Notícias

George Foreman, legendary boxing champion, Olympic gold medalist and spokesperson for the highly successful George Foreman Grill, has died. He was 76.

The fighter’s family confirmed his death with a lengthy post on Instagram.

The post reads: “Our hearts are broken. With profound sorrow, we announce the passing of our beloved George Edward Foreman Sr. who peacefully departed on March 21, 2025 surrounded by loved ones. A devout preacher, a devoted husband, a loving father, and a proud grand and great grandfather, he lived a life marked by unwavering faith, humility, and purpose.”

“A humanitarian, an Olympian, and two-time heavyweight champion of the world, He was deeply respected — a force for good, a man of discipline, conviction, and a protector of his legacy, fighting tirelessly to preserve his good name— for his family.”

The message concluded: “We are grateful for the outpouring of love and prayers, and kindly ask for privacy as...

George Foreman, the legendary boxer who set a record as the oldest-ever heavyweight champion, served as a minister after becoming a born again Christian, and achieved perhaps his greatest reknown as the spokesperson for a popular grill named after him, died Friday, his family announced. He was 76.

“Our hearts are broken. With profound sorrow, we announce the passing of our beloved George Edward Foreman Sr. who peacefully departed on March 21, 2025 surrounded by loved ones. A devout preacher, a devoted husband, a loving father, and a proud grand and great grandfather, he lived a life marked by unwavering faith, humility, and purpose,” Foreman’s family said in a statement posted to his Instagram account.

Born George Edward Foreman in Houston Texas in 1949, Foreman grew up in the East Texas town of Marshall, where as he later explained he had a troubled childhood and early teen years participating in petty crimes before...

Muhammad Ali will be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame Class of 2024, Variety has learned exclusively.

Ali will be inducted during the Hall of Fame ceremony taking place on April 5 at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He will be inducted by his widow, Lonnie Ali. The ceremony will be livestreamed on Peacock beginning at 10 p.m. Et/9 p.m. Ct.

Ali dabbled in professional wrestling at different times in his career. He famously fought an exhibition match against Japanese pro wrestling legend Antonio Inoki in Tokyo in 1976. In the leadup to that matchup, he appeared at a Wwwf (now WWE) show, where he entered the ring and challenged Gorilla Monsoon. Ali would go on to appear as a special guest referee for the main event of WrestleMania I in 1985, which saw Hulk Hogan and Mr. T face off against Roddy Piper and Paul Orndorff. Ali also appeared...

Big George Foreman Photo: Sony For historical context (and for fans of boxing when boxing mattered), in 1968, 19-year-old George Edward Foreman of Marshall, Texas, represented the United States in the heavyweight division of the Mexico City Olympic Games. He won a gold medal and then turned professional. Meanwhile, in the stateside boxing world,...

Big George ForemanPhoto: Sony

For historical context (and for fans of boxing when boxing mattered), in 1968, 19-year-old George Edward Foreman of Marshall, Texas, represented the United States in the heavyweight division of the Mexico City Olympic Games. He won a gold medal and then turned professional. Meanwhile, in the stateside boxing world,...

"Rocky" has endured as one of the most uplifting sports films of all time thanks in large part to its heartfelt portrayal of two social misfits falling haltingly in love as one of them trains for an unlikely, yet plausible shot at the heavyweight boxing title. Sylvester Stallone and Talia Shire give lovely, lived-in performances that are painful to watch at times because Rocky has no idea how awkwardly his gregariousness lands, while Adrian seems terrified that anyone would find her worthy of affection.

For most of its runtime, "Rocky" is a human drama about losers. It soars to life during its Bill Conti-scored training montage that explodes the film into its exhilarating third act. Interestingly, the final match isn't all that long. From the opening bell to the end of the fifteenth round, it occupies a scant eight-and-a-half minutes of screen time. But it feels like trench warfare...

Earnie Shavers, considered one of boxing’s hardest punchers during his long career, died Thursday at 78. No cause was revealed in reports.

Shavers was best known for his work in the 1970s, although he was active from 1969 through 1995. Overall, he was 74-14-1 with 68 knockouts in his career. He fought Muhammad Ali and Larry Holmes for the heavyweight title, losing to Ali in a 15-round decision in 1977 at Madison Square Garden. It was a close decision and Ali needed a strong final round to pull out the victory.

After the fight, Ali praised Shavers’ power. “Earnie hit me so hard, it shook my kinfolk in Africa,” Ali said.

Ali was not the only heavyweight impressed with Shavers. Shavers fought heavyweight champ Larry Holmes twice, the first time being a non-title bout on March 25, 1978 at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, his first after losing to Ali. Holmes won a 12-round decision over Shavers in that match,...

Writer, producer, director Lee Daniels discusses some of his favorite films with Josh & Joe.

Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode

Infested (2002)

Shadowboxer (2005)

The United States Vs. Billie Holiday (2021)

A Star Is Born (1937)

Lee Daniels’ The Butler (2013)

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (2014)

Lady Sings The Blues (1972)

Island In The Sun (1957)

Carmen Jones (1954)

Claudine (1974)

Mandingo (1975)

Drum (1976)

Caligula (1979)

Gloria (1980)

The Exorcist (1973)

Abby (1974)

Blacula (1972)

Scream Blacula Scream (1973)

Cabaret (1972)

Lenny (1974)

Sounder (1972)

All That Jazz (1979)

I Am A Camera (1955)

Travels With My Aunt (1972)

The Emigrants (1971)

Star 80 (1983)

Harold And Maude (1971)

The Godfather (1972)

The Godfather Part II (1974)

Pickup On South Street (1953)

In The Mood For Love (2000)

Leave Her To Heaven (1945)

Laura (1944)

Dragonwyck (1946)

The Baron of Arizona (1950)

His Kind of Woman (1951)

Explorers (1985)

Innerspace (1987)

Jack Reacher (2012)

Them (1954)

Revenge of the Creature (1955)

Tarantula! (1955)

Coogan’s Bluff (1968)

Going In Style (1979)

Going In Style (2017)

Judas And The Black Messiah (2021)

Stroszek (1977)

Fitzcarraldo (1982)

Land of Silence and Darkness (1971)

Cave Of Forgotten Dreams...

Steve Carver, a director of action films whose portfolio included An Eye for an Eye and Lone Wolf McQuade, both starring Chuck Norris, and Big Bad Mama, starring Angie Dickinson, has died. He was 75.

Carver died Friday of a heart attack in Los Angeles, writer-producer Rob Word told The Hollywood Reporter.

Carver’s first feature was Pam Grier’s The Arena (1974), a gladiator movie set in ancient Rome that marked his initial collaboration with producer Roger Corman, and he also guided Ben Gazzara in Capone (1975), Warren Oates and Ken Norton in Drum (1976) and Lee Majors in Steel (1979).

Carver’s first love was photography,...

Steve Carver, a director of action films whose portfolio included An Eye for an Eye and Lone Wolf McQuade, both starring Chuck Norris, and Big Bad Mama, starring Angie Dickinson, has died. He was 75.

Carver died Friday of a heart attack in Los Angeles, writer-producer Rob Word told The Hollywood Reporter.

Carver’s first feature was Pam Grier’s The Arena (1974), a gladiator movie set in ancient Rome that marked his initial collaboration with producer Roger Corman, and he also guided Ben Gazzara in Capone (1975), Warren Oates and Ken Norton in Drum (1976) and Lee Majors in Steel (1979).

Carver’s first love was photography,...

Udpated, 2 Pm: The Los Angeles Clippers are now official owners of the Forum. Clippers owner Steve Ballmer closed a deal Monday to purchase the Forum from Madison Square Garden Entertainment Corp.

The close of escrow comes six weeks after Ballmer-backed Capss LLC announced it had agreed to pay $400 million for the arena. The deal also settles Msg’s long-running lawsuit that aimed to block the Clippers planned $1 billion arena to be built on Century Boulevard, just blocks from the Forum.

Newly-created Forum Entertainment LLC will operate the Forum as a premier, live event venue with the existing leadership team of Geni Lincoln and Mike Fallon remaining in place, reporting to Gillian Zucker, Clippers President of Business Operations.

“We are excited to welcome The Forum to our family. The talented team at The Forum has created a world-class live entertainment venue, and we are committed to building upon that reputation,” said Zucker.

Muhammad Ali’s bark was as formidable as his bite, and “What’s My Name: Muhammad Ali” pays tribute to both, allowing the three-time heavyweight champ to narrate his own story via a combination of audio and video archival material. Directed by Antoine Fuqua, this 165-minute documentary uses copious interview soundbites to highlight the pugilist’s unparalleled gift of gab — and, consequently, the way it served as his means of defiant self-definition. Debuting on HBO in two parts (after premiering at this year’s Tribeca Film Festival), it’s a celebration that, if not quite definitive, proves a stirring work of nonfiction assembly.

Comprised of old photos and film, TV, and radio clips, Fuqua’s project (executive-produced by LeBron James) does its best to approximate an autobiographical authorship, allowing “the greatest” to be his own storyteller. That approach, along with a narrative focus that remains almost exclusively on his public...

I have no yen to throw shade at anyone, including myself, and I don’t completely trust my memory for long-past events and there are probably at least two versions of why I bailed early on a quirky project titled Superman vs Muhammad Ali. So let’s let it go with this: I was involved in such a project and it led to my meeting, most briefly, with a truly great man.

I knew of Ali well before the Superman thing, and I guess I admired him, first for his skill as a boxer and later for his work as a peace activist. He was a living refutation of the knuckleheads who believed that so-called peaceniks were squeaky-voiced sissies who hid in the tulip bed when real men engaged in manly activities like face-bashing.

