked.
"I had to ask myself, why did they do that? It was Lillee who delivered the players and, while it was great to be playing on the Packer team, without Lillee it would have never got off the ground."
Southern Star producer John Edwards, who made the show, hit back at Mr Robertson. He said Lillee boycotted the show and "shut down" Mr Robertson after learning no money was on offer.: "He (Robertson) was invited. There's nothing more to say really. He was mad keen on being involved and Dennis got to him and he was shut down. Dennis wanted money.
"We tried to speak to everybody and not everybody wanted to speak. Some people had grievances and grudges.
"(Writer) Chris Lee tried to involve them as much as as possible in the story and they chose not to be involved."
Mr Robertson confirmed he and Lillee had been approached but declined to take part. He declined to comment further or say whether money was an issue.
Lillee could not be reached but he has consistently refused to comment on Howzat!.
Mr Robertson praised Mr Packer and revealed the media tycoon was not as aggressive as the show portrayed: "The portrayal of Kerry as a constant bully and user of foul language is far from the truth. He could bully. I saw him on many occasions rise up like an out-of-control bull elephant and reduce a grown man to tears. I heard him swear like a storm trooper when out of control. But I never saw him chuck a plate of food.
"I thought Kerry was in the main a humble man, often revealing great compassion, a gentle giant who would talk issues out for hours before making a decision, and then following it through.
"The mini-series gave everybody the impression he was a loud, foul- mouthed bully and we saw precious little of his other side."
Channel 9 declined to comment however sources at the network said they felt the show was spot on in capturing Mr Packer.
Mr Robertson also rejected Howzat!'s portrayal of friend David Hookes, who died after an altercation with a bouncer in Melbourne in 2004.
"David was not a weak, indecisive and nervous character who 'spilled the beans' to The Age's Peter McFarline."
And as for his own portrayal Mr Robertson said: "From birth, and throughout the many years I have enjoyed on the earth I have never had a moustache."
Prince Harry; casino tycoon Steve Wynn and fun and games in Las Vegas and beyond...
As the UK's Daily Mail states it's a rare man who walks away from Las Vegas with nothing to regret.
Prince Harry counts the cost of his escapades in Sin City, he may just be coming to regret the day he ever made the acquaintance of casino tycoon Steve Wynn.
Wynn, the self-proclaimed King of Las Vegas, is the billionaire owner of the five-star Encore Wynn resort, the opulent hotel-casino in whose eight-room, £5,100-a-night suite the prince was photographed playing strip billiards.
Unsubstantiated reports this week have suggested that cocaine was snorted in the suite, and that a known prostitute was among the guests. There are even rumours of a video tape capturing the night's events. So how did the third-in-line to the throne come to meet – even befriend – a septuagenarian gambling mogul?
Steve Wynn, a flamboyant showman with a surgically-enhanced, wrinkle-free face, carefully coiffed hair, a volcanic temper and a trophy wife, is famous for befriending celebrities whose patronage would be good for business.
Last November, 70-year-old Wynn was spotted having dinner with the prince in one of his Vegas steakhouses while the Prince was enjoying a weekend break from an advanced helicopter training course in Arizona.
Waiving the bills of celebrities is common practice in Vegas, and it remains unclear who paid the estimated £30,000 bill for Harry's recent stay. According to Wynn's spokesman, the tab was not picked up by either the tycoon or his hotel.
Is the prince welcome to return? I can't see why not,' the spokesman said.
Wynn is unlikely to be perturbed by Harry's naked shenanigans, but if drugs do turn out to have been involved, he may swiftly seek to distance himself from the events. He may be Las Vegas's most revered casino owner, but he still has his gambling licence and his reputation to think about. It is a reputation that Wynn is eager to protect. He has worked hard to erase the stains of the past.
Today, he is widely credited as the man who single-handedly cleaned up' Vegas and made it into a place in which Wall Street could invest and young families could holiday (if parents don't mind their children collecting the prostitutes' calling cards which litter the pavement).
Yet for all his denials, Wynn, who is worth $2.5 billion, has never shaken off accusations that he was linked for many years to the mobsters who once ruled Las Vegas.
He has weathered successive U.S. investigations over everything from drug-dealing to money-laundering, and has never been found to have committed any wrong-doing.
In Britain, the authorities have proved harder to convince. When he tried to open a casino in London to exploit the influx of rich Arabs in the early Eighties, Scotland Yard denied him a licence. But in the desert city of Las Vegas, he remains a swaggering icon. He has a reputation for being sophisticated' but that's by Vegas standards.
This is a man who bought Impressionist masterpieces only to hang them on the walls of his casinos; who reputedly blew his finger off while playing with a gun given to him by a former Mob hitman, and who boasts that his wife Andrea has the greatest butt in the world'.
Money is no object. In 2005, Wynn sank $2.7 billion into building just one hotel the curved glass and steel Wynn Las Vegas. He then did the same again a few years later with the Encore.
So enamoured is he with the idea of himself as Sin City royalty that he arranged his wedding last year to coincide with that of Prince William and Kate Middleton.
Hollywood star Clint Eastwood was best man and lingerie model Caprice a bridesmaid. The reception, held in the ballroom of Wynn's Encore resort, boasted a 500-strong guest list which included Sylvester Stallone, Steven Spielberg, Lionel Richie, Sir Philip Green and Celine Dion.
