I have set up a website for anyone who loves movies and great music. Find the best deals on all Movie And Music Downloads http://www.squidoo.com/lensmasters/steamtown Wed, 20 Aug 2008 22:33:11 -0600 FeedCreator 1.7.2 http://www.squidoo.com/AmazingPaulPotts He looked like an unlikely star when he took to the stage in front of Simon Cowell, Amanda Holden and Piers Morgan. But as Paul Potts began Nessun Dorma for the judges of the Britain's Got Talent show the power of his astonishing performance left few in doubt that this was no ordinary singer. He received a standing ovation from the 2000 people in the audience and left Amanda Holden with tears of joy rolling down her face. Even Simon Coswell and Piers Morgan were pleasantly surprised. He had established himself as the best new music talent of 2007. He went on to win the talent show and received the chance to perform in front of the Queen at the Royal Variety Performance 2007. Paul also received a record deal from Simon Coswell. His first C.D. is called "One Chance" Paul was born in 1971 in Bristol from Port Talbot in south Whales. He had appeared in four amateur opera productions and in a concert for the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and had plans for a summer tour with the Orchestra.  Potts is said to have first sung Opera in 1999 in a karaoke competition,[when he was 28 years old] dressed as Pavarotti, although he had said during the show that his voice had always been a source of solace in the past when bullied, so he would have sung from a younger age. That same year he appeared in the Michael Barrymore talent show "My Kind of Music". Although he did not win the competition, he won £8,000, which helped to pay for singing lessons in Italy.  For the Bath UK based amateur company Bath Opera, he has performed on four occasions in the roles of Don Basilio {Marriage of Figaro), Don Ottavio (Don Giovanni) and the title role in Verdi's Don Carlos, and Turandot as Prince of Persia and Herald. He also sang for the Royal Philharmonic in front of an audience of 15,000 and toured Northern Italy as a soloist. However, after spending £20,000 on his career hopes, including a masterclass in which he sang for Luciano Pavarotti, doctors discovered a benign tumor during treatment for appendicitis in 2003. Then, shortly after his recovery, he broke his collar bone in a bike accident Instead of thinking about singing, he was lying on the sofa in agony. Now when he goes on stage his wife of 4 years Julie doesn't want people to say "break a leg" because Paul probably would. For a time he worked as a shelf-stacker in Tesco and ended up as the manager at Bridgend's Carphone Warehouse,  After winning Britain's Got Talent, Paul has been busy circling the globe on promotion tours. It is amazing how fast his life has changed since the show. He is one of those rare individuals that has found out what can only be described as an "Over Night Success" His videos on the Internet have already received over 10 million views. He is a person who has been blessed with a great talent and deserves as much recognition as he is receiving. I do believe that there is a little Paul Potts in every one of us.   music Thu, 07 Aug 2008 14:22:24 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/SecretMovieReview The movie "The Secret" has been making its rounds, a few months ago Oprah Winfrey picked it up and did a movie review secret show, with promises for another one in the near future. This is a review of the movie "The Secret" Essentially The Secret is all about "manifesting" your desires. Continually thinking about what you want in life, centering all your focus around your goals and with enough continual manifesting, these things then come into your life. The first time that I viewed this movie, I was blown away. My own belief system was interfering in what I just saw. I have read a number of books on self-improvement and I have even ordered a variety of videos by some well known people, but this movie will put you in an instant feeling of gratitude and hope. I believe that the real secret is sustaining the "rush" you receive after viewing this movie. THE SECRET website states that producer Rhonda Byrne, in 2004, discovered The Science of Getting Rich by Wallace Wattles. It was given to Rhonda in a moment of crisis by her daughter. This book from 1910 opened her eyes to a new way of living and propelled her on a new-found mission to bring the principles of the Universe to the masses - by creating the film THE SECRET! The Teachers featured in The Secret - Bob Proctor and Jack Canfield have been studying, applying and teaching this material for decades. They earn millions of dollars every year. But that's not what makes this so