(A slightly pertinent digression: It seems to me that most of the hawks who advocate war...

Initially announced in 2013, Ang Lee will tackle what was described as an epic look at the boxing world of the 1960s and 1970s, as seen through the prism of its biggest rivalries and greatest fights. And, by the way, it'll be in 3D. The was set up at Universal Pictures with Peter Morgan ("Frost/Nixon") attached to pen the script. Obviously, I'd assume that, given the premise ("biggest boxing rivalries and greatest fights of the 1960s and 1970s"), we can expect to see a lot of Muhammad Ali, who fought Ken Norton 3 times between 1973 and 1976; he also fought Joe Frazier thrice in the 1970s (including The Thrilla In...

In the market for an authentic X-ray of Muhammad Ali's broken jaw??? Well, too bad ... 'cause it just sold at one of the coolest charity auctions we've ever seen.   It's a pretty cool piece of memorabilia -- taken right after Ken Norton busted his face during their big fight in 1973 ... a fight Ali actually lost.  Ali signed the X-ray, "To Carol & Russ From Muhammad Ali, 1973" ... and it ended up in the private collection of "Simpsons" creator Sam Simon,...

Well, as I said last fall when "Send Me" was announced during its Indiegogo crowdfunding campaign: who in their right mind would want to do that (go back in time to the days of slavery)? Personally, I say No Way. That is, of course, unless I could be like Django and take out a whole bunch of white Southern slave owners (or just like Ken Norton in "Mandingo" with Susan George. Just kidding...Maybe...)  Created by playwright, screenwriter and actor Steve Harper, and starring Tracie Thoms, Gabrielle Carteris, Nelsan Ellis, Jerrika Hinton, Jasika Nicole, and Carlease Burke, and shot earlier this year in and around Los Angeles, "Send Me" follows a black woman...

Mandingo, a 1975 movie based on the best-selling period potboiler by Kyle Onstott about sexual shenanigans between masters and slaves on the Falconhurst slave-breeding plantation, was savaged by critics who saw it as nothing but degrading, big-budget exploitation. Roger Ebert called it “racist trash”, a “piece of manure”, and “excruciating to sit through”. Mandingo certainly had it all; brutal violence, interracial sex, rape, infanticide, lynchings, and abundant nudity including full-frontal shots of it’s male star, boxer Ken Norton. But of course it was a huge hit and inspired a brief run of “slaverysploitation” films such as Passion Plantation (1975 aka Black Emmanuelle, White Emmanuelle ) and the cleverly titled Mandiga (1976). Mandingo was overwrought melodrama to be sure, but it’s a model of subtlety compared to its official sequel, the more lascivious Drum, a mean-spirited trash epic from 1976 that would never fly in today’s politically correct climate. Despite its spaghetti western trappings,...

So sad. Ken, the former heavyweight champion who famously broke Muhammad Ali’s jaw passed away on Sept. 18 at the age of 70.

Ken Norton passed away in Arizona after a long career and a battle with declining health after suffering several strokes.

Ken Norton Dies At 70

Ken died on Sept. 18 in a care facility in Arizona after battling a long list of health issues throughout his life, like strokes, a heart attack, cancer, broken bones and a speech impediment from a crash crash in 1986 due to brain injury. He truly was a fighter and battled until the end at the age of 70, survived by 3 children from two marriages and his wife.

Muhammad Ali‘s former business manager Gene Kilroy was saddened of the news, and that Ken is “in heaven now with all the great fighters,” wanting to hear that conversation.”

Ken Norton: Former Heavyweight Champion

Ken broke Muhammad...

Former heavyweight champion Ken Norton passed away today at the age of 70.The former Wbc World Heavyweight Champion was best known for his 12-round victory in March 1973 over Muhammad Ali, when he broke Ali's jaw during the fight.Despite his prowess and remarkable physique, as you can tell from the photo above, Norton had been in ill health during his few last years, weakened by a series of strokes.But, of course, for a lot of people (brothers especially) when they think of Norton, it’s not for his skills in the boxing ring but instead his role as the slave Ganymede, or simply just Mede, in Richard Fleischer’s brilliant, lurid and violent 1975 antebellum anti-epic...

Drum, the title character in the 1976 slaverysploitation hit Drum, was that perfect specimen of slave that neither man nor women could keep their hands off. He was played by Ken Norton, a former world champion heavyweight boxer who had also played Drum’s father Mede in the film’s predecessor Mandingo. Norton had a brooding, massive presence and no doubt high hopes for a film career, but he was no actor and his awkward readings and blank stare stood in stark contrast to the scenery-chewing of his Mandingo and Drum co-stars (James Mason, Warren Oates, Pam Grier – did he have a chance?). Norton (who once broke Muhammad Ali’s jaw) was reportedly a contender for the role of Apollo Creed in Rocky but, though he did appear in a handful of subsequent films, Mandingo and Drum were his first and last shots at big-screen stardom. Norton was in St. Louis...