Each guest left with a five-inch high replica of the tiered wedding cake, but it's unlikely Wynn or his rake-thin new wife enjoyed much of the banquet. Both are vegans, and the youth-obsessed Wynn, who exists on a diet of vitamin pills, liquidised walnuts and the occasional indulgent dribble of olive oil, boasts that he still has a 32in waistline.
After years of hard graft and wheeler-dealing, he has earned the right to behave as he wishes. The son of an East Coast bingo parlour operator and hardened gambler, the brash and handsome Wynn Jnr expanded the family business to Las Vegas with a string of clever investments and ambitious hustling.
In the Seventies and Eighties, when Wynn was building his empire, Las Vegas was full of the mobsters who had originally built its gambling industry.
Some say it was impossible to work in the city and not come into contact with mafiosi, even unwittingly. Others have suggested that, even so, Wynn had an unusually large number of brushes with the Mob.
Wynn himself has vigorously denied any involvement with the Mob, and none of the numerous law enforcement investigations for gambling licences have ever concluded that he worked for or with organised crime.
In 1967, he was with some business associates of noted mobsters on a private yacht cruise on a lake in Nevada when a naked young woman somehow fell over the back of the boat and was chopped almost in half by the propeller blades. Her death prompted an investigation, but everyone on board denied having seen the incident.
And he had trouble with officials in Atlantic City, New Jersey, in 1986 after investigators discovered mobster Tony Castelbuono, a friend of Wynn, was laundering the profits of heroin trafficking at his gambling tables. Wynn almost lost his gambling licence.
Today, such tales of the Mob are just water under the bridge. Wynn has re-invented himself as the business genius who demolished seedy gambling joints along the Vegas Strip and replaced them with slick hotel-casinos such as the Mirage (the city's first 3,000-bed hotel), the Treasure Island and the Bellagio.
Part of his success has been his ability to turn on the charm with important people. But Wynn is notorious, too, for his temper. In 1991, he reached an out-of-court settlement for an undisclosed sum with the former president of Wynn's Golden Nugget casino, who described Wynn as a womanising, brutal boss.
In allegations made in documents lodged at court, it was said that he would get so angry that his eyes bulged and he started screaming at the top of his lungs and banging his head on the table'. There was no admission of liability by Wynn, who denied the allegations.
His mother Zelma claims his tyrannical behaviour is the result of frustration over his failing eyesight. The tycoon suffers from retinitis pigmentosa, a progressive genetic disease which effectively gives him tunnel vision by destroying his ability to see peripheral images. In a dark room, he is completely blind.
His vision may be failing, but for years he was infamous for his roving eye, keeping keys to empty rooms at his various hotels for trysts. He was known to favour his female blackjack croupiers.
All that came to a stop when he met the beautiful Mrs Wynn. Usually described as a British socialite, 48-year-old Andrea was, in fact, born in New York but, as her proud husband likes to stress, was raised in England and France. Tres sophistique.
It all sounds rather less chic when you learn that the family moved to France because her father, a wheeler-dealer named Victor Danenza, fled there in 1976 to escape an FBI fraud investigation.
Before becoming the second Mrs Wynn, Andrea had lived in London with her first husband, Texan banker Robert Hissom, a former polo-playing friend of Prince Charles.
She met Wynn in 2008 in St Tropez, where he keeps a yacht, and the couple began a very public romance. Wynn divorced his long-suffering first wife Elaine, after 46 years of marriage, and wed Andrea last year.
Elaine made around $740 million from the settlement one of the biggest payouts in U.S. divorce history. The costly divorce appears not to have troubled Mr Wynn, who is delighted with his new wife.
It's like God made a woman for me,' he once said, before pointing out the part of his wife he most admired the greatest butt in the world'.
It all goes to show that money can buy you neither taste nor manners. Even Wynn's attempts to acquire a collection of old masterpieces have invited accusastions that he was vulgar and greedily acquisitive.
He has, since the late Nineties, spent hundreds of millions of dollars on paintings by Picasso and Degas, Caravaggio and Titian. He has several times scooped the world's great galleries at auction, only to horrify the art world by hanging his purchases in his casinos.
At 70, he shows no sign of slowing down though controversy continues to dog him. He is embroiled in a three-year court battle with Joe Francis, founder of the soft porn video empire Girls Gone Wild.
In documents lodged at court, Francis claims Wynn threatened in an email that he would kill him over a $2 million gambling debt. Wynn is alleged to have written that he would hit Francis in the back of the head with a shovel'.
Wynn denies the allegations and claims no such email exists.
In Asia, where Wynn now earns 70 per cent of his profits from the gambling mecca of Macau, a resort on the South China Sea, he is embroiled in a battle with a former business partner, Kazuo Okada.
This week, Okada sued Wynn for $140 millino for libel after each accused the other of paying bribes within the Asian gambling industry. No amount of black marble and old masters can hide the sleaziness at the heart of Las Vegas.
It is hard to believe Wynn when he claims he could just as easily have gone into family theme parks if Walt Disney hadn't done it first. Indeed, it seems about as likely as Prince Harry settling for free entry to Sleeping Beauty's Castle rather than a weekend with his colourful acquaintances in Sin City.
One ponders if the prince may be planning to visit in any casino - hotels in the near future, and little doubt that Australia's The Star or Crown Melbourne would love to have him. The smart money say's Prince Harry will no be stepping into any casino in Australia or anywhere else in the near future, perhaps more positive PR appearances will be on the cards however.
Bwin.party losing its poker face...
LONDON (SHARECAST) - Online gaming titan bwin.party says revenues in the first half of 2012 grew at its casino and gaming offerings but poker has been hit by strong competitors and difficulties in southern Europe.