powerful... many people earn millions of dollars but they are not able to articulate how they are doing it. Therefore, they are not able to share the cause of their good fortune with others, not even with members of their own family. This is where Proctor and Canfield have distinguished themselves... they Understand... they Apply... and they are Masters at Transferring the Science of Getting Rich to others. They are two of the most powerful coaches in the world today. Millions of people are already using the Law of Attraction to make their lives successful. It is no longer a secret, but a household term that is rightfully being given the attention it deserves.You too can learn how to use the "Law of Attraction" to create whatever you want in life - be it money, love or happiness - and generate abundance. One of the teachers in the Secret, Bob Procotor,has a new program that will help you learn to apply the laws of attraction to build the life that you desire. To claim your 7 FREE lessions HERE moviesandtv Thu, 14 Feb 2008 14:53:36 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/moviedownloads Browsing features included! No more searching if you don't want to!  Download DVD Quality Movies 24/7  Transfer And Watch Movies On Your PSP Free CD/DVD recording software. Only High Quality downloads Unlimited Downloads. No limit what so ever! Free Bonus  Receive A FREE Desktop Media Player  Transfer Movies To Your iPod And Watch Them Fast support from our experienced support team! The easiest way to download known to mankind.  Search And Download Over 80 Million Movies Online Why Wait?  Click Here Now To Start Enjoying Today moviesandtv Fri, 07 Mar 2008 09:59:19 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/BeetlejuiceReviewed This classic old horror movie [1988] was directed by Tim Burton and produced by Warner Brothers [Wes Craven was set to direct the film at one time, when it was still more of a horror film. When things fell apart he went on to write _Nightmare On Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors, etc] Thanks to the carelessness of a fluffly little dog, newlyweds Geena Davis and Alec Baldwin are killed in a freak auto accident.  Upon arriving in the outer gates of Heaven, the couple finds that, thanks to a century's worth of bureaucratic red tape, they're on a very long waiting list. Before they can earn their wings, Davis and Baldwin must occupy their old house as ghosts for the next 50 years. Alas, the house is now owned by unlovable yuppies, Catherine O'Hara and Jeffrey Jones.  Horrified at the prospect of sharing space with these "plastic" humans, Davis and Baldwin do their best to scare O'Hara and Jones away, but their house-haunting skills are pathetic at best. In desperation, the ghostly couple engage the services of a veteran bio-exorcist, a yellow-haired, snaggle-toothed, profane, spirit named Beetlejuice (Played by Michael Keaton). But beetlejuice has an evil agenda behind his plot to help these young newlyweds. He can not be trusted-especially when he falls in love with O'Hara and Jones' gloomy, black-clad teen aged daughter played by Winola Ryder. [Who happens to be the goddaughter of LSD guru Timothy Leary. This happened to be her breakthrough role!]  One of the most tantalizing scenes comes when their is a dinner party and Bettlejuice comes up with some unusual antics to scare the hell out of everyone.This made the calypso music even more popular. The first time that I viewed it, I laughed so hard that I felt some kind of kinship with the director. Imagine combining comedy, horror and just pure craziness into one film and making it work so well.  Over 19 years after its release, Tim Burton's Beetlejuice remains a revered horror classic and an important film in the career of a young filmmaker who was only beginning to wow us with his distinct way of looking at life and making films.     moviesandtv Fri, 07 Mar 2008 10:09:56 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/DrZhivago If you can get your hands on it, one of the BEST movies ever made was " Dr. Zhivago" staring Omar Sharif,Julie Christie and Rod Steiger This is a 1965 Movie Classic. It's a Sweeping epic about a Russian doctor pursuing the woman he loves during Russia's turbulent political changes of World War I, the Bolshevik Revolution and Communism's rise to power. A large theme of the movie is how the mysticism of things and idealism is destroyed by both the Bolsheviks, Rebels and the white army. Yuri must witness cannibalism, dismemberment, and other horrors suffered by the innocent civilian population during the turmoil.  