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Richard Belzer, a comedian and actor best known for playing Detective John Munch in several NBC crime dramas, including Law & Order: Special Victims Unit and Homicide: Life on the Street, has died at the age of 78.

According to his manager Eric Gardner, Belzer died early on Sunday, February 19, at his home in France.

Bill Scheft, a writer and longtime friend of Belzer, said that he had “lots of health issues.”

In Memoriam 2022: 100 Great Celebrities Who Died In 2022

He made his film debut in the comedic satire The Groove Tube (1974) alongside Chevy Chase. The film contained skits that featured social commentary on television shows of the 70s.

He also served as the warm-up comedian for Saturday Night Live and made three guest appearances on the show in the late 70s.

As John Munch, Belzer played one of the most memorable cops in TV history. He first appeared on NBC’s...

Jury duty at the Cannes Film Festival (from left) Maggie Gyllenhaal, Jessica Hausner, Mati Diop, Spike Lee, Mélanie Laurent and Mylène Farmer Photo: Courtesy of Cannes Film Festival Spike Lee, the first black jury president in the history of the Cannes Film Festival, hasn’t always had the best memories of his sojourns to the south of France.

His connection reached a nadir when Do The Right Thing was presented in Competition in 1989, but controversially failed to win the top prize, the Palme d’Or, which went to Steven Soderbergh’s Sex Lies And Videotape. There was much dissent at the time in the media ranks, notably from critical doyen, the late Roger Ebert, who had championed the film.

Lee, who addressed those media this afternoon at the jury press conference, recalled that a couple of weeks ago marked the 32nd anniversary of the film’s release. “I wrote it...

Clive Barker has joined HBO's Hellraiser TV show as an executive producer. The new series was announced back in April of this year, with Halloween director David Gordon Green attached to direct pilot and a few more episodes. The series is written by Mark Verheiden (Heroes) and Michael Dougherty (Godzilla: King of the Monsters). At the time of the announcement, Barker was not on board, though the show is based on his novella The Hellbound Heart.

Clive Barker says he is "delighted the Hellraiser mythology is seeing a new life. It's time the stories went back to their roots. I'm eager to bring to a new audience the most powerful and ancient elements of horror: the darkest evil invading our human lives and how we must find in ourselves the power to resist it." The HBO series is not a remake and it aims to be an "elevated continuation...

We love Cassandra Peterson, a smart woman who made a go of horror host work in the tough Los Angeles TV market, long after the short-lived Vampira and just a few years after the passing of Sinister Seymour. After Elvira’s Movie Macabre she got to make this lively comedy feature, and thus planted her stake in the cinema firmament while at the top of her game. I’d give it an A+ for nostalgic sentiment, a B for quality and a B+ for wit, even if the adult humor does skew a bit infantile. Well, that was part of the Elvira personality too!

Elvira, Mistress of the Dark

Blu-ray

Arrow Video

1988 / Color / 1:85 widescreen / 96 min. / Street Date April 28, 2020 / 39.95

Starring: Cassandra Peterson, William Morgan Sheppard, Daniel Greene, Susan Kellerman, Jeff Conaway, Edie McClurg, William Duell.

Cinematography: Hanania Baer

Film Editor: Battle Davis

Original Music: James B. Campbell

Written by Sam Egan,...

Pinhead To Be Unleashed On Television Audiences! Roy Lee & Dan Farah Board TV Adaptation Of Classic Hellraiser Horror Franchise Producers Roy Lee and Dan Farah (Ready Player One) have joined forces with producers/rights holders Lawrence Kuppin, David Salzman and Eric Gardner, to produce an …

The post Pinhead to be unleashed on television audiences! Tv Adaptation of Classic Hellraiser Franchise appeared first on Hnn | Horrornews.net.

With more and more film franchises being reimagined as TV series, it’s not surprising to learn that the classic horror franchise Hellraiser is going to also be developed as a series.

It producer Roy Lee and Ready Player One producer Dan Farah are teaming up to develop the series which centers around an evil hellish villain name Pinhead. They have teamed up with the rights holders of the property, Lawrence Kuppin, David Salzman and Eric Gardner, to make this happen.

According to Deadline, the intention is to “use the mythology established in the movie franchise and the Clive Barker novella The Hellbound Heart as a launch pad for a new series that could be anthology, or a more traditional narrative.”