The group was formed last year by the merger between German outfit bwin Interactive Entertainment and British firm PartyGaming and still has co-Chief Executives Norbert Teufelberger and Jim Ryan.
On a pro forma basis (comparing the results of both companies before the merger), total revenue increased by 3% to €410.0m (2011: €398.0m). This was achieved despite an 11% increase in gaming taxes so that the pro forma “clean” earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation increased 13% to €92.3m (2011: €81.9m). This is better than the forecast of €89m made by analysts at Peel Hunt.
Bwin.party has also had to take a nasty one-off charge of €31.5m after the Spanish authorities contacted all of the major online gaming operators making clear any online operator that had ever accepted customers from Spain had an obligation to pay Spanish taxes.
The group offers four online “experiences”: sports betting produced revenues of €128.1m in the first half, versus €125.7m in 2011; casino and games delivered €139.7m, against €124.3m in the prior year; bingo was down from €33m to €31.5m; while the weakest performance was from poker, which fell from €104.9m to €96.4m.
In a joint statement, Ryan and Teufelberger said they were "determined to return [poker] to growth through execution of a detailed plan that includes pooling our poker liquidity as well as repositioning our flagship PartyPoker brand.”
The interim dividend has been increased by 10% to 1.72p per share although the company warned that net gaming revenue since June has fallen 8% as the end of the Euro 2012 Championships and a late start to the Bundesliga hit takings.
Bwin.Party Digital Entertainment: PartyCasino gets new 'Under the Sea' slot game
Check out PartyCasino via the Media Man network for more on this exciting new slot game which can be played for free or played for money. Bwin.Party is one of the most financially stable gaming companies on the planet and is listed on the London Stock Exchange. They also high security and high excitment online poker, sports betting and more.
New Trailer For Marvel Heroes...
Gazillion Entertainment is proud to show off a new trailer for Marvel Heroes. The new trailer announces 3 new playable heroes in the game – Daredevil, Punisher, and Squirrel Girl. The trailer made its debut at the Marvel Heroes panel at PAX 2012. The panel featured Gazillion President David Brevik (one of the creators of Diablo!), legendary Marvel writer Brian Michael Bendis (Ultimate Spider-Man! Avengers vs. X-Men! And) and Marvel’s mighty VP of Games Production TQ Jefferson. If you look closely, you’ll also see a bunch of villains were also revealed in the trailer, including Mr. Fisk the notorious crime lord.
Website:
http://www.youtube.com/marvelheroesonline
About Marvel Heroes...
Marvel Heroes is a FREE-TO-PLAY action-packed massively multiplayer online game created by David Brevik, the visionary behind Diablo and Diablo 2. Set in the iconic Marvel Universe, Marvel Heroes combines the core game-play style of Diablo and MMOs with the expansive library of heroes from the Marvel Universe. In the game, players can collect and play as their favorite Marvel Superheroes (including Iron Man, Thor, Wolverine, Hulk, Spider Man, Captain America and many others). Team up with friends and try to stop Doctor Doom from devastating the world with the power of the Cosmic Cube in a story crafted by comic-book super-scribe Brian Michael Bendis.
The Top 10 best MMA fights of the rest of 2012...
There are plenty of exciting fights to look forward to before 2013. Here’s a look at our top 10 (barring injuries):
10. Rich Franklin vs. Cung Le (UFC on Fuel TV 6, Nov. 10 in Macau)
This one isn’t as much about the fight as it is about the significance of the event – the UFC’s first in China. Neither of these guys is currently in their prime, but they always give crowd-pleasing performances. Le, a native of Vietnam, should have a massive Asian following.
9. Eddie Alvarez vs. Patricky Freire (Bellator 76, Oct. 12 in Windsor, Ontario)
Alvarez might have dropped the Bellator title last year to Michael Chandler, but he’s still one of the top 15 lightweights in the world. This also could be his last Bellator fight with his contract expiring – don’t be surprised if he’s in the UFC in 2013. Explosive knockout artist Freire will be a game opponent.
8. Joseph Benavidez vs. Demetrious Johnson, UFC flyweight title (UFC 152, Sept. 22 in Toronto)
Don’t blink. These are two of the fastest guys in MMA and both challenged for the bantamweight title before the UFC created its flyweight division. This bout will determine the company’s first-ever flyweight champion and these are legitimately the top two guys in the world at 125.
7. Shane Carwin vs. Roy Nelson (TUF 16 finale, Dec. 15 in Las Vegas)
There’s very little chance this one leaves the first round. Carwin and Nelson love to slug it out and after coaching against one another on “The Ultimate Fighter” they probably won’t be too friendly. It’ll be nice to see Carwin, a former heavyweight top contender, back in the cage.
6. Daniel Cormier vs. Frank Mir (Strikeforce: Mir vs. Cormier, Oct. 27 in TBA)
This might be a Strikeforce fight, but it has UFC implications. Mir, the former UFC heavyweight champion, takes on Strikeforce champ Cormier in somewhat of a crossover matchup. But Cormier will be in the UFC right after this fight courtesy of Strikeforce's heavyweight division being disbanded and a win here puts him on path for a title shot in 2013.
5. BJ Penn vs. Rory MacDonald (UFC on Fox 5, Dec. 8 in Seattle)
The trash talk has already been fun between the two, but things will really heat up when they enter the Octagon. Think of this as something of a passing of the torch fight. Penn, in the twilight of his career, will put up a strong challenge against the young lion, but the multi-faceted MacDonald is nearing superstardom in the welterweight division.
