CineMedia: Previous Sites of the Week (1999)

CineMedia's Previous Sites of the Week (1999)
*for the weeks of Dec. 20 - Jan. 10, 1999/2000!*	At Home With Richard Simmons	What better way to begin a new year (and century) than to spend it with TV fitness guru, Richard Simmons! Get ready to shed those pounds (and tears) with Richard as we begin our ritualistic initiation of new year resolutions. Quite a fun site, with lots of comforting words from Mr. Simmons. One dose of advice comes from the "A Message from Richard" section: "I'M MAD AT THE DIRT Dirt comes in all shapes and sizes. There isn't just one kind of dirt! There are categories of dirt. Well, my housekeeper left for vacation in Mexico, and I decided to clean the carpets. They weren't all that dirty, so I thought, but I went to get the vacuum cleaner, and well, all it did was vacuum!"........[well, you get the picture]. Sections on Travelin', Sweatin', and Eatin'. When you've worked your way through those sections, check out the 64 pages belonging to "Richard's Friends." Happy (and healthy) Holidays!
*for the week of December 13 - 20, 1999!*	UK Friends Page	Question: "What product does Joey help to sell on 'Amazing Discoveries'? " Answer: "The Milk Master 2000." You'll find these dazzling Friends quiz questions and more on the UK Friends Page. Not only will you find the usual line-up of sections found on virtually every TV show fan site: Picture gallery, links page, star bios (with the actors' real home addresses....?), there's also a handy Video Exchange set up for folks to trade video copies of episodes they don't have: Want: "the giant poking device " episode. Have: "everything else...." Of course. Overall, this is a great site to watch a bunch of UK-based Friends fans exchange gossip (and videos) about their favorite TV show. Last Question: "When Frank Jr. came to stay in the city with Phoebe, what did he want to do?" Answer: "Get some Ninja stars and photograph a hooker." Oh, those crazy Friends.......!
*for the week of December 6 - 13, 1999!*	British Film Institute	The BFI has just relaunched their totally revised Web site and what a site it is! Not only is it a very comprehensive source of information about the BFI itself (film collections, education, National Film Theatre, Museum of the Moving Image, etc.), it is also a worthy source of news and information about the British film industry. The "Facts on Film" section is full of production/box office stats, current British film news, a researchers' guide to film & TV, and a very useful guide to who handles certain film rights. There is also info about the current issue of "Sight & Sound" as well as details about BFI books, videos, and publications. For those interested in film production, there's an excellent section titled "Making Movies" that outlines the various ways in which the BFI can help kick-start your budding cinematic career. Overall, this is a site that truly reflects the many activities that the BFI is involved in and demonstrates why the BFI is the world's leading film institute.
*for the week of November 29 - December 6, 1999!*	Walt Disney - His Life and Works	This well-designed and fun-loving site devoted to Walt Disney (and created by two Brits living in Bristol) is a great place to find information about the man who created Mickey. Loads of images and facts populate the site. Walt's Photo Album includes snap shots of such gems as "Walt & his wife Lilly at the Snow White premiere" and "Walt & Shirley Temple at the Academy Awards." A list of "Feature Film Facts" details info. about all of the big films Walt made during his lifetime. The "Through The Years" section is amazing with year-by-year links (1859 - 1967) that outline Walt's famed life. For example, on March, 1955: "Walt Disney comes up with the name "Mouseketeers" for members of the Mickey Mouse Club." But the real thrill of this site? We are amazed the top brass at The Walt Disney Company (Inc.) have not sicked their lawyers on to this site with various cease and desist orders. Visit this site (while you still can)!
*for the week of November 22 - 29, 1999!*	Box Office Guru	A playful mix of box office data, industry history, and on-line reader polls (Will Toy Story 2 open stronger than the 1995 original?), Box Office Guru offers a comprehensive overview of domestic and international box office data from 1989 to the present. Using data published in Variety and analytical, yet never dry, accounts of the dizzying competition between studio movies, the Guru never ceases to amaze. For a quick and dirty education on Hollywood commerce, the Guru will turn any netizen into a box office convert...