The first movie told the story of a man “who inadvertently opens a portal to hell when he tinkers with a strange puzzle box he bought during a trip abroad.

Horror TV has been huge these past couple years, and so it makes sense that the powers that be behind the scenes have finally gotten their act together and will be bringing us a series based on Clive Barker's Hellraiser. This new series is headed our way from It producer Roy Lee and Ready Player One producer Dan Farah.

Lee and Farah will be joining forces with producer-rightsholders Lawrence Kuppin, David Salzman and Eric Gardner to bring Pinhead and his fellow Cenobites to the small screen for the first time ever. Kuppin, Salzman, and Gardner have controlled the TV rights to Barker's tale since 1989 when New World Pictures was sold.

Evidently, the producers are currently searching for a writer and a showrunner to take the lead on the planned Cenobite series and will then begin pitching ideas to networks and various streaming platforms. They plan to use the mythology...

*Updated with the official press release.* It sounds like Pinhead will be making his small screen debut thanks to producers Roy Lee (It) and Dan Farah (Ready Player One).

Press Release: Hollywood - Producers Roy Lee and Dan Farah (Ready Player One) have joined forces with producers/rights holders Lawrence Kuppin, David Salzman and Eric Gardner, to produce an original series based on the iconic Hellraiser horror franchise. The search for a visionary writer-showrunner is underway, with several A-list names and networks already circling the project.

One of the most terrifying franchises in film history, this will mark the television series debut for Hellraiser. Originally based on Clive Barker's 1986 novella The Hellbound Heart, Hellraiser quickly evolved into a global pop-culture phenomenon. In addition to ten films, the franchise has also spawned a book anthology, comic books, apparel, DVDs and myriad globally licensed products. The first film was featured on...

Exclusive: It producer Roy Lee and Ready Player One producer Dan Farah have positioned themselves to bring to the small screen for the first time Hellraiser, the iconic horror franchise anchored by the malevolent straight-out-of-hell villain, Pinhead. Those producers have joined forces with producer-rightsholders Lawrence Kuppin, David Salzman and Eric Gardner, who have controlled those TV rights since New World was sold in 1989.

The intention is to use the mythology established in the movie franchise and the Clive Barker novella The Hellbound Heart as a launch pad for a new series that could be anthology, or a more traditional narrative. The producers are underway with a search for a writer-showrunner, before setting it at a network or streamer, at a time when horror is performing strongly.

The first movie told the story of a man who inadvertently opens a portal to hell when he tinkers with a strange puzzle box...

Principal photography has completed on Netflix’s upcoming film “See You Yesterday,” a time-travel film written and directed by newcomer filmmaker Stefon Bristol and produced by Spike Lee through his 40 Acres and a Mule production banner.

Netflix plans to release the film in 2019.

Based on Bristol’s NYU thesis short film, which was also produced by Lee and streamed on HBO last year, “See You Yesterday” follows C.J. and Sebastian (Eden-Duncan Smith and Dante Crichlow), two African-American prodigies who build a time machine in the hopes of using it to save C.J.’s brother from being wrongfully killed by a cop.

Also Read: Spike Lee to Receive Career Achievement Award From Palm Springs International Film Festival

“I started this project when Mike Brown and Eric Gardner were murdered. That was in 2014. And we are still dealing with deadly police misconduct. I made this film because I don’t...

It seems Bravo Media wants you to give up everything -- except cable TV, of course. The first season of the Stripped TV show premieres on Bravo on Tuesday, December 5, 2017 at 10:00pm Et/Pt. The reality TV series centers on people who volunteer to be "stripped" of everything they own (including their clothes) as the cameras follow them for three weeks -- and they are not even competing for cash prizes. So yes, these people really want to be on TV. According to Bravo, the Stripped TV series aims to expose the heart of American materialism (although oddly enough, voyeurism doesn't come up). Truly Original's Steven Weinstock, Glenda Hersh, Lauren Eskelin, Michelle Scheifen, Todd Hurvitz, Cat Rodriguez, and Eric Gardner executive produce the reality series. Participants in the first season include: Jason Lau, Brian...

Last year, German distributor Cinespectral Films announced their plans to honor the Queen of Halloween with a limited edition, all-region Blu-ray of Elvira, Mistress of the Dark (1988), and today they've released the full details and pre-order information for the anticipated home media release.