Former heavyweight boxing champ Ken Norton -- who had 3 classic fights with Muhammad Ali -- died today in Las Vegas ...according to his son.Norton had been in failing health for several years after a series of strokes.Norton defeated Ali -- breaking his jaw in the process -- during their first non-title fight in 1973. They faced each other in the ring two more times ... with Ali winning both. Their last battle was the 1976 classic...

Interesting.  Ang Lee will next tackle what Deadline describes as an epic look at the boxing world of the 1960s and 1970s, as seen through the prism of its biggest rivalries and greatest fights.  And, by the way, it'll be in 3D. The script for the Universal Pictures project will be penned by Peter Morgan (Frost/Nixon). I can only wonder how Lee plans to set this up - or just what the general story will be. Obviously, I'd assume that, given the premise (biggest boxing rivalries and greatest fights of the 1960s and 1970s), we can expect to see a lot of Muhammad Ali, who fought Ken Norton 3 times between 1973 and 1976; he also fought Joe Frazier thrice in the...

December is Tarantino Month here at Sos, and in the week leading up our January month-long theme of westerns, I thought it would be best to whip up an article spotlighting some films that influenced Tarantino’s long awaited take on the western, Django Unchained. For my money, all of the films listed below are essential viewing for fans of Django Unchained. I’ll be diving deeper into these films come January, but in the meantime, this should hopefully whet your appetite. Enjoy!

Note: I’m not including any Sergio Leone Spaghetti westerns as they should be essential viewing for anyone, regardless if you like or dislike Tarantino’s film.

****

Django

Directed by Sergio Corbucci

Written by Bruco Corbucci and Sergio Corbucci

1966, Italy / Spain

The most obvious influence for Django Unchained was of course critic-turned-director Sergio Corbucci’s 1966 masterpiece Django. The film features the Belgian actor Franco Nero playing the...

Dyer Straits Productions (Dsp) presents year three of St. Louis. only pop-culture, horror and sci-fi convention on June 15-17, 2012. Contamination 2012 3D takes place at the Renaissance St. Louis Airport and is bigger and better with film icons, TV stars, models/Playmates, super heroes, ghost hunters, filmmakers and musicians. Peter .Chewbacca. Mayhew (.Star Wars.) and a cast reunion of the original .The Munsters. TV show (Butch .Eddie. Patrick & Pat .Marilyn. Priest) are headlining this year along with an impressive lineup of icons at this highly anticipated follow-up event.

In addition to super heroes The Flash (John Wesley Shipp) and .Shazam.s. Captain Marvel (Jackson Bostwick), horror fans will get their fix with Michael Berryman (.The Hills Have Eyes 2.), Planet of the Apes enthusiasts will be able to meet Linda Harrison (Nova) from the Original “Planet of the Apes & Beneath the Planet of the Apes” along with Don Pedro Colley (“Ongero”) from...

Back in 2010, Dyer Straits Productions launched Contamination in St. Louis. Bringing Fred “The Hammer” Williamson along with some Day of the Dead cast, Contamination was a blast for all involved. Now, 2012 brings the third edition of this Pop-Culture, Horror & Sci-Fi Convention to St. Louis at the Renaissance Hotel! Read the press release below and get ready for a hell of a good time!

From the Press Release

St. Louis, Mo – May 7, 2012 – Dyer Straits Productions (Dsp) presents year three of St. Louis’ only pop-culture, horror and sci-fi convention on June 15-17, 2012. Contamination 2012 3D takes place at the Renaissance St. Louis Airport and is bigger and better with film icons, TV stars, models/Playmates, super heroes, ghost hunters, filmmakers and musicians. Peter “Chewbacca” Mayhew (“Star Wars”) and a cast reunion of the original “TheMunsters” TV show (Butch “Eddie” Patrick & Pat “Marilyn” Priest) are headlining this year along with an impressive lineup of...

The cast of entertainers and sports icons slated to appear at Keep Memory Alive’s 16th annual Power of Love Gala on Saturday, Feb. 18, in Las Vegas keeps getting bigger every day, though only a limited number of tickets remain for the celebrity-filled fundraiser.

Fans wishing to see what’s happening inside this one-of-a-kind 70th birthday celebration for Muhammad Ali — which will raise funds in support of the Cleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health and the Muhammad Ali Center — will also be able to tune in to “Ali 70th From Las Vegas” on ABC on Saturday, Feb. 25, at 4 p.m. Et and 2 p.m. Pt. It will re-air on ESPN2 later that same night at 10 p.m. Et.

The lineup for the night includes performances and heartfelt tributes from some of the world’s hottest entertainers and sports icons. The list of performers and celebrity supporters slated to...