It is a movie based on the Nobel prize-winning novel by Boris Pasternak.After submission for publication to the ournal Noviy mir, it was rejected because of Pasternak's political incorrectness: the author was more concerned with the welfare of the individual person than with the welfare of the State. In 1957, the Italian publisher Giangiacomo Feltrinelli smuggled the book manuscript from the Soviet Union and published a Russian-language edition in Milan, Italy. The next year, it was published in Italian and English translations, and these publications were partly responsible for Pasternak's being awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1958.  The Soviet government forced him to reject the Nobel Prize. Boris Pasternak died a few years later, of natural causes. The book was made into a film by David Lean in 1965 and has also been adapted numerous times for television, most recently as a miniseries for Russian TV in 2005. Won 5 Oscars. Another 14 wins & 10 nominations [The film was shot in Spain during the regime of Gen. Francisco Franco. While the scene with the crowd chanting the Marxist theme was being filmed (at 3:00 in the morning), police showed up at the set thinking that a real revolution was taking place and insisted on staying until the scene was finished. Apparently, people who lived near where filming was taking place had awoken to the sound of revolutionary singing and had mistakenly believed that Franco had been overthrown. The opening funeral march through the vast Siberian landscape, the grandeur of the Czarist Russian palaces, the march of the revolutionaries through the Moscow boulevards, the train ride,the Ice-covered interior of the Zhivago country estate the wealth of beauty captured in the cinematography of this film is astonishing. Julie Christie's Lara is one of those great screen persona's. She becomes a woman of such mysterious beauty.  The final scene of Yuri's desperate attempt to reach her in the crowded Soviet Moscow is heartbreaking. And that music score!"Beautiful" The opening film credits with Jarre's genuinely beautiful music sets the mood for this great film. One of the best classic movies ever! A masterpiece!   moviesandtv Fri, 07 Mar 2008 10:04:34 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/AirplaneMovieReview The 1980 movie Airplane! is probably the best comedy ever produced Jim Abrahams, David Zucker, and Jerry Zucker admit that this is a low budget movie and every precaution was taken to avoid spending too much money. It is a lampoon of practically every disaster movie ever made but it mostly intended to be a parody of the movie Zero Hour. Many of the lines in the film are directly from Zero Hour. Brothers Jerry and David Zucker wrote the film with Jim Abrahams, who also directed a cast that included Lloyd Bridges, Robert Stack, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Barbara Billingsley and Julie Hagerty. The budget for Airplane was about US$3.5 Million Because of the low budget the writers and directors show up in a number of cameos as do members of their family. David and Jerry Zucker appear as two ground crew members who accidentally direct a plane into a terminal. Jim Abrahams is one of the many religious zealot characters scattered throughout the film. Charlotte Zucker, who is David and Jerry's mother, is the woman attempting to apply makeup in the plane as it violently shifts while their sister, Susan Breslau, is the second ticket agent at the airport. Jim Abraham's mother is the woman initially sitting next to Dr. Rumack. The movie starts out at Los Angeles International Airport where there are many sight and voice gags. We meet one of the stars of the show, Robert Hays, who plays an ex-fighter pilot who lost most of his squadron during a raid. He's now a cab driver who's afraid of airplanes. We also meet his girlfriend Elaine (Julie Hagerty) who is a stewardess and had decided to move out of their apartment and leave Ted forever. Captain Oveur (Peter Graves) is also introduced. He is the pilot of the airplane and, as we discover later, has an unusual appreciation for little boys. After the meal is served, many of the passengers become ill. The stewardesses search for a doctor and eventually find one in Dr. Rumack who is played by Leslie Nielsen. He diagnosis food poisoning and concludes that anyone who had the fish for dinner will eventually become violently ill. The food poisoning incapacitates the pilot, co-pilot and navigator and the only one left to fly the plane is our reluctant hero, Ted Striker. The head of Chicago Flight Control, Steve McCroskey (played by Lloyd Bridges) calls in a veteran pilot, Rex Kramer {played by Robert Stack) to talk Ted Striker through flying the plane. It turns out that Rex Kramer was Ted Striker's commanding officer during the war and there is no love lost between the two.As a matter of fact,Rex