Limited to 3,000 overall items, the Elvira, Mistress of the Dark Blu-ray / DVD is available in three different cover art versions (limited to 1,000 apiece) and is slated for an April 24th release. Pre-orders are now open, and you can check out the full list of special features and cover art selections below. To learn more, visit Movie2Shop and Cinespectral Films.

Press Release: Elvira, Mistress Of The Dark Finally Busts Out In A Strictly Limited Collector’S Edition Blu-Ray Set On April 24th 2017! 3000 Copies Only!

Cinespectral Films proudly presents the 1988 cult comedy: Elvira, Mistress of the Dark for the first time ever on Blu-ray, in glorious all-new restored High Definition.

The Blues Brothers are back! And this time, Jake Blues lives! Yes, Blues Brothers originator Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi's widow Judy have teamed up with Bento Box Entertainment (the company behind Bob's Burgers) for a new half-hour animated prime time comedy adventure series, which will be shopped to various TV networks starting this month. Maybe most exciting is the fact that the music in the show will take precedence over the action and comedy.

The Blues Brothers series was co-created and will be executive produced by original Blues Brother Dan Aykroyd, Judy Belushi and Emmy-winning original Saturday Night Live writer Anne Beatts. Each half-hour will be devoted to the music, mayhem and comedy first seen in the original 1980 movie and its 1998 sequel. Jake and Elwood Blues will reunite with their infamous Blues Brothers band, taking their act on the road. Their home base will still be Chicago, with soul,...

The streaming service isn’t entitled to a compulsory license to stream broadcast content, a District Court judge says.FilmOn isn’t entitled to a compulsory license to stream broadcast content, one court has ruled. Last month, a U.S. District Court judge ruled against FilmOn’s claim to a compulsory license. Last week, the judge’s decision was unsealed, showing her reasoning. Judge Rosemary Collyer wrote that while the Supreme Court noted an “overwhelming likeness” between cable operators and online streamer Aereo, that doesn’t mean that an online system that offers copyrighted material like a cable system does must automatically be seen as a cable system. Eric Gardner, of The Hollywood Reporter, pointed out that [ Read More ]

The post Judge’s Ruling Shows Rationale Against a License for FilmOn appeared first on Shockya.com.

Chicago – The 21st edition of the Black Harvest Film Festival will open on August 8th, 2015, at the Gene Siskel Film Center in Chicago. Through film and video, the festival explores the stories, images, heritage and history of the black experience in the United States and around the world. Two passionate short film examples of the festival mission are found in a couple of Chicago filmmakers, Lonnie Edwards (“A Ferguson Story”) and Robert Carnilius (“How to Catch a Criminal”).

Both films, in different ways, take on the current issue of law enforcement interaction towards African Americans. Lonnie Edwards’ “A Ferguson Story” is a lyrical and emotional overview of the clash between black U.S. citizens and authorities in the wake of the Michael Brown killing in Ferguson, Missouri. “How to Catch a Criminal,” by Robert Carnilius, is a sharp-sticked satire on 1950s era “how-to” short films, capturing with pungent humor the...

Drama, drama, drama: Bravo Media has renewed “Flipping Out,” “Married to Medicine,” and “The Real Housewives of Orange County” (pictured above). It also set the premiere date for its second original scripted series, “Odd Mom Out,” which will debut on Monday, June 8.

Additionally, the cable channel set return dates for “Shahs of Sunset” (March 2), “Newlyweds: The First Year” (March 10), “Southern Charm” (March 9), and “Million Dollar Listing New York” (April 8), it revealed Thursday at the Television Critics Association Winter Press Tour.

Finally, Bravo is developing “The One” from executive producer Charlize Theron, which was previously announced on Thursday under the terms...

My beloved New York City had, until recently, a law on the books known as “Stop and Frisk.” In a nutshell, it meant if a police officer suspects, for any reason, that you may be up to no good, they can detain and search you. Guess who the majority of people being stopped are?

Black and Latinos. Or, as they are known to NYC cops, niggers and spics.

A New York State Of Mind. Nov. 1, 2012 Michael Davis World

I forgot that I’ve written about this racist bullshit law before. (Stop and Frisk) NYC is going to appeal the court ruling. Of cause they are, because NYC is run by a bunch of racist motherfuckers. The law has done nothing to curb crime, and the vast majority of people stopped are young black men. What’s funny is the vast majority of people found with weapons were white guys.