If Muhammad Ali hadn't existed, Hollywood might have tried to invent him. A handsome athlete who speaks like a poet and can back up his trash talk with his fists, a principled martyr who can take an insane amount of punishment inside and outside the ring, a hero who goes from underdog to champ and back again several times -- if a Hollywood screenwriter had invented such a character arc, who would believe it? Ali, who turns 70 today, was bigger than the movies. Several films have tried to capture portions of his life, but the whole story is simply too big for one movie. Here are five that focus on portions of his life, either in documentary or lightly fictionalized form. None does him complete justice, but together, they'll remind you of why Ali was, and always will be, the Greatest. 1. "Ali the Fighter" (1971). Shot at the time of the...

In its bid to knock out memory disorders, Keep Memory Alive will turn up the heat at its 16th annual Power of Love Gala on Saturday, Feb. 18, as it celebrates the life and legacy of “The Greatest,” Muhammad Ali, while raising funds in support of the Cleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health and the Muhammad Ali Center. Tickets for this once-in-a-lifetime celebrity-filled fundraising event are on sale now.

On Feb. 18, Keep Memory Alive, the fundraising arm of the Cleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health, will transform the MGM Grand Garden Arena into a 70th birthday celebration for Ali designed to honor the boxing legend’s contribution to the world and raise awareness for Alzheimer’s, Huntington’s, Als, and Parkinson’s, the disease “The Champ” has been battling since 1984. Proceeds from the event will benefit the Cleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health’s work...

Boxing legends Mike Tyson and Muhammad Ali turned out to pay their respects to former world heavyweight champion Joe Frazier at his funeral on Monday.

Friends and family bid farewell to Frazier, who lost his fight with liver cancer last week, at the Enon Tabernacle Baptist Church in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Civil rights leader Reverend Jesse Jackson also attended the service, and he gave a moving tribute to Frazier.

Jackson also called for city officials to honour the late sports star with a statue, similar to the one of film fighter Rocky, portrayed by Sylvester Stallone, which stands outside the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

He said, "Rocky is an imaginary figure who never existed. Rocky never tasted his own blood. Rocky never faced Ken Norton. He never faced Ali. He never faced Larry Holmes.

"Joe paid real dues and he is a guy who we can emulate because of his sense of family, an ordinary Joe with extraordinary things. He remained our neighbour. He remained a church member. He remained a guy from the streets, so Philadelphia will honour itself by honouring Joe Frazier, but better late than never."

Actor Mickey Rourke sent a video-taped message of condolence, while Ali says, "I will always remember Joe with respect and admiration."

Frazier became the first man to beat Ali as a professional when he knocked him down in a 1971 match, which was known as the Fight of the Century.

Muhammad Ali: A.K.A. Cassius Clay (1970) Direction: Jim Jacobs Written by: Bernard Evslin Narration: Richard Kiley Muhammad Ali: Made In Miami Review The best of the trio of documentaries mentioned in my Muhammad Ali: The Greatest post was Muhammad Ali a.k.a. Cassius Clay, made in 1970 by boxing promoter Jim Jacobs and narrated by Richard Kiley. Jacobs' film is the most stylistically daring of the three: in addition to breaking the fourth wall, it depicts Ali — with boxing trainer Cus D'Amato — examining film highlights of himself and other boxers. Unfortunately, after the 30-minute mark, a.k.a. Cassius Clay devolves into yet another hagiography. The documentary needed more comparisons to Jack Johnson, Joe Louis, and other fighters of the past to make it interesting. Like Muhammad Ali: The Greatest and Muhammad Ali: Made in Miami, a.k.a. Cassius Clay focuses on the 1960s and...

Muhammad Ali: The Greatest (2001) Direction and narration: Carlos Larkin Muhammad Ali Growing up in the 1970s, the specter of heavyweight boxer Muhammad Ali — whom I could never stand — was everywhere. Contrary to opinions voiced about him post-Parkinson's Disease, Ali was the most despised athlete of that era. The most beloved was actually soccer superstar Pelé. Nonetheless, from that time on a raft of mediocre documentaries-cum-hagiographies have been made of the man. Not surprisingly, none has gotten to that rotten core. Here are three that I've recently watched in consecutive order: Muhammad Ali: The Greatest, Muhammad Ali: Made in Miami, and Muhammad Ali a.k.a. Cassius Clay. The first documentary I streamed was Carlos Larkin's Muhammad Ali: The Greatest (2001) — not to be confused with William Klein's 1969 Ali documentary of the same title. Of the aforementioned trio, The Greatest is undoubtedly the most hagiographical, as the...

If you want to see a movie about race relations in the Deep South, adapted from a best-selling novel, you might be tempted to head out to a theater this weekend and see The Help, a well-meaning and well-performed comedy / drama that should play very well for mainstream audiences. Or, you could lock the doors, draw the curtains, and slide 1975's Mandingo into your DVD player. Improbably starring James Mason -- who reportedly needed the money for his alimony payments -- as a sickly plantation owner, Perry King as his son with a taste for comely slave "wenches," Susan George as his sex-mad wife, and boxer Ken Norton as the highly-prized breeder slave Mede, Mandingo is "racist trash," according to Roger Ebert in...

