Penelope Spheeris Tagged Articles at Cinematical

• Ralph E. Donnelly (c.1932-2007) - Exhibitor who worked in the cinema business since the 1940s, primarily in New York City, working as a film buyer for City Cinemas, RKO-Stanley Warner Theaters, Creative Film Services and Associated Independent Theaters. He also was former president of Cinema 5 Theaters, he established Manhattan's First Avenue Screening Room and the Mini Cinema in Uniondale, New York and he was one of the founders of the annual ShowEast exhibitors convention. He died September 21 in Palm Harbor, Florida. (Variety)
• Gary Franklin (c.1928-2007) - Film critic and entertainment journalist known for his trademark Franklin Scale ("on a scale of 1-10, 10 being best ... "). He played a radio reporter in the 1977 film Rollercoaster and he appears as himself in An Alan Smithee Film: Burn Hollywood Burn. He died October 2 in Chatsworth, California. (Variety)
• Richard Goldwater (c.1936-2007) - President and co-publisher of Archie Comics. He was credited as an executive producer on Josie and the Pussycats, which was based on Archie Comics characters, of which he was also credited as co-creator. He died October 2. (news from me)
• Charles B. Griffith (1930-2007) - Screenwriter and director who worked for producer Roger Corman. Some of Corman's films that he scripted include Death Race 2000 (directed by Paul Bartel), The Little Shop of Horrors, A Bucket of Blood and Not of this Earth. As a director, Griffith made the Jaws knockoff Up from the Depths, the Ron Howard-starred car chase movie Eat My Dust and the 1989 fantasy Wizards of the Lost Kingdom II. He also served as a producer, a production manager, an assistant or second unit director and an actor, appearing as multiple characters in The Little Shop of Horrors and appearing uncredited in Bartel's Eating Raoul. Quentin Tarantino dedicated his recent Grindhouse segment Death Proof to Griffith. He died September 28 in San Diego. (Variety)
• George Grizzard (1928-2007) - Actor (pictured) most recently seen as the older John Bradley in the modern sequences of Flags of Our Fathers (Ryan Phillippe played the young, WWII-era Bradley). He also played Tobey Maguire's father in Wonder Boys, Tawny Kitaen's father in Bachelor Party, a senator in Otto Preminger's Advise & Consent, a governor in Seems Like Old Times and the President in Wrong is Right. He also co-starred in Mark Robson's film of Vonnegut's Happy Birthday, Wanda June as well as the director's From the Terrace, which stars Paul Newman, Joanne Woodward and Myrna Loy. Grizzard was most successful on television, for which he won an Emmy, and on stage, for which he won a Tony. He died of complications from lung cancer October 1, in New York. (AP)

Odds and ends from Wednesday:

• After cracking us up as conniving Hollywood agent Ari Gold on HBO's Entourage, Jeremy Piven has signed on to play a conniving American diplomat in Peter Berg's The Kingdom. Pic, which already sports a dynamite cast of Jamie Foxx, Jennifer Garner, Chris Cooper and Jason Bateman, tells of a group of U.S. FBI agents who are sent to investigate the bombing of an American facility in the Middle East.
• Maverick Films is looking to lock and load after snatching up the spec script Shoot, written by Ron Krauss and Tom Hietter. Picture The Fast and the Furious, but with gunslingers instead of souped-up automobiles. Pic, which Krauss will also direct, revolves around the "underground world of contemporary gunslingers" and follows a young shooter on his quest to challenge the sport's undefeated champion.
• As we previously reported (without any official word), Zooey Deschanel is now confirmed to be taking on the role of Janis Joplin in Penelope Spheeris' upcoming biopic, Gospel According to Janis. Written by Spheeris and Brad Vanderburg, pic will focus on the period of time between Joplin first moving to California and her subsequent death eight years later. I've always thought Deschanel was a bit too "goth" looking to play Joplin, but she definitely has the gritty, indie part down. So, let's see what she does with it.