4. Benson Henderson (c) vs. Nate Diaz, UFC lightweight title (UFC on Fox 5, Dec. 8 in Seattle)
This could easily be a Fight of the Year candidate if it goes how it’s supposed to. Neither of these guys gives an inch – both Henderson and Diaz are perpetually moving forward. A win here, against a superior standup fighter in Diaz, would put Henderson’s name among the top pound-for-pound fighters in the world.
3. Jose Aldo (c) vs. Frankie Edgar, UFC featherweight title (UFC 153, Oct. 13 in Rio)
Well, this is a pleasant surprise. Aldo was supposed to defend his title against Erik Koch, but Koch had to pull out with an injury and his loss is the fans’ gain. Edgar was the UFC lightweight champion for more than a year and his last two losses were by the slimmest of margins. Aldo, meanwhile, is a buzzsaw – one of the best pound-for-pound fighters in the world. This is, indeed, a superfight.
2. Georges St. Pierre (c) vs. Carlos Condit, UFC welterweight unification (UFC 154, Nov. 17 in Montreal)
It seems like it’s been forever since St. Pierre has fought. One of the best MMA fighters of all time has not competed in more than a year and a half due to injuries, including a torn ACL. He returns to face red-hot Carlos Condit, who is coming off a win over Nick Diaz in January. St. Pierre, a dominant champ, has never faced anyone with the combination of speed, athleticism and technique that Condit has.
1. Junior dos Santos (c) vs. Cain Velasquez, UFC heavyweight title (UFC 155, Dec. 29 in Las Vegas)
This time, we’ll get the incredible battle of wills that we were promised last year. Velasquez lost his title to dos Santos last November in just over a minute via stunning knockout. To make matters worse, it was the UFC’s first show on Fox and the company took undeserved criticism for the quick, flash KO.
Who knew that dos Santos-Velasquez wouldn’t be a war? This one will make up for it, closing the year on a huge high note – the two best heavyweights in the world trading in the center of the cage. Only one will be standing at the end. (New York Post)
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What an exciting time for entertainment, movies, gaming and wrestling fans. WWE new angles and storylines, plus Main Event hits Australian TV, Bwin.Party has just released a new game, and you must check out the new Marvel Heroes online game. We've also got Hollywood box office reports, pro wrestling scoops, celebrity news and lots more. The Media Man agency with the latest...
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Joss Whedon: 'The Avengers isn't a perfect movie'...
Joss Whedon has claimed that The Avengers isn't "a great movie".
The film has met with critical acclaim and outstanding commercial success, becoming the third highest-grossing film of all time in just a few months, but Whedon, the superhero blockbuster's writer and director, is determined to keep his feet on the ground.
In an interview with Vulture, the 48-year-old claimed that the box office numbers became, ultimately, "meaningless".
He said: "They're large, and you can't really count that high."
Describing what his goals were with The Avengers, he claimed: "I felt like I had a particular mission in making what I felt was a slightly old-fashioned movie, because I grew up wanting to make summer movies and wanting to make superhero movies, and I got to do both at once.
"I felt like summer movies haven't been what I remember them to be, so I felt like I would love to evoke something that's less hip and ironic and more heartfelt and character-driven, and apparently, other people cared about that in a large way."
The Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Firefly creator then conceded: "I don't think it's a perfect movie. I don't even think it's a great movie. I think it's a great time, and I'm proud of it, but for me, what was exciting is that people don't go to see a movie that many times unless it's pulling on something from within, unless there's a need there. That's very gratifying."
The film is set to increase its box office even further this weekend, after being re-released in the US to take advantage of the Labour Day holiday.
Whedon will oversee a Marvel-produced SHIELD television show for ABC, before starting work on the Avengers sequel, due for a summer 2015 release.
The Avengers Crosses $1.5 Billion At Worldwide Box Office...
While the re-release of The Avengers at the U.S. box office might have failed to break into the top ten Labor Day weekend movies, it did help The Avengers reach another major milestone. The Avengers has become the third movie in history to cross the $1.5 billion mark at the worldwide box office.
While retaining its number three position on the worldwide box office list, The Avengers took in another estimated $1.7 million over Labor Day weekend, which brought The Avengers U.S. box office total to $619.5 million and The Avengers worldwide box office total to $1.501 billion.
Interestingly enough, The Dark Knight Rises also reached a milestone today, surpassing $1 billion at the worldwide box office, which means that combined The Avengers and The Dark Knight Rises have accounted for $2.5 billion at the worldwide box office this year. If you add in The Amazing Spider-Man, which currently sits at number four on the 2012 worldwide box office list with $734.9 million, then the total rises to $3.2 billion. It’s definitely a good time to be in the superhero movie making business.
Jim Carrey joins Kick-Ass 2 cast...
Jim Carrey has been offered the role of Colonel Stars in Jeff Wadlow's superhero comedy, director Jeff Wadlow has strongly hinted.
Director Jeff Wadlow and creator Mark Millar have hinted that the 50-year-old funnyman has landed the coveted role of Colonel Stars in the sequel to 2010's wacky superhero comedy.