All branches of active duty military recognized with Free

or discounted admission St. Louis, Mo . June 20, 2011 . Dyer Straits Productions (Dsp) will honor all branches of active duty military at Contamination 2011: The Sequel this weekend June 24-26, 2011. Active duty soldiers showing up in uniform will get Free admission to the pop-culture, sci-fi and horror convention at the Sheraton Chalet in Westport Plaza. Active duty soldiers in civilian clothing will get ½ price admission. All will need to show current military ID at the ticket table to take advantage of this offer.

The second year of Contamination is bigger and better with celebrities, film icons, TV stars, sports figures, models/Playmates, filmmakers and musicians. Eric Roberts and .The Boondock Saints. Sean Patrick Flanery, Norman Reedus and David Dela Rocco are headlining the event along with an impressive lineup of icons at this highly anticipated follow-up event.

In addition to horror fan favorites...

Very few people have had a great movie made about them. Fewer still have been the subject of a great documentary, mostly because docs about famous people are usually of the A&E variety or produced by those people as promotion. However, one man, the self-proclaimed Greatest Ever, has been the subject of nearly a dozen good documentaries. Here are the three best docs on the man who spent a quarter-century as the most famous person in the world.

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A.K.A. Cassius Clay:

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Originally produced for a short-term run in New York in 1970, A.K.A. Cassius Clay is an oddity. The majority of the film takes place on a sound stage, where Ali and legendary boxing trainer Cus D’Amato sit wearing suits, watching fights and arguing, largely about Ali’s claims of being the greatest fighter ever.

Cus had trained champions Jose Torres and Floyd Patterson and would...

"Get Contaminated!”

Contamination 2011 The Sequel - Dates & Headliners Announced

Eric Roberts & “The Boondock Saints” Sean Patrick Flanery, Norman Reedus and David Dela Rocco Headline Contamination 2011 – St. Louis’ Only Horror, Sci-Fi and Pop Culture Convention – June 24-26, 2011

Dyer Straits Productions announce the dates and current headliners for Contamination 2011 The Sequel, their highly anticipated follow-up to St. Louis’ first horror, sci-fi and pop-culture convention under one roof. The Sheraton Westport Chalet will host the event June 24th – 26th, 2011. Actor Eric Roberts and “The Boondock Saints” Sean Patrick Flanery, Norman Reedus and David Dela Rocco will headline.

Eric Roberts, one of Hollywood’s edgier, more intriguing characters, was most recently seen this summer in Sylvester Stallone’s action hit “The Expendables.” Among his numerous credits, too lengthy to mention, he had a memorable role in Christopher Nolan’s “The Dark Knight” as Salvatore Maroni and is probably best known as “Paulie” in “The Pope of Greenwich Village.

November 10, 2010 . Dyer Straits Productions announce the dates and current headliners for Contamination 2011 The Sequel, their highly anticipated follow-up to St. Louis. first horror, sci-fi and pop-culture convention under one roof. The Sheraton Westport Chalet will host the event June 24th . 26th, 2011. Actor Eric Roberts and .The Boondock Saints. Sean Patrick Flanery, Norman Reedus and David Della Rocco will headline.

Eric Roberts, one of Hollywood.s edgier, more intriguing characters, was most recently seen this summer in Sylvester Stallone.s action hit .The Expendables.. Among his numerous credits, too lengthy to mention, he had a memorable role in Christopher Nolan.s .The Dark Knight. as Salvatore Maroni and is probably best known as .Paulie. in .The Pope of Greenwich Village.. He has also been a recurring character on popular soap opera .The Young and the Restless. this year.

Cult favorites from .The Boondock Saints. and its sequel have been attracting long...

Hey gang! The dates and headliners have been announced for the horror, sci-fi, pop culture convention, Contamination 2011 The Sequel! If you plan on attending it looks like there some great stuff to look forward too!

Eric Roberts and The Boondock Saints Sean Patrick Flanery, Norman Reedus and David Dela Rocco will all be in attendance at the convention which will take place on June 24-26, 2011

Here's the Official Announcement:

St. Louis, Mo – November 10, 2010 – Dyer Straits Productions announce the dates and current headliners for Contamination 2011 The Sequel, their highly anticipated follow-up to St. Louis’ first horror, sci-fi and pop-culture convention under one roof. The Sheraton Westport Chalet will host the event June 24th – 26th, 2011. Actor Eric Roberts and “The Boondock Saints” Sean Patrick Flanery, Norman Reedus and David Dela Rocco will headline.

Eric Roberts, one of Hollywood’s edgier, more intriguing characters, was most recently seen this summer in Sylvester Stallone’s action hit “The Expendables.

As a longtime horror fan, one of the things I still look forward to the most is a good convention. There are all the celebrities, the different movies and panels you can find out more on, searching for cool horror merchandise and just hanging out with people who not only understand, but share my love of the genre.

