British diva, Dame Shirley Bassey, to appear on Oscars 2
We learned from arts·meme‘s friends at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences that Dame Shirley Bassey will make a special appearance on the Oscars® show broadcast on Oscar Sunday, February 24, at the Dolby Theatre™ at Hollywood & Highland Center. The sublime chanteuse, a prima diva, Bassey is best known for recording the ...
Lurch on, Universal monsters!
Oct
17
2012
There have been frightening happenings at the film world’s Halloween Headquarters, also known as the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences — and they’re still going on. “A Monstrous Centennial,” the Academy’s month-long celebration of the 100th anniversary of Universal Pictures, screening 13 classic horror classics, has reach mid-point. The series is augmented by ...
Guillermo del Toro’s horrific evening @ The Academy
Sep
26
2012
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences is hosting an October-long celebration of classic horror films in honor of “Universal’s Legacy of Horror”- part of the studio’s year-long 100th anniversary celebration. Writer-director Guillermo del Toro, a true aficionado of the horror-genre will host the kick-off screening celebrating the studio that defined horror films. The ...
Jerry Lewis, amped on technology
Sep
14
2012
“That was so nice,” murmured Jerry Lewis, 86, in acknowledgment of the heartfelt standing ovation that erupted when he stepped onto the Samuel Goldwyn Theater stage on Thursday night. The comedian/actor/producer-director and all-around entertainment legend was being honored at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Still emitting zingers but notably less frenetic than ...
Not ladies who lunch, but women who write
Aug
15
2012
Two upcoming events celebrate the literary ladies. The first is a reading on Sunday at Alias Books East of a new ebook Anaïs Nin: The Last Days. The author, Barbara Kraft, knew both Anais Nin and Henry Miller in LA at the end of their lives, independently of one another. Anaïs Nin, noted for her ...
Architectural duo to reconfigure May Company building into film museum 2
Award-winning architects Renzo Piano and Zoltan Pali will design the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science announced today. The new museum will occupy the former May Company building, a beloved Los Angeles icon that sits at the corner of Wilshire Boulevard and Fairfax Avenue, the dead center of ...
Happy 100th Gene Kelly! Love, Oscar 2
A parade of Technicolor-tinged dance sequences enchanted a full house at the Samuel Goldwyn Theater Thursday night. “A Centennial Tribute to Gene Kelly,” the first of a two-part event hosted by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences honored the beloved dancer-choreographer-director in this most effective manner — by screening his sensational dance clips. ...
BYOB – Bring Your Own Blanket – to “Oscars Outdoors”
May
7
2012
In an act of magnanimous good citizenry and cultural benevolence, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) has unveiled its new screening venue and summer on-the-lawn film series. Impressive. It’s located on Vine Street south of the ArcLight Cinema. Click the photo to view the build-out. The “Oscars Outdoors” open-air theater is part ...
Vintage Hollywood photos of Bison Archives move to Academy 1
Since we launched arts·meme nearly four years ago, we have enjoyed the privilege of sharing with our readers several photos of early Hollywood from the collection of film historian, Marc Wanamaker. Marc has shared unstintingly from his Bison Archives collection, letting us eyeball wonderful images of: Anna Pavlova‘s first and only foray as a Universal ...
Pierre Étaix’s “Heureux Anniversaire” (1962) screened @ the Academy 1
Nov
18
2011
An exquisite evening at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences on Wednesday night, when two beautifully refurbished films by the comic French filmmaker, Pierre Étaix, 82, got rare American screenings. Étaix, who started as young man in circus and remained faithful to clowns, casting them in cameo roles in his films, was present ...