Seriously.

Hyde Park Entertainment, Image Nation Abu Dhabi, and WWE Studios are to co-produce the comedy Untitled Celebrity Death Pool starring Ken Jeong. Hyde Park International handles sales outside the Us.

The satire follows a debt-ridden nightclub owner who sets out to win his long-running celebrity death pool by attempting to kill his chosen celebrity, David Hasselhoff.

The cast includes WWE Hall Of Famer Hulk Hogan alongside Jeong and Hasselhoff.

Darren Grant will direct from a screenplay written by Peter Hoare. Pre-production is earmarked for September in Los Angeles and the parties have targeted a 2015 theatrical release.

WWE Studios president Michael Luisi and Hyde Park’s Ashok Amritraj are producing with Hasselhoff, Michele Berk, Patrick Hughes and Warren Zide. Eric Gardner is executive producer.

Exclusive: The Hangover‘s Ken Jeong has signed on to star in a comedy currently known as Untitled Celebrity Death Pool, to be co-produced by Ashok Amritraj’s Hyde Park Entertainment, Image Nation Abu Dhabi, and WWE Studios. Jeong will play a struggling nightclub owner in debt to a loan shark who sets out to win his long-running celebrity death pool by offing his chosen celebrity: David Hasselhoff.

The Hoff himself is aboard to co-star and also will produce with WWE Studios President Michael Luisi, Hyde Park’s Amritraj, Michele Berk, Patrick Hughes and Warren Zide. Wrestling icon Hulk Hogan also has signed on for a role. Diary Of A Mad Black Woman helmer Darren Grant is directing from a spec script by Peter Hoare. It’s the latest collaboration between WWE Studios and Hyde Park, which pacted last year on the Dwayne Johnson film adaptation of The Fall Guy,...

Hyde Park Entertainment, Image Nation Abu Dhabi, and WWE Studios are to co-produce the comedy Untitled Celebrity Death Pool starring Ken Jeong. Hyde Park International handles sales outside the Us.

The satire follows a debt-ridden nightclub owner who sets out to win his long-running celebrity death pool by attempting to kill his chosen celebrity, David Hasselhoff.

The cast includes WWE Hall Of Famer Hulk Hogan alongside Jeong and Hasselhoff.

Darren Grant will direct from a screenplay written by Peter Hoare. Pre-production is earmarked for September in Los Angeles and the parties have targeted a 2015 theatrical release.

WWE Studios president Michael Luisi and Hyde Park’s Ashok Amritraj are producing with Hasselhoff, Michele Berk, Patrick Hughes and Warren Zide. Eric Gardner is executive producer.

Dan Aykroyd and Judy Belushi (widow of John Belushi) have teamed up to plan a full-scale Blues Brothers revival – with the possibility of an animated series, Broadway musical, books, and pretty much any other medium they can get.

Back in August of last year, Aykroyd and Belushi’s widow began talks to resuscitate the comatose franchise by forming Blues Brothers Approved Ventures LLC — and were later joined by Panacea founder and chairman Eric Gardner to develop and produce a Blues Brothers primetime TV series.

Pimping out the trademark black fedora as far as it will go, the motivated team have their sights set on an animated series, a Broadway musical, licensing, endorsements, a branded radio network, books, telephony and a heightened Web and social networking presence.

Additionally, The Official Blues Brothers Revue (which has been touring around the Us) is currently seeking ...

Click to continue reading Dan Aykroyd Developing ‘Blues...

It’s been a while since a Media Tidbits, so there is a lot to cover:

When reality enters into movies, studios are faced with difficult choices. The Trayvon Martin incident in Florida is focusing an uncomfortable light into 20th Century Fox’s upcoming July release, Neighborhood Watch. The film’s teaser, which the studios describe as “a broad alien-invasion comedy and bears absolutely no relation to the tragic events in Florida,” features stars Ben Stiller, Vince Vaughn, Jonah Hill, and Richard Ayoade attack the block with intimidating stares while Hill makes finger-guns and later manhandles a hoodie-clad teen. This most striking parallel forced Fox to pull both the teaser posters and trailer from Florida altogether, noting they are “very sensitive to the Trayvon Martin case.” The studio announced they plan to move into the next phase of their marketing of the film, but intend to keep the July 27th release date,...