When I heard that St. Louis was about to get its first genre convention at the end of April, I knew I had to find the man behind the curtain.

That man is Dave Dyer, and on April 30th through May 2nd, his brand new convention, Con-Tamination 2010, is set to take over the Gateway City. Con-Tamination 2010 will feature tons of great horror and sci-fi celebrities, films, activities, and more.

Dyer spoke to Dread Central about what motivated him to start the Con-Tamination convention and what he has in store for all the Midwestern fans.

St. Louis area Movie Geeks rejoice! There.s a new horror and sci-fi movie convention coming to town! Con-tamination, billed as .St. Louis’ first Horror, Sci-Fi & Pop Culture Convention. will take place the weekend of April 30-May 2nd at the Holiday Inn Viking Hotel, 10709 Watson Road St. Louis, Mo 63127 (corner of Watson and Lindbergh). Con-tamination is a weekend packed with celebrities, movies, music, dealers, art, and other toxic activities.

Con-tamination has put together a great line-up of celebrity guests including cast members from Night Of The Living Dead, Day Of The Dead, The Howling, Friday The 13th, and The Devil.S Rejects as well as Scream Queens, wrestlers, musicians, artists, paranormal experts, and TV Stars. Where else can you meet (among others) gore make-up guru Tom Savini, former Heavyweight champ (and star of Mandigo) Ken Norton, Dee Wallace (the Mom from E.T.), 80.s adult film siren Seka, stunt rider Bob Gill,...

After making the rounds of the festivals and a brief run in a few theaters this past summer, "Facing Ali," a different kind of fight biopic, makes it to TV tonight. And to paraphrase Muhammad Ali himself -- "it's almost the greatest." What makes "Facing Ali" different is that it's told neither from Ali's nor the filmmaker's points of view, but from the points of view of the men who faced Ali in the ring -- and how facing the self-proclaimed, self-fulfilling-prophesy maker affected their lives. The boxers interviewed for...

Following some festival exposure, notably the AFI Silverdocs last summer, and a limited Oscar-qualifying theatrical run in Los Angeles and New York, in the fall, Facing Ali is now headed for cable TV, via the “male-centered” Spike TV network next month – February 10th.

Directed by Pete McCormack, Facing Ali won the most popular film award at last year’s Vancouver International Film Festival, and is one of 15 feature documentary finalists for the upcoming Oscars.

In the doc, 10 of Ali’s most formidable opponents pay tribute to perhaps the world’s most beloved and inspiring athlete, recounting their pivotal experiences in the ring with Ali, offering “unique insights into a man who remains one of the most prominent figures in American history.” Some of these fighters include, Ken Norton, Earnie Shavers, Joe Frazier, George Foreman, Leon Spinks and Larry Holmes.

Every review I’ve read of this “riveting,” “compelling,” “impeccably researched...

James Toback’s candid interview with “Iron” Mike Tyson may have missed the short list of 15 films vying for the Academy’s “Best Documentary,” but another boxing movie is a contender as the field narrows in a little over a month.

Out on DVD Tuesday (Dec. 29), Facing Ali recalls the career of Cassius Clay, better known as the self-proclaimed greatest boxer of all-time, Muhammad Ali. Ten fighters who faced the man, from George Foreman to Joe Frazier and Leon Spinks to Ken Norton, reminisce on his ring persona and the key bouts that changed their lives.

No former fighter is more open than George Chuvalo, who helps piece together the portrait of a powerful athlete and controversial figure. He recalls the famous taunts that earned Ali the nickname “the Mouth from the South,” the religious and political stands during a turbulent time, and of course the contests that shaped the sport in its prime.

Mandingo, a 1975 movie based on the best-selling period potboiler by Kyle Onstott about sexual shenanigans between masters and slaves on the Falconhurst slave-breeding plantation, was savaged by critics who saw it as nothing but degrading, big-budget exploitation. Roger Ebert called it “racist trash”, a “piece of manure”, and “excruciating to sit through” and Mandingo certainly had it all; brutal violence, interracial sex, rape, infanticide, lynchings, and abundant nudity including full-frontal shots of it’s male star, boxer Ken Norton. But of course it was a huge hit and inspired a brief run of “slaverysploitation” films such as Passion Plantation (1975 aka Black Emmanuelle, White Emmanuelle ) and the cleverly titled Mandiga (1976). Mandingo was overwrought melodrama to be sure, but it’s a model of subtlety compared to its official sequel, the more lascivious Drum, a mean-spirited trash epic from 1976 that would never fly in today’s politically correct climate. Despite it’s...