*for the week of November 15 - 22, 1999!*	Images: A journal of Film and Popular Culture	The current issue of "Images" (No. 8) is focused on Exploitation Cinema and includes a great interview with Felicia Feaster and Bret Wood, authors of the book, "Forbidden Fruit," as well as video reviews of Russ Meyer and Paul Morrissey flicks. This quarterly online journal is smart, well-designed, archived, and contains insightful content relating to the movies (new and old). In fact, a statement by the editors of the magazine states that "We created Images because we saw a void in the market place. Most film journals concentrate on recent movies, occasionally including an article about movies of the past, but more likely than not, confined exclusively to the most recent releases." A big bonus is that they encourage people to send in reviews, so this might be the place for your first published film article. We've been reading this journal for quite some time, now, and always look forward to each new issue.
*for the week of November 8 - 15, 1999!*	The Looney Tunes Crash Course	"The Looney Tunes Crash Course" site is an extensive resource center for everything Looney Tune. The Graphics Library full of your favorite scenes of Bugs and the gang was fairly extensive as where the sounds and avi video clips available for downloading. The Discussion Board wasn't terribly active the day we popped in, but there were plenty of other areas and activities to entertain us for a spell. The "memory game" was fairly silly, but we "won" in 12 seconds flat!¡And the "Looney Tune Humor" page -- transcripts of "Wile E. Coyote vs Acme Lawsuit, part 1" -- well, we guess that's "looney tune humor" for you. But the Looney Tunes Coloring Pages? (Download them and color 'em in....). Hmmmmm.....................(?)(!)(?)............
*for the week of November 1 - 8, 1999!*	Scriptapalooza	Coming to you from Hollywood, this Web site is devoted to Scriptapalooza's 2nd Annual Screenwriting Competition as well as tons of info. about the art and craft of screenwriting. One page (Screenwriter 101) is designed for the novice screenwriter and discusses the ins-and-outs of writing and pitching that new screenplay. Another great page features books and software for the budding screenwriter. And if writing for TV is your bag, go to their sister site, Scriptapalooza TV. The entry cost is only $35 before Jan. 2, 2000 - so why not give it a whirl. You never know......................
*for the week of October 25 - November 1, 1999!*	Movie Reviews By Jeff Goblin	Ahhh, it's Web sites like this one that remind you how wonderful the Internet actually is - a place where almost anyone can set up a site (geocities.com, no doubt) and "do their thing." This site contains movie reviews by youngster, Jeff Goblin, and is actually quite fun to browse about. Gems include: Review of SOUTH PARK: BIGGER, LONGER, AND UNCUT where Jeff states: "It was a movie I went in knowing it would shock and knowing I'd laugh a real laugh, the ones where you're not just like, 'That's funny,' but you can't control your laughter" (****); or Jeff's Horror Awards page which proclaims, "The following are awards given to horror movies by me" and has awards such as "Best Horror Movie of the 1960s: NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD." Keep writing 'em, Jeff!
*for the week of October 18 - 25, 1999!*	Classic TV Database	Criteria: To become a classic TV show featured on The Classic TV Database, many things are required. The number one and most important requirement a show must meet is being off the air [excluding re-runs]. Database: Image, brief credits, program history, etc. Interesting: TV Top 100 - I Love Lucy (CBS, 1951-61) followed by MAS*H (CBS, 1972-83). Fun: TV Theme songs (RealAudio or Midi) - "Com'on knock on our door, Com'on knock on our door, We've been waiting for you, We've been waiting for you....." - and the TV Theme song quiz was fun, but we didn't do very well on it ("it must be the unintelligible midi tracks...."). Funky: Visit the Classic TV Magnet Store.
*for the week of October 11 - 18, 1999!*	The Fairly Uncreative Monty Python Website	Since Monty Python is now celebrating 30 years of doing silly walks and selling dead parrots, we thought it would be most appropriate to feature one of our favorite Python sites - "The Fairly Uncreative Monty Python Website." Very comprehensive with sounds, images, episode guides, biographies - the usual suspects - but what makes this site stand out from the rest are the well-formatted sketch scripts and the Monty Python "game cheats" - ways to get around and answer questions posed by the CD-ROM game. Worth a good laugh.