Kramer has no faith in Stricker's ability to ever land the plane Elaine is in the cockpit[with that famous scene with the inflatable pilot] trying to figure out what's going to happen next. Stricker somehow finds the courage to come in and take over the controls and lands the plane. The antics and one liners that prevail throughout this film will leave you laughing in you seats. A really healthy dose of laughter makes this movie one of the best comedy movies ever.       moviesandtv Fri, 07 Mar 2008 10:26:10 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/TributeToSimonAndGarfunkel The most successful folk-rock duo of the 1960s, Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel crafted a series of memorable hit albums and singles featuring their choirboy harmonies, ringing acoustic and electric guitars, and Simon's acute, finely wrought songwriting. They met in elementary school in 1953, when they both appeared in the school play Alice in Wonderland.They formed the group Tom and Jerry in 1957, and had their first taste of success with the minor hit "Hey Schoolgirl." The duo split up, and Simon continued to struggle to make it in the music business as a songwriter and occasional performer, sometimes using the names of Jerry Landis or Tico & the Triumphs. When they reteamed, it was as a folk duo, though Simon's pop roots would serve the act well in their material's synthesis of folk and pop influences. Signing to Columbia, they recorded an initially unsuccessful acoustic debut (as Simon and Garfunkel, not Tom and Jerry) in 1964, Wednesday Morning, 3 A.M. They again went their separate ways, Simon moving to England, where he played the folk circuit and recorded an obscure solo album. Then with the help of Tom Wilson they reunited and made a serious go at a recording career, Simon returning from the U.K. to the U.S. In 1966 and 1967 they were regular visitors to the pop charts with some of the best folk-rock of the era, including "Homeward Bound," "I Am a Rock," and "A Hazy Shade of Winter." Their final studio album, Bridge Over Troubled Waters, was an enormous hit, topping the charts for ten weeks, and containing four hit singles (the title track, "The Boxer," "Cecilia," and "El Condor Pasa").A 1981 concert in New York's Central Park attracted half a million fans, and was commemorated with a live album; they also toured in the early '80s, but a planned studio session was canceled. Simon and Garfunkel were among the most popular recording artists of the 1960s, and are best known for their songs "The Sound of Silence",Mrs. Robinson and many other great songs. music Thu, 14 Feb 2008 15:04:23 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/EverybodyLovesSomebodySometimes "Everybody Loves Somebody "is a greatsong that I can still remember the words to today,sung by legendary singer and actor Dean Martin. He was one of the few singers that everybody in the family liked to listen to. He had a rather unique and interesting life. I think that his story will help explain his vast appeal to so many peopleof all age groups. Dean Martin,born Dino Paul Crocetti, June 7, 1917 was an American singer, film actor, and comedian. He was one of the most famous music artists in the 1950s and 1960s. His hit singles included the songs "Memories Are Made Of This", "That's Amore", "Everybody Loves Somebody", ""Mambo Italiano", "Sway", "Volare" and "Ain't That a Kick in the Head". He was the only star to be a major hit in all four major areas of show business: concert stage, recordings, motion pictures, and television. Martin dropped out of school in the tenth grade He delivered bootleg liquor, served as a speakeasy croupier, wrote crafty anecdotes and was a blackjack dealer, worked in a steel mill and boxed as welterweight. At the age of 15, he was a boxer who billed himself as"KidCrocett" (Kro-Shey). From his prizefighting years, Martin earned a broken nose (later fixed), a permanently split lip, and many sets of broken knuckles He only won 1 of his 12 bouts [ For a while he with Sonny King, who like Martin, was just starting out in show biz and had little money. Martin and King held bare knuckle matches in their apartment, fighting until one of them was knocked out. People paid to watch the sight. Martin then met Jerry Lewis at the glass hat club in New York and they both teamed up at the 500 club in Atlantic city in 1946where eventually were successful. After a series of engagements up and down the east coast.In 1949 they were signed by Paramount producer Hal Wallis as a comedy relief for the film My Friend Irma. They eventually moved to California and together they were the hottest act in America during the 1950's, but eventually the pressure of show business and the never