Facing Ali will be released on DVD on December 29, and you know we have to celebrate this new documetary that takes a look at boxing great Muhammad Ali, which was also recently on the short list of contenders for the Best Documentary Oscar. We have a brand new contest set up and we're giving away copies of this critically-acclaimed new DVD to our readers and also some mini-posters as well. You know these prizes will go fast, so be sure to enter this big giveaway today.Winners Receive:Facing Ali DVDFacing Ali mini-posters to win this brand new DVD today. Three-time World Heavyweight Champion Muhammad Ali defeated almost every top fighter of the golden age of boxing. Now, through the untold stories of his opponents in the fights that defined him, experience "The Champ" like never before. Facing Ali turns the cameras on some of Ali's biggest rivals including George Chuvalo,...

Muhammad Ali has already been the subject of documentaries, films and biopics, but Facing Ali is different because it looks at the man, the fighter, through the eyes of those who faced him in the ring.

And in looking at the man — and the myth — of Ali, we're told the story of modern prize fighting. It is, English fighter Henry Cooper says in the film's early moments, a story of immigrants and the working class. Fighters, he explains, are motivated to get out of their environment.

Presented by director Pete McCormack (Uganda Rising) and producer Derik Murray (Legends of Hockey chronologically, starting with the 1963 fight between Ali — he was Cassius Clay then — and Cooper, and ending with Ali's 1980 loss to Larry Holmes.

The soundtrack for the film matches the shifting era, too, moving from jazz to funk as we move from the '60s into the '70s.

Along the way...

As many are buzzing over the replacement of Forest Whitaker with 50 Cent in "The Expendables", director/writer/actor Sylvester Stallone took it to StalloneZone to explain his decision on the replacement issue. Insisting that he is not "self-destructive", he wrote in a message addressed to administrator Craig Zablo, "The anger of the casting of 50 Cent is understandable, but not fair."

"A player is only as good as his coach," he continued explaining in 50's defense. "If a man can communicate in one medium, he can communicate in another if his strengths are brought out and he has the support of well-wishers. So, trust me, the change of Forest Whitaker to 50 Cent Aka Curtis Jackson is a good one."

Stallone further pointed out on other casting which turned out fine. "No one thought Dolph Lundgren was a good choice for Rocky or Mr. T for Rocky III. Carl Weathers was an...

When it comes up lame, which is often, "Dirty Work" is indistinguishable from dozens of other low-concept comedies of the past few years. Irreverence and gross-out humor have become cliches of big-screen projects starring photogenic but monotonous TV funnymen, a list that now includes Norm Macdonald.

The MGM release, which opened without preview screenings for critics, has at best one decent weekend of business. It belongs on a double bill at a drive-in or neighborhood discount theater despite a star-studded cast including Don Rickles, Chevy Chase, John Goodman and the late Chris Farley.

The directorial debut of comedian Bob Saget, "Dirty" is the first starring role for Canadian stand-up comedian Macdonald, best known for his work on "Saturday Night Live". Clean-cut and taciturn, but with a rude mouth and scheming nature, Macdonald's Mitch is a pathetic loser with women and jobs.

His best friend since childhood, Sam (Artie Lange), is a volatile confederate when they hit on the scheme of starting a professional service offering revenge against clients' enemies. In one of the better scenes, the guys ruin the career of a heinous movie theater manager (Rickles).

Needing $50,000 so Sam's obnoxiously horny father (Jack Warden) can get a heart transplant, Mitch and Sam open for business and help a nice lady foil the plans of a smug real estate mogul (Christopher McDonald), a crafty foe who turns the tables on them. Meanwhile, a casual meeting between Mitch and fetching Kathy (Traylor Howard) becomes a rocky relationship when he innocently but repeatedly offends her.

Chase has the most substantial supporting role as a gambling doctor who strikes a deal with Sam and Mitch, but the veteran clown is slowing down and not given much in the way of memorable material to work with. Likewise, unbilled Farley plays a big jerk whose nose was bitten off by a prostitute. He's got a crazy moment with skunks in the finale set in an opera house, but he barely gets warmed up.

Boxer Ken Norton and Gary Coleman collide in the ring for one giggly, throwaway gag, and Goodman pops in for literally seconds. While Macdonald has the best pratfalls and a sly, deadpan delivery, Howard and Lange are charismatic, scene-stealing performers.

DIRTY WORK

MGM Distribution Co.

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer presents

a Robert Simonds/Brad Grey production

Director:Bob Saget

Screenwriters:Frank Sebastiano, Norm Macdonald, Fred Wolf

Producer:Robert Simonds

Executive producers:Brad Grey, Ray Reo

Director of photography:Arthur Albert

Production designer:Gregory Keen

Editor:George Folsey Jr.

Costume designer:Beth Pasternak

Music:Richard Gibbs

Casting:Roger Mussenden

Color/stereo

Cast:

Mitch:Norm Macdonald

Pops:Jack Warden

Sam:Artie Lange

Kathy:Traylor Howard

Hamilton:Don Rickles

Travis Cole:Christopher McDonald

Dr. Farthing:Chevy Chase

Running time -- 82 minutes

MPAA rating: PG-13...