Jeff tweeted: "6 days till we start shooting... and we officially have our Colonel. Alrighty f'n then! @ChloeGMoretz @MintzPlasse @donald_faison #kickass2. (sic)"
After Christopher Mintz-Plasse replied asking who his new co-star was going to be, the original comic book's author Mark replied: "Clue - he lives with 200 raccoons and parrots, owns the mask of Loki and named by spielberg as a genius. (sic)"
During Jim's 1994 film 'Ace Ventura: Pet Detective', which sees him play the titular character, his alter-ego is a private investigator who specialises in the retrieval of captive animals.
'The Mask' star Jim is reportedly a big fan of the original 'Kick-Ass' film by Matthew Vaughn and was being courted to play the born again Christian superhero, who assembles a motley crew of superheroes to help fight evil.
The sequel will see several new additions to the cast, including 'Scrubs' actor Donald Faison as Doctor Gravity and John Leguizamo as Red Mist's bodyguard, Javier.
The comedy will begin shooting this Friday (07.08.12) and sees Aaron Johnson returning as the lead Kick-Ass, while co-stars Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Chloe Moretz and Nicolas Cage are also reprising their roles from the first film.
'Kick-Ass 2' is set for release in June 2013.
Aussie actors Crowe and Jackman at war...
Russell Crowe and Hugh Jackman are at war!
According to various news reports, the actors having been fighting like catty tween girls while shooting the new Les Miserables movie.
“They refuse to be in the same room – trying to get them to promote a film together is a nightmare,” a source tells Star magazine.
“They’ve known each other for a decade, but during this shoot, any shred of civility was thrown aside. They can’t stand each other, each calling the other an embarrassment to the profession.
“Russell sneers at Hugh’s musical-theater background. But Hugh says Russell embarrassed his country with his bad reputation in Hollywood.”
Costar Anne Hathaway has tried to mend fences, but the actors won’t budge.
“Producers hope she can convince them to come to a truce, but it’s not looking very promising,” said the source.
Idea of the moment: Crowe VS Jackman at WWE WrestleMania (Jackman is a known massive WWE fan and has participated in a physical WWE angle in the past, so here's hoping).
Howzat: Kerry Packer's war on cricket may be missing Dennis Lillee...
Many in media and sports circles are now buzzing that the true founding father of one-day cricket was not Kerry Packer but Dennis Lillee - yet the TV smash Howzat! whitewashes him from history, one of the original World Series directors has revealed.
In an rocket on Channel 9's ratings blockbuster, World Series Cricket director Austin Robertson - who also featured as a character in the mini-series - said Australians should thank Lillee for creating the one-day game.
In response, the show's producers launched a broadside of their own, claiming they asked Lillee to contribute but the bowling superstar refused to because he wouldn't get any money.
Mr Robertson, who worked closely with the former Nine king and the rebel team, also defended "the Big Fella" and said he was not the bully he was portrayed to be. Nor was the late batting star David Hookes the simpering and indecisive vacillator depicted in the show.
Mr Robertson said Howzat! was great entertainment and brilliantly produced but riddled with inaccuracies.
"The producers made a nonsense of the way they treated the man really responsible for the whole thing - Dennis Lillee," he said.
"Dennis was visible enough but he is not given the acknowledgement for having the idea in the first place, and his contribution in putting the entire thing together. Other people have put their hands up for having the brainchild of WSC but I am here to say that, without Lillee, it would never have happened at the time.
"Though Packer was determined to get the precious television rights, they would never have been delivered at that time without having the best fast bowler in the world in his corner.
"Curiously, the producers of the show, in the curtain-call of the program, in the segment 'Where are the main players today,' DKL was again overlooked.
"I had to ask myself, why did they do that? It was Lillee who delivered the players and, while it was great to be playing on the Packer team, without Lillee it would have never got off the ground."
Southern Star producer John Edwards, who made the show, hit back at Mr Robertson. He said Lillee boycotted the show and "shut down" Mr Robertson after learning no money was on offer.: "He (Robertson) was invited. There's nothing more to say really. He was mad keen on being involved and Dennis got to him and he was shut down. Dennis wanted money.
"We tried to speak to everybody and not everybody wanted to speak. Some people had grievances and grudges.
"(Writer) Chris Lee tried to involve them as much as as possible in the story and they chose not to be involved."
Mr Robertson confirmed he and Lillee had been approached but declined to take part. He declined to comment further or say whether money was an issue.
Lillee could not be reached but he has consistently refused to comment on Howzat!.
Mr Robertson praised Mr Packer and revealed the media tycoon was not as aggressive as the show portrayed: "The portrayal of Kerry as a constant bully and user of foul language is far from the truth. He could bully. I saw him on many occasions rise up like an out-of-control bull elephant and reduce a grown man to tears. I heard him swear like a storm trooper when out of control. But I never saw him chuck a plate of food.
"I thought Kerry was in the main a humble man, often revealing great compassion, a gentle giant who would talk issues out for hours before making a decision, and then following it through.
"The mini-series gave everybody the impression he was a loud, foul- mouthed bully and we saw precious little of his other side."
Channel 9 declined to comment however sources at the network said they felt the show was spot on in capturing Mr Packer.
Mr Robertson also rejected Howzat!'s portrayal of friend David Hookes, who died after an altercation with a bouncer in Melbourne in 2004.
"David was not a weak, indecisive and nervous character who 'spilled the beans' to The Age's Peter McFarline."
And as for his own portrayal Mr Robertson said: "From birth, and throughout the many years I have enjoyed on the earth I have never had a moustache."
Prince Harry; casino tycoon Steve Wynn and fun and games in Las Vegas and beyond...
As the UK's Daily Mail states it's a rare man who walks away from Las Vegas with nothing to regret.