ending bashing of the critics, led to their breakup exactly 10 years after their first official teaming. Afterwords, Martin went into acting and his first sole film was a bomb. His appearance in the 1957 film The Young Lions was his major comeback as an actor. Meanwhile he copied the styles of Bing Crosby and Perry Como and began his own singing style. He recorded more than 100 albums and 600 songs. One of his greatest hits "Everybody Loves Somebody"even knocked the Beatles "A Hard Days Night' out of first place in 1964. He said that he was heavily influenced by country music and a lot of his songs during the sixties were composed of popular country and western songs. Who could ever forget "Welcome To My World" and "Gentle On My Mind" Martin even had his own comedy show and many of his guests were country and western singers. He was even named man of the year by the country music association in 1966. Dean died in 1995 at the ripe old age of 78. But looking back now, I remember him as being one of  the so called "Rat Pack." Martin and Sinatra, along with friends Joey Bishop, Peter Lawford, and Sammy Davis, Jr. formed the legendary Rat Pack, They were legendary for their Las Vegas performances which were almost never pre-announced. One very important aspect of their routine was that The Rat Pack was largely responsible for the integration of Las Vegas, as Sinatra and Martin steadfastly refused to appear anywhere that barred Davis, forcing the casinos to open their doors to African-American entertainers and patrons, and to drop restrictive covenants against Jews. music Fri, 07 Mar 2008 08:00:03 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/RearWindow Through his rear window and the eye of his powerful camera a photo jounalist watches a great city tell on itself, expose its cheating ways and Murder! The movie is about voyeurism and to a lesser degree about love between two apparently different people. Rear Window is a 1954 film directed by Alfred Hitchcock, based on Cornell Woolrich's 1942 short story It Had to Be Murder. It stars James Stewart as photojournalist L. B. Jefferies, Grace Kelly as his fashion model girlfriend Lisa Carol Fremont, and Raymond Burr as the suspected killer, Lars Thorwald. The film is considered by many film goers to be one of Hitchcock's best and most thrilling pictures. L. B. "Jeff" Jefferies is a professional photographer who has been confined to his Greenwich Village apartment after an accident has left him with his leg in a cast,he takes to spying on his neighbors through the rear window. His view of the back of several apartment buildings, their inner courtyard, and the persons dwelling within.Jeff comes to believe a murder has taken place in the building across the courtyard, though his friends, his nurse Stella (Thelma Ritter), and his girlfriend, Lisa Carol Fremont (Grace Kelly) initially think his beliefs are imagined, and put them down to his idle behavior. Thorwald and his wife are a reversal of Jeff and Lisa. Thorwald looks after his invalid wife just as Lisa looks after the invalid Jeff.They were actually a newlywed couple who rarely leave their bedroom.But this developes into trouble for their marriage and Thorwald and his wife begin to argue.The constant nagging of the wife sets the stage for murder. The character of Lars Thorwald is not seen in close-up and cannot be heard speaking clearly until the climax of the movie. At this point, he appears in Jeff's room. This scene features a sequence shown from Thorwald's point of view as he attempts to proceed towards Jeff, but is repeatedly stopped as Jeff blinds him with  the flash from his camera. But Lars does suceeds in pushing Jeff outof the window just as the police arrieve and arrest Lars for the murder of his wife. Jeff survives and the film ends with the planning of his future with Liza. This movie has been deemed "culturally significant" by the United States Library of Congress and selected for preservation in the National Film Registry.The film received four Academy Award nominations. [1]Best Director for Alfred Hitchcock,[2] Best Screenplay for John Michael Hayes,[3]Best Cinematography, Color for Robert Burks,[4] Best Sound Recording for Loren L. Ryder, Paramount Pictures.   