*for the week of October 4 - 11, 1999!*	Adrienne Barbeau	She played Carol on the hit 1970's TV series, "Maude," and was featured in the film, "Escape from New York" - but did you also know that Adrienne Barbeau is the voice of the Catwoman in "Batman, The Animated Series" and has a new CD out titled 'adrienne barbeau'? Indeed, these are the kinds of things one finds out when visiting her Web site. Lots of self-promotion (why else build yourself a site, right?) and product plugs, but her biography is interesting to read and you'll soon be able to hear tracks from her new CD. Keep an eye on her "Upcoming Appearances" page for "more to come......."
*for the week of September 27 - October 4, 1999!*	The Lovely Gwyneth Paltrow	It's Gwyneth's birthday this week (she's turning 26!) and what better way to celebrate than to check out this star-struck page. One of the great features of this site are the numerous magazine articles about Gwyneth that have been reproduced here in their entirety. The Filmography pages are nice and contain a number of links to online reviews and data, but unfortunately there's little word from the site's author (Ben) other than a 1-5 rating (Sliding Doors a "5," Deadly Relations a "2"). The lengthy "News" section with every bit of gossip one could imagine is worth a visit by itself. And finally, the "Public Sightings" section is full of photos of Gwyneth and Brad Pitt (before they broke up) on the run and on the town.
*for the week of September 20 - 27, 1999!*	Fight Club	Quite an amazing movie. Brad Pitt, violence, Helena Bonham Carter, violence, Ed Norton, violence - it's all here - but with such an interesting twist! Streaming QT video clips, and more than you ever want to know about making soap! We particularly liked the fake banner ads floating around the site that refer to some of the persistent themes in the film. Try purchasing an item from their online store and get a bit of a surprise. Lots of fun - but more fun after you see the film.
*for the week of September 13 - 20, 1999!*	Unofficial South Park Movie Page	Oh, how could we resist..........! This comprehensive site charts the cinematic adventures of Cartman, Kenny, Kyle and Stan. There's the usual loads of Sounds, links, pictures, lyrics, scripts, etc., but we really like the section devoted to letters from "Overprotective Mothers" trying to shut the site down for its use of nasty words. One worried mother said: "I wrote to your host server's Abuse Department yesterdy, (sic) and I will write them as often as necessary until this page full of obscene language is permanently removed." Maybe it's time to "respect her authoritahhhhh."
*for the week of September 6 - 13, 1999!*	Alfred Hitchcock - The Master of Suspense	Hitch is 100 years old (Born: August 13, 1899) and the "Alfred Hitchcock Centennial Celebrations" have begun. This wonderful site originating from Mexico contains a thorough biography, filmography, and FAQ and punctuates these with excellent images. We particularly enjoy the "Wit and Wisdom" section with such fun quotes as "Disney has the best casting. If he doesn't like an actor he just tears him up" or the classic: "The length of a film should be directly related to the endurance of the human bladder."
*for the weeks of August 23 - September 6, 1999!*	The Silent Westerns	What an interesting site! The Silent Westerns is presented in a mini-essay format and examines the early development of the Western film genre. Pages are divided into thematic and historical sections including "Landscape, Machine, East, West" (Perceptions and Uses of Land in Silent Westerns) and " Western Heroines" (Domestic life, Women Outlaws, and Serial Queens in Silent Westerns). Great production stills and readable analyses.
*for the weeks of August 2 - 23, 1999!*	Brian Keith Site	"Uncle Bill....Uncle Bill......" For anyone who grew up watching "Family Affair," this site devoted to the late actor, Brian Keith (1921-1997) is a must visit. A loving tribute and online biography, this site combines interesting tid-bits about the actor's life with useful information. Check out the "Family Affair" Episode Guide to relive such moments as: Mr. French drops Mrs. Beasley from the terrace or when Cissy is upset because she does not have a date for the dance. Of course, Brian Keith did a lot more than "Family Affair" including such films as "The Parent Trap" and "With Six You Get Eggroll." The site includes many translations in French - but unfortunately some of the English also needs translation. Still, a nice visit down TV memory lane.