Prince Harry counts the cost of his escapades in Sin City, he may just be coming to regret the day he ever made the acquaintance of casino tycoon Steve Wynn.
Wynn, the self-proclaimed King of Las Vegas, is the billionaire owner of the five-star Encore Wynn resort, the opulent hotel-casino in whose eight-room, £5,100-a-night suite the prince was photographed playing strip billiards.
Unsubstantiated reports this week have suggested that cocaine was snorted in the suite, and that a known prostitute was among the guests. There are even rumours of a video tape capturing the night's events. So how did the third-in-line to the throne come to meet – even befriend – a septuagenarian gambling mogul?
Steve Wynn, a flamboyant showman with a surgically-enhanced, wrinkle-free face, carefully coiffed hair, a volcanic temper and a trophy wife, is famous for befriending celebrities whose patronage would be good for business.
Last November, 70-year-old Wynn was spotted having dinner with the prince in one of his Vegas steakhouses while the Prince was enjoying a weekend break from an advanced helicopter training course in Arizona.
Waiving the bills of celebrities is common practice in Vegas, and it remains unclear who paid the estimated £30,000 bill for Harry's recent stay. According to Wynn's spokesman, the tab was not picked up by either the tycoon or his hotel.
Is the prince welcome to return? I can't see why not,' the spokesman said.
Wynn is unlikely to be perturbed by Harry's naked shenanigans, but if drugs do turn out to have been involved, he may swiftly seek to distance himself from the events. He may be Las Vegas's most revered casino owner, but he still has his gambling licence and his reputation to think about. It is a reputation that Wynn is eager to protect. He has worked hard to erase the stains of the past.
Today, he is widely credited as the man who single-handedly cleaned up' Vegas and made it into a place in which Wall Street could invest and young families could holiday (if parents don't mind their children collecting the prostitutes' calling cards which litter the pavement).
Yet for all his denials, Wynn, who is worth $2.5 billion, has never shaken off accusations that he was linked for many years to the mobsters who once ruled Las Vegas.
He has weathered successive U.S. investigations over everything from drug-dealing to money-laundering, and has never been found to have committed any wrong-doing.
In Britain, the authorities have proved harder to convince. When he tried to open a casino in London to exploit the influx of rich Arabs in the early Eighties, Scotland Yard denied him a licence. But in the desert city of Las Vegas, he remains a swaggering icon. He has a reputation for being sophisticated' but that's by Vegas standards.
This is a man who bought Impressionist masterpieces only to hang them on the walls of his casinos; who reputedly blew his finger off while playing with a gun given to him by a former Mob hitman, and who boasts that his wife Andrea has the greatest butt in the world'.
Money is no object. In 2005, Wynn sank $2.7 billion into building just one hotel the curved glass and steel Wynn Las Vegas. He then did the same again a few years later with the Encore.
So enamoured is he with the idea of himself as Sin City royalty that he arranged his wedding last year to coincide with that of Prince William and Kate Middleton.
Hollywood star Clint Eastwood was best man and lingerie model Caprice a bridesmaid. The reception, held in the ballroom of Wynn's Encore resort, boasted a 500-strong guest list which included Sylvester Stallone, Steven Spielberg, Lionel Richie, Sir Philip Green and Celine Dion.
Each guest left with a five-inch high replica of the tiered wedding cake, but it's unlikely Wynn or his rake-thin new wife enjoyed much of the banquet. Both are vegans, and the youth-obsessed Wynn, who exists on a diet of vitamin pills, liquidised walnuts and the occasional indulgent dribble of olive oil, boasts that he still has a 32in waistline.
After years of hard graft and wheeler-dealing, he has earned the right to behave as he wishes. The son of an East Coast bingo parlour operator and hardened gambler, the brash and handsome Wynn Jnr expanded the family business to Las Vegas with a string of clever investments and ambitious hustling.
In the Seventies and Eighties, when Wynn was building his empire, Las Vegas was full of the mobsters who had originally built its gambling industry.
Some say it was impossible to work in the city and not come into contact with mafiosi, even unwittingly. Others have suggested that, even so, Wynn had an unusually large number of brushes with the Mob.
Wynn himself has vigorously denied any involvement with the Mob, and none of the numerous law enforcement investigations for gambling licences have ever concluded that he worked for or with organised crime.
In 1967, he was with some business associates of noted mobsters on a private yacht cruise on a lake in Nevada when a naked young woman somehow fell over the back of the boat and was chopped almost in half by the propeller blades. Her death prompted an investigation, but everyone on board denied having seen the incident.
And he had trouble with officials in Atlantic City, New Jersey, in 1986 after investigators discovered mobster Tony Castelbuono, a friend of Wynn, was laundering the profits of heroin trafficking at his gambling tables. Wynn almost lost his gambling licence.
Today, such tales of the Mob are just water under the bridge. Wynn has re-invented himself as the business genius who demolished seedy gambling joints along the Vegas Strip and replaced them with slick hotel-casinos such as the Mirage (the city's first 3,000-bed hotel), the Treasure Island and the Bellagio.
Part of his success has been his ability to turn on the charm with important people. But Wynn is notorious, too, for his temper. In 1991, he reached an out-of-court settlement for an undisclosed sum with the former president of Wynn's Golden Nugget casino, who described Wynn as a womanising, brutal boss.
In allegations made in documents lodged at court, it was said that he would get so angry that his eyes bulged and he started screaming at the top of his lungs and banging his head on the table'. There was no admission of liability by Wynn, who denied the allegations.