moviesandtv Fri, 07 Mar 2008 10:33:21 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/herbs-for-pets Just like humans, domesticated animals like dogs and cats are affected by the health hazards of modern living. Pollution, poor nutrition, stress and unhealthy lifestyles can lead to a variety of illnesses and conditions that are very similar to those experienced by humans. Many, if not most of these conditions can be prevented by helping your pets to live a healthier lifestyle. For pets already suffering from existing conditions, a combination of lifestyle changes and natural medicine can work wonders! In the wild, animals instinctively seek out healing herbs to help them when they are ill or undernourished. In fact, Asclepius, the ancient Greek god of medicine, respected dogs very highly for their ability to seek out and eat medicinal herbs in the wild. This ability is shared by other animals, including cats. animals Fri, 20 Jun 2008 11:44:32 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/SingingOnline Who Else Wants to Discover Precisely How to Sing with Vitality and Professionalism in less than 3 months?... AND take all the frustration, difficulty and headache out of YOUR practice time with this EXPLOSIVE multimedia singing training package! Check Out This Great Singing Site Now music Thu, 19 Jun 2008 08:56:17 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/TheJesusFilm What is the most watched film in history? This film has been seen by over five billion people. The surprising fact is that there are no major stares, no sex scenes, some violence that is necessary to the integral plot of this film. It is not only the most watched film, it is also the most translated film It was translated into 1,000 languages and dialects. This film was made in 1979 and shot on location in the holy land with a white British actor Brian Deacon, who happens to be a Shakespearean actor. The answer is going to shock most people. It is "Jesus", better known as the Jesus film. It started out because of an Evangelized American organization called Campus Crusade which was funded by private donations.One of the main goals of this organization is to have it translated into every known language. Another goal of this organization is to send videocassettes to Iraq. They have produced a short film that highlights the similarities between Christianity and Islam. Because Jesus is in the Koran, the films director, Andi Hunt,says the purpose was to create context for the story of Jesus. It has already been shown in a northern town in Egypt that is stickily Islamic. The JESUS Film Project penetrates the most remote, dangerous places on earth through a massive logistical operation involving hundreds of staff and volunteers who tote generators, makeshift screens, and portable projectors to film showings, often to people who have never heard of Jesus and some who have never seen a film or TV. Some people believe that this film is just another way of trying to convert other religions into Christianity, They say that this will cause strife and rebellion. Then their are others that gladly accept the idea that bring the gospel to people who would have never heard of it,is a good thing. moviesandtv Fri, 07 Mar 2008 10:12:08 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/ClassicMovie A Place In The Sun was one of the 50's most intriguing films. The release date was October 11, 1951. I celebrated my third birthday party on that exact date, but it wasn't until years later that I actually saw that film. As I was growing older, I developed a big crush, like most of my friends, on Elizabeth Taylor. The movie depicts an up and coming George Eastman [played by Montgomery Cliff] being thrust into the blue collar life of a rich uncle's family business, and falling in love with another women, despite the fact that his own [secret] girlfriend was now pregnant. Directed by George Stevens, who did a brilliant job,despite the constraints that were imposed on him by Paramount. This film classic was actually a remake of a film that was made 20 years earlier that was a total bomb. The studio had lost a huge amount of money on the earlier version, so the monetary restraints were put in place before they even started shooting. A very young Elizabeth Taylor, who plays Angela Vickers, is paired with Montgomery Cliff in this classic story of doomed love.It was Miss Taylor's best work to date. Her raw natural beauty lights up the screen.Shelly Winters [who plays Alice Tripp] gives a convincing performance of the poor homely girl who happens to fall in love with George Eastman.Upon learning that she is pregnant, she fanatasies about the life that she and George will share together but after finding out about George's real love interest, she threatens him with exposure, unless he agrees to marry her. His mind is full of crazy thoughts about what he should do. He leaves a dinner party to meet Alice and ends up in a boat on moon lake with her. As she starts to describe the dreary,uninteresting life that both of them will live, George's mind is filled only with thoughts of the beautiful Taylor. He changes his mind about his plans of droning Alice and starts back to shore. But in one ironic twist of fate,Alice