What is it about Pinhead and Hellraiser once you take them out of Clive Barker's debauched universe? Hollywood's insistence to drag the dark and deranged cenobite through over-the-top sequels and weird remakes has left Pinhead looking like the lonely goth kid swaying by himself at the prom. He's out of his element, which truly is amongst Barker's wicked, imaginative realm. To make matters worse, Variety and JoBlo (who we got this swanky, little picture from — is it real?) are reporting that there may be a Hellraiser television series coming soon. Studios are presently scheming to develop a small screen franchise based on the delightfully gory tale. Executive producer potentials Eric Gardner and Larry Kuppin both ran the show for the first two Hellraiser...

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Hellraiser, based on the cult franchise, is about to be reborn on the small screen, courtesy of Sonar Entertainment, which is co-developing with Eric Gardner's Panacea Ent. For those unfamiliar, Hellraiser focuses on a puzzle box that opens a gateway to the Hell-like realm of the Cenobites, an order of formerly human monsters who harvest human souls to torture in sadomasochistic experiments.  The leader of the Cenobites is referred to as Pinhead, whose visage has been littered...

Earlier this week, Brent reported that Clive Barker’s hideously underrated horror opus “Nightbreed” could make the jump to the small screen, which, of course, made this horror geek extremely happy. Hot on the heels of that revelation is the news that Sonar Entertainment is preparing to transform the “Hellraiser” franchise into a weekly series. How the company plans to make that happen is unclear, though it will be curious to see how they intend to make this property work on the small screen, particularly since all of the films rely heavily on graphic sex and violence. In other words, this needs to be on HBO or Showtime. Eric Gardner and Larry Kuppin will executive produce the series. In a recent article with Variety, Gardner had this to say about the project: The gap between an O.K. show and a great show is getting bigger and bigger and our...

Like Hellraiser? More specifically the first two films in the series? Then you may be in luck since Variety is reporting that Sonar Entertainment (previously Rhi Entertainment) is developing "Hellraiser" for the small screen along with some of the franchise's early principal players. Per Variety "Sonar is co-developing with Eric Gardner's Panacea Ent. "Hellraiser," a TV series based on the cult British horror franchise. Gardner will exec produce along with Larry Kuppin, whose company New World Entertainment is behind the first two 'Hellraiser' pics." Sonar announced, "One of the most successful (and terrifying) franchises in film history is ready for its weekly television debut....

Here's an interesting tidbit buried in a story over on Variety (thanks to DC reader Jinx for pointing it out)! Apparently there's a TV show in the works based upon the hellish antics of everyone's favorite Cenobites and their unlucky puzzle box.

After bankruptcy and the departure of its founder, Rhi Entertainment has rebranded as Sonar Entertainment and tapped Stewart Till as chief executive.

The move, announced Saturday at the MipTV market in Cannes, comes as Sonar tries to expand the scope of its production-distribution business beyond the made-fors that had been the forte of company founder Robert Halmi Sr.

Halmi exited Gotham-based Rhi in February. His son, Robert Halmi Jr., ankled as CEO last July, when Till was tapped as co-interim CEO along with Mike Corrigan and David Salzman.

"Rebranding as Sonar Entertainment represents a fresh start and a solid business strategy for growth and expansion," said Sonar chairman Gabriel de Alba.

NBC revealed its strong slate of original series programming for Summer 2011 that features the sixth-season premiere of summer's top-rated America's Got Talent on Tuesday, May 31 (9-11 p.m. Et), the announcement of the new alternative series It's Worth What? and the second-season debut of The Marriage Ref on Sunday, June 26 (10-11 p.m. Et).

In addition, NBC will offer fresh programs such as the musical competition series The Voice (regular day and time Tuesdays, 8-9 p.m. Et) through June as well as the new alternative series Still Standing (working title in the U.S.) and Love in the Wild (days and times Tba). Original episodes of the drama Law & Order: Los Angeles (Mondays, 10-11 p.m. Et) also continue.

NBC also will present the broadcast network premiere of the final season of Law & Order: Criminal Intent on Monday, May 30 (9-10 p.m. Et). Meanwhile, the last season of Friday Night Lights (Fridays,...