His mother Zelma claims his tyrannical behaviour is the result of frustration over his failing eyesight. The tycoon suffers from retinitis pigmentosa, a progressive genetic disease which effectively gives him tunnel vision by destroying his ability to see peripheral images. In a dark room, he is completely blind.
His vision may be failing, but for years he was infamous for his roving eye, keeping keys to empty rooms at his various hotels for trysts. He was known to favour his female blackjack croupiers.
All that came to a stop when he met the beautiful Mrs Wynn. Usually described as a British socialite, 48-year-old Andrea was, in fact, born in New York but, as her proud husband likes to stress, was raised in England and France. Tres sophistique.
It all sounds rather less chic when you learn that the family moved to France because her father, a wheeler-dealer named Victor Danenza, fled there in 1976 to escape an FBI fraud investigation.
Before becoming the second Mrs Wynn, Andrea had lived in London with her first husband, Texan banker Robert Hissom, a former polo-playing friend of Prince Charles.
She met Wynn in 2008 in St Tropez, where he keeps a yacht, and the couple began a very public romance. Wynn divorced his long-suffering first wife Elaine, after 46 years of marriage, and wed Andrea last year.
Elaine made around $740 million from the settlement one of the biggest payouts in U.S. divorce history. The costly divorce appears not to have troubled Mr Wynn, who is delighted with his new wife.
It's like God made a woman for me,' he once said, before pointing out the part of his wife he most admired the greatest butt in the world'.
It all goes to show that money can buy you neither taste nor manners. Even Wynn's attempts to acquire a collection of old masterpieces have invited accusastions that he was vulgar and greedily acquisitive.
He has, since the late Nineties, spent hundreds of millions of dollars on paintings by Picasso and Degas, Caravaggio and Titian. He has several times scooped the world's great galleries at auction, only to horrify the art world by hanging his purchases in his casinos.
At 70, he shows no sign of slowing down though controversy continues to dog him. He is embroiled in a three-year court battle with Joe Francis, founder of the soft porn video empire Girls Gone Wild.
In documents lodged at court, Francis claims Wynn threatened in an email that he would kill him over a $2 million gambling debt. Wynn is alleged to have written that he would hit Francis in the back of the head with a shovel'.
Wynn denies the allegations and claims no such email exists.
In Asia, where Wynn now earns 70 per cent of his profits from the gambling mecca of Macau, a resort on the South China Sea, he is embroiled in a battle with a former business partner, Kazuo Okada.
This week, Okada sued Wynn for $140 millino for libel after each accused the other of paying bribes within the Asian gambling industry. No amount of black marble and old masters can hide the sleaziness at the heart of Las Vegas.
It is hard to believe Wynn when he claims he could just as easily have gone into family theme parks if Walt Disney hadn't done it first. Indeed, it seems about as likely as Prince Harry settling for free entry to Sleeping Beauty's Castle rather than a weekend with his colourful acquaintances in Sin City.
One ponders if the prince may be planning to visit in any casino - hotels in the near future, and little doubt that Australia's The Star or Crown Melbourne would love to have him. The smart money say's Prince Harry will no be stepping into any casino in Australia or anywhere else in the near future, perhaps more positive PR appearances will be on the cards however.
Bwin.party losing its poker face...
LONDON (SHARECAST) - Online gaming titan bwin.party says revenues in the first half of 2012 grew at its casino and gaming offerings but poker has been hit by strong competitors and difficulties in southern Europe.
The group was formed last year by the merger between German outfit bwin Interactive Entertainment and British firm PartyGaming and still has co-Chief Executives Norbert Teufelberger and Jim Ryan.
On a pro forma basis (comparing the results of both companies before the merger), total revenue increased by 3% to €410.0m (2011: €398.0m). This was achieved despite an 11% increase in gaming taxes so that the pro forma “clean” earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation increased 13% to €92.3m (2011: €81.9m). This is better than the forecast of €89m made by analysts at Peel Hunt.
Bwin.party has also had to take a nasty one-off charge of €31.5m after the Spanish authorities contacted all of the major online gaming operators making clear any online operator that had ever accepted customers from Spain had an obligation to pay Spanish taxes.
The group offers four online “experiences”: sports betting produced revenues of €128.1m in the first half, versus €125.7m in 2011; casino and games delivered €139.7m, against €124.3m in the prior year; bingo was down from €33m to €31.5m; while the weakest performance was from poker, which fell from €104.9m to €96.4m.
In a joint statement, Ryan and Teufelberger said they were "determined to return [poker] to growth through execution of a detailed plan that includes pooling our poker liquidity as well as repositioning our flagship PartyPoker brand.”
The interim dividend has been increased by 10% to 1.72p per share although the company warned that net gaming revenue since June has fallen 8% as the end of the Euro 2012 Championships and a late start to the Bundesliga hit takings.
Bwin.Party Digital Entertainment: PartyCasino gets new 'Under the Sea' slot game
Check out PartyCasino via the Media Man network for more on this exciting new slot game which can be played for free or played for money. Bwin.Party is one of the most financially stable gaming companies on the planet and is listed on the London Stock Exchange. They also high security and high excitment online poker, sports betting and more.
New Trailer For Marvel Heroes...
