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2009 | 2008

11 articles from 2009

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Press Interview: NBA Superstar LeBron James

2 October 2009 1:01 PM, PDT | ScreenStar | See recent ScreenStar news »

They call him King James these days, and he's one of the NBA's biggest and brightest stars, but once upon a time LeBron James was an uncommonly talented kid from Akron, Ohio, whose rise to royalty started with the support of a bunch of friends/teammates and a life-changing coach. More than a Game, a new documentary now open in limited release, follows their story over the course of nine years and reveals how James never left behind his friends, coach -- or the hard lessons he learned about friendship, family and teamwork -- on the way to the top. PopStar was on hand when James, Coach Dru Joyce, teammates Sian Cotton, Dru Joyce III, Willie McGee, and Romeo Travis, as well as director Kristopher Belman, met the media during a press conference at a New York City hotel. Following are excerpts from James' part of the conversation. LeBron, Kris »

- ianspelling@corp.popstar.com (Ian Spelling)

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King James Introduces Clips from More Than a Game

30 September 2009 1:03 PM, PDT | Beyond Hollywood | See recent Beyond Hollywood news »

Here’s a quickie clip from the upcoming documentary “More Than a Game”, which chronicles the pre-superstar life of one Lebron James. You might have heard of him. It’s a really quick clip that’s probably to remind people that the documentary is about Lebron James, who introduces it. Update: Added two more quickie clips. Five talented young basketball players from Akron, Ohio star in this remarkable true-life coming of age story about uncommon friendship in the face all too common adversities. Coached by a charismatic but inexperienced player’s father, and led by future NBA superstar LeBron James, the “Fab Five’s” improbable seven-year journey leads them from a decrepit inner-city gym to the doorstep of a national high school championship. Along the way, the close-knit team is repeatedly tested—both on and off the court—as James’ exploding worldwide celebrity threatens to destroy everything they’ve set out to achieve together. »

- Nix

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Watch This: The James Dean That Never Was

23 September 2009 11:02 AM, PDT | Cinematical | See recent Cinematical news »

In searching the Cinematical archives to see whether or not this commercial that, quite brilliantly, imagines what James Dean's life would have been like had he not died in a car crash in 1955, I came across this post from Cine writer Martha Fischer honoring the legendary actor on the 50th anniversary of his death. I find Martha's words of remembrance to be a bittersweet frame upon which to hang the advertisement embedded below.

"...the world Dean lived in has so little connection to ours (he never heard The Beatles; didn't live through the political chaos of the 60s) that he seems almost alien sometimes. He's so distant that he's become a symbol to us now: the kid with the cigarette dangling from his lips, tough facade laid over painful insecurity. He's so fragile that we want to protect him, but there's toughness there, too, a toughness that makes him »

- Peter Hall

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LeBron James Is Tall, And Other Obvious Thoughts While Meeting The King

22 September 2009 1:16 PM, PDT | MTV Newsroom | See recent MTV Newsroom news »

Having spent my entire professional career interviewing famous people (save for those few months where I wrote about bespoke suits and bathtubs shaped like slingback heels), I don't really get starstruck. There are a handful of people around whom I squeal like a teenage girl (as anybody who has been in the room with me while Rob Zombie is present can attest), but I generally don't get blown away by fame.

But when it comes to raw, physical abilities, it becomes a whole different ball game. I'll start hyperventilating over even the most minor athletes. I shook late Boston Celtic Reggie Lewis' hand once and count is as one of the great moments of my life. My brother met former Boston Red Sox pitcher Dennis "Oil Can" Boyd at a bar a few years ago and I got really jealous. I once went to an industry party solely because I »

- Kyle Anderson

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LeBron James Goes to Basketball Fantasy Camp; Will Play the Role of “LeBron James”

17 September 2009 10:49 AM, PDT | Collider.com | See recent Collider.com news »

LeBron James has just signed on to star in the movie “Basketball Fantasy Camp” and I couldn’t be more excited.  It’s not because I’m a huge fan of LeBron although I recognize his talent and it’s more that I’m indifferent to professional basketball as a whole.  I’m excited because the mighty days of “Space Jam” and “Blue Chips” may have returned.  The long-foretold prophecy of having basketball players star in movies playing basketball players may be upon us.  Is LeBron truly the savior of basketball player-movie stars?  Hold your breath and hit the jump…

According to Variety, James will play himself (yay!) at the LeBron James Adult Basketball Camp.  Wacky situations ensue when some of the guys start dragging LeBron into their personal life issues.  But wait!  While some of these personal problems are idiotic and ripe for comedy, there will be some serious »

- Matt Goldberg

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King James Comes to Hollywood

