I don't know why, but I've always been drawn to the big San Francisco Earthquake. (Obviously a curiosity -- not a morbid wish to meet my maker under piles of falling rubble.) This is probably due to the old hardcover that rested amongst my parent's books. Every year or two, I would pick it up and thumb through the pictures of devastation, which probably solidified my determination to never live there. Maybe Brad Bird is equally drawn to the story.

After flicks like the uber-popular The Incredibles and Ratatouille, it has now been confirmed that Brad Bird is making his live-action directorial debut with 1906. The period piece will focus on a college student who is investigating the murder of his father. His digging leads him to "a web of deceit" that has left San Francisco vulnerable to fire -- the kind that erupts when the 1906 earthquake hits. John Logan had penned the original script, and now Bird is rewriting it, so further news should come once Bird completes his stab at the script.

What could be scarier than watching a hijacking movie in a plane? Maybe 1906 in a creaky, old San Francisco building...

After wallowing in production limbo for the last ten years, Empire Online reports that Pixar has finally decided to make not one, but three films about John Carter of Mars by Tarzan creator, Edgar Rice Burroughs. The latest news about the project emerged when Pixar's creative team made a visit to the Burroughs's archives. Pixar's team was comprised of Jim Morris (VP), Andrew Stanton (director), and Mark Andrews (script). Carter was "a Civil War veteran whose retreat into a cave to avoid capture by Apache Indians takes an otherworldly turn as he's transported via time portal to the planet of Barsoom (aka Mars) and taken prisoner by 12-foot-tall green men". First appearing in Princess of Mars back in 1917, the character appeared in over seven novels, so there is plenty of material for the trilogy. According to reports, "All six members at the meeting expressed a deep commitment to the project, acknowledging that they had been inspired by Burroughs' creations from a very early age. This is evidenced in the excitement held for the John Carter property and the plans for a film trilogy faithful to the Burroughs books".

Rights to Carter were finalized back in January for Pixar and Disney. Reportedly, the project has been around since the 90's when Jeffrey Katzenberg had designs on a feature film version while he was still head of Disney. After that, the project made the rounds to Paramount and has had some big names attached to direct over the years, including Robert Rodriguez and Jon Favreau. There is still talk that Pixar will finally be getting into the live-action game with Brad Bird's telling of the San Francisco earthquake, 1906. But, there is plenty of time since they aren't exactly in a rush to get Carter into production. The first film will hit screens sometime in 2012. Talk about planning ahead ...