Gazillion Entertainment is proud to show off a new trailer for Marvel Heroes. The new trailer announces 3 new playable heroes in the game – Daredevil, Punisher, and Squirrel Girl. The trailer made its debut at the Marvel Heroes panel at PAX 2012. The panel featured Gazillion President David Brevik (one of the creators of Diablo!), legendary Marvel writer Brian Michael Bendis (Ultimate Spider-Man! Avengers vs. X-Men! And) and Marvel’s mighty VP of Games Production TQ Jefferson. If you look closely, you’ll also see a bunch of villains were also revealed in the trailer, including Mr. Fisk the notorious crime lord.
Website:
http://www.youtube.com/marvelheroesonline
About Marvel Heroes...
Marvel Heroes is a FREE-TO-PLAY action-packed massively multiplayer online game created by David Brevik, the visionary behind Diablo and Diablo 2. Set in the iconic Marvel Universe, Marvel Heroes combines the core game-play style of Diablo and MMOs with the expansive library of heroes from the Marvel Universe. In the game, players can collect and play as their favorite Marvel Superheroes (including Iron Man, Thor, Wolverine, Hulk, Spider Man, Captain America and many others). Team up with friends and try to stop Doctor Doom from devastating the world with the power of the Cosmic Cube in a story crafted by comic-book super-scribe Brian Michael Bendis.
The Top 10 best MMA fights of the rest of 2012...
There are plenty of exciting fights to look forward to before 2013. Here’s a look at our top 10 (barring injuries):
10. Rich Franklin vs. Cung Le (UFC on Fuel TV 6, Nov. 10 in Macau)
This one isn’t as much about the fight as it is about the significance of the event – the UFC’s first in China. Neither of these guys is currently in their prime, but they always give crowd-pleasing performances. Le, a native of Vietnam, should have a massive Asian following.
9. Eddie Alvarez vs. Patricky Freire (Bellator 76, Oct. 12 in Windsor, Ontario)
Alvarez might have dropped the Bellator title last year to Michael Chandler, but he’s still one of the top 15 lightweights in the world. This also could be his last Bellator fight with his contract expiring – don’t be surprised if he’s in the UFC in 2013. Explosive knockout artist Freire will be a game opponent.
8. Joseph Benavidez vs. Demetrious Johnson, UFC flyweight title (UFC 152, Sept. 22 in Toronto)
Don’t blink. These are two of the fastest guys in MMA and both challenged for the bantamweight title before the UFC created its flyweight division. This bout will determine the company’s first-ever flyweight champion and these are legitimately the top two guys in the world at 125.
7. Shane Carwin vs. Roy Nelson (TUF 16 finale, Dec. 15 in Las Vegas)
There’s very little chance this one leaves the first round. Carwin and Nelson love to slug it out and after coaching against one another on “The Ultimate Fighter” they probably won’t be too friendly. It’ll be nice to see Carwin, a former heavyweight top contender, back in the cage.
6. Daniel Cormier vs. Frank Mir (Strikeforce: Mir vs. Cormier, Oct. 27 in TBA)
This might be a Strikeforce fight, but it has UFC implications. Mir, the former UFC heavyweight champion, takes on Strikeforce champ Cormier in somewhat of a crossover matchup. But Cormier will be in the UFC right after this fight courtesy of Strikeforce's heavyweight division being disbanded and a win here puts him on path for a title shot in 2013.
5. BJ Penn vs. Rory MacDonald (UFC on Fox 5, Dec. 8 in Seattle)
The trash talk has already been fun between the two, but things will really heat up when they enter the Octagon. Think of this as something of a passing of the torch fight. Penn, in the twilight of his career, will put up a strong challenge against the young lion, but the multi-faceted MacDonald is nearing superstardom in the welterweight division.
4. Benson Henderson (c) vs. Nate Diaz, UFC lightweight title (UFC on Fox 5, Dec. 8 in Seattle)
This could easily be a Fight of the Year candidate if it goes how it’s supposed to. Neither of these guys gives an inch – both Henderson and Diaz are perpetually moving forward. A win here, against a superior standup fighter in Diaz, would put Henderson’s name among the top pound-for-pound fighters in the world.
3. Jose Aldo (c) vs. Frankie Edgar, UFC featherweight title (UFC 153, Oct. 13 in Rio)
Well, this is a pleasant surprise. Aldo was supposed to defend his title against Erik Koch, but Koch had to pull out with an injury and his loss is the fans’ gain. Edgar was the UFC lightweight champion for more than a year and his last two losses were by the slimmest of margins. Aldo, meanwhile, is a buzzsaw – one of the best pound-for-pound fighters in the world. This is, indeed, a superfight.
2. Georges St. Pierre (c) vs. Carlos Condit, UFC welterweight unification (UFC 154, Nov. 17 in Montreal)
It seems like it’s been forever since St. Pierre has fought. One of the best MMA fighters of all time has not competed in more than a year and a half due to injuries, including a torn ACL. He returns to face red-hot Carlos Condit, who is coming off a win over Nick Diaz in January. St. Pierre, a dominant champ, has never faced anyone with the combination of speed, athleticism and technique that Condit has.
1. Junior dos Santos (c) vs. Cain Velasquez, UFC heavyweight title (UFC 155, Dec. 29 in Las Vegas)
This time, we’ll get the incredible battle of wills that we were promised last year. Velasquez lost his title to dos Santos last November in just over a minute via stunning knockout. To make matters worse, it was the UFC’s first show on Fox and the company took undeserved criticism for the quick, flash KO.
Who knew that dos Santos-Velasquez wouldn’t be a war? This one will make up for it, closing the year on a huge high note – the two best heavyweights in the world trading in the center of the cage. Only one will be standing at the end. (New York Post)
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