16 September 2009 10:25 PM, PDT | Beyond Hollywood | See recent Beyond Hollywood news »

It is rare for a sports star to be just a sports star anymore; they also have to be multi-faceted entertainers. Shaquille O’Neil starred in the flamboyant “Kazaam” in 1996, and Michael Strahan is starring in the upcoming Fox sitcom “Brothers”. Now Variety reports that LeBron James is making his feature film debut in the appropriately named “Fantasy Basketball Camp”. The film, which is about five adults who come to Vegas to attend the LeBron James Adult Basketball Camp and tangle LeBron James up with their personal affairs, is a comedy from Universal Pictures and Imagine Entertainment. LeBron James plays himself. Even big personalities like Shaq often have difficulty translating that personality to a script, but LeBron James, who is not quite as boisterous in real life, has proven that he can do comedy in his 2007 line of commercials called “The LeBrons”, in which he simultaneously played each member of an entire family. »

- Jacob

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Lebron "Lepunk" James Gets Posterized

13 July 2009 10:31 AM, PDT | Huffington Post | See recent Huffington Post news »

King James? The Chosen One? Lebron, this week you are Lepunk! Turns out Lebron James was posterized by Jordan Crawford, a fierce Xavier student, in a drive-by dunking at the Lebron James Skills Academy. According to a source close to Mr. James, the NBA's Mvp had his Nike representatives pull a "Tricky Dicky", and ordered them to bury the taped evidence. Lebron, in case you're not familiar with former President Richard Milhouse Nixon, after whom the Tricky Dicky is named, when he got facialized, he too tried desperately to get his peeps to bury the bodies where no one would find them. Google him if you don't believe me. Bron-Bron, a real King takes his smackdown with style and grace. He admits when he's been bested in fair competition, and he congratulates his worthy opponent.... »

- David Henry Sterry

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Franco Joins McBride To Get High Again

1 April 2009 12:11 AM, PDT | EmpireOnline | See recent EmpireOnline news »

King James Of Franco is set to join The Right Royal Danny McBride for medieval-regal exploits in Your Highness, helmed by their Pineapple Express director David Gordon Green.  Like a hybrid of A Knight's Tale and the role-playing bits in Role Models, with a little bit of The Neverending Story throne in for good measure (sorry), the comedy will follow a pair of vain, spoiled medieval princes who must unite in a quest to save their family and kingdom from an evil wizard.We first reported on this back in May last year, when it was due to begin production in early 2009. The shoot will now kick off on July 20 in Belfast. The whole thing was put together by McBride (who wrote the screenplay withhis Foot Fist Way collaborator Ben Best), Gordon Green and Role Models producer Scott Stuber.In the meantime, McBride is limbering up for the release of »

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The Real Inspiration for The Joker

26 March 2009 6:00 PM, PDT | WorstPreviews.com | See recent Worst Previews news »

Heath Ledger recently won an Oscar for his portrayal of The Joker in "The Dark Knight," but we have yet to find out who is responsible for creating the character to begin with. Comic book artist Bob Kane, writer Bill Finger and artist Jerry Robinson have all claimed that they are the brains behind the evil villain. But very few dispute that the visual inspiration came from German actor Conrad Veidt's role in the 1928 film "The Man Who Laughs." In the movie, Gwynplaine (Veidt), whose father offends King James II, is sentenced to have a permanent smile carved on his face. The idea is to condemn Gwynplaine "to laugh forever at his fool of a father." Based on rumors, Bill Finger (co-creator of Batman) brought a picture to Bob Kane showing Veidt's creepy grin along with a Joker playing card. That meeting is said to be the creation of The Joker. »

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Is This Guy The Original Inspiration for Batman's Joker?

26 March 2009 10:02 AM, PDT | Cinematical | See recent Cinematical news »

Tell me you wouldn't want to invite that dude over for dinner this weekend. This may belong in the "Things You Already Know File", but for those who don't ... Conrad Veidt was a German actor whose role in the 1928 film The Man Who Laughs is said to be one of the main inspirations for the appearance of the Joker. In the film, Veidt plays a character named Gwynplaine whose father offends King James II and is sentenced to death via iron maiden (the torture device, not the metal band). Gwynplaine, because of his father's actions, is then forced to have a surgeon permanently disfigure his face so that -- as a title card states -- he'll be condemned "to laugh forever at his fool of a father." It's a freaky premise, and Roger Ebert once said of the film that it's a "a melodrama, at times even a swashbuckler, but »

- Erik Davis

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Is Laura Hudson of Comic Foundry newfound royalty?

23 January 2009 6:31 AM, PST | Comicmix.com | See recent Comicmix news »

It's a fairy tale story that could only happen in comics.

Recent photographic evidence has come to ComicMix that shows that Laura Hudson, late of Comic Foundry and currently of Cerebus: A Diablog, is the long lost twin sister of Queen Beth Lowery of Waukau, Wisconsin.

Beth Lowery, according to America's Finest News Source, was recently chosen as the consort of the Mattress King James Koepke III, Lord and Master of a vast bed and box-spring empire in central Wisconsin.

As we all know, there has been no true royal powers exercised in the industry since the passing of King Jacob in 1994. The lack of a royal presence in comics since that time has been long and bleak, with poverty, despair, and widespread variant covers roaming the land.

It is unclear what new privileges her connection to royalty will bestow unto Laura. Royal pardons do seem to be within her portfolio, »

- Glenn Hauman

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2009 | 2008

11 articles from 2009

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