moves to be closer to George and causes the boat to capsize, falls into the lake and drowns anyway. He is captured and prosecuted by an ambitious district attorney [played by Raymond Burr]. This is definitely one of the best classic movies that ever came out of Hollywood.It won 6 Oscars, another 7 wins and 8 nominations. This is a classic example of a  tragic romanticism. moviesandtv Fri, 07 Mar 2008 09:46:11 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/TheShiningMovie   One of the best horror films ever made was released on may 23rd 1980. Directed by Stanly Kubrick,it a tale of a family that heads to an isolated hotel for the winter. Once there the father is overcome by some sort of evil presence which turns him into an evil, violent psychopath. It is a spell binding movie with a lot of graphic scenes of blood letting.A masterpiece of modern horror! This movie will keep you glued to your seats. I would not recommend it for children unless you plan on staying up all night with them. The lead actor, Jack Nicholson, plays such a convincing role that at times it seems he is not acting--a true sign of a great performance. His wife,played by Shelly Duvall, and his son,played by Danny Lloyd also gave really believable performances. To understand the attraction of this movie, I believe that you have to know some history about the leading character. John Joseph Nicholson was born April 22, 1937 is a three time Academy Award-winning American actor internationally renowned for his often dark-themed portrayals of neurotic characters. Jack Nicholson has been nominated for an Academy Award 12 times and has won three times (twice for Best Actor and once as Best Supporting Actor). He is tied with Walter Brennan for most acting wins by a male actor and second to Katharine Hepburn for most acting wins overall He is also one of only two actors nominated for an Academy Award for acting in every decade since the 1960. He has won seven Golden Globe Awards, and received a Kennedy Center Honor in 2001. In 1994, he became one of the youngest actors to be awarded the American Film Institutes Life Achievement Award. He is best known for his films Chinatown,One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, Stanley Kubrick's The Shining, As Good as It Gets, Tim Burton's Batman, and Martin Scorsese's The Departed. To understand Nicholson one must first examine his early childhood. Nicholson was brought up believing his grandparents, John J. Nicholson and Ethel May Rhoads were his parents. Nicholson only discovered that his parents were actually his grandparents and his sister was in fact his mother in 1974  Nicholson started his career as an actor, writer, and producer, working for and with Roger Corman, among others. His first real taste of writing success was the LSD-fueled screenplay for 1967's The Trip, which starred Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper. However, after a spot opened up in Fonda and Hopper's Easy Rider, it led to his first big acting break. A Best Actor nomination came the following year for his role in Five Easy Pieces. He also appeared in "On a Clear Day You Can See Forever". Nicholson earned his first Best Actor Oscar for portraying Randle P. McMurphy in the movie One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. His first movie as a director was a 1971 movie called "Drive, He Said" It was in 1980 that he made "The Shining" Although he did not receive any Oscar nominations in this movie, it was one of his best performances. During the eighties he stared in many more roles and it was the blockbuster movie "BATMAN" that earned him as estimated $60 million. In the 1992 movie 'A Few Good men" he played a marine Colonel. He was nominated for another Razzie Awards.One of his best roles came in 1996 in which he played a Boston Irish mob boss in "The Departed" But through out all the years,"The Shining" still remains one of the best performances by Nickolson. A really true masterpiece of modern horror!       moviesandtv Thu, 29 Nov 2007 09:19:38 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/BeeGeesTribute The Bee Gees are three brothers: Barry, Robin and Maurice Gibb; three outstanding songwriters, singers, producers and musicians.They have been rated as one of the best musical acts of all time.They were the best rated band in the world in 1978. They were born on the Isle of Man to English parents, lived in Manchester, England and moved to Brisbane, Australia during their childhood years, where they began their musical careers. Their worldwide success came when they returned to England and signed with producer Robert Stigwood. It has been estimated that the Bee Gees' record sales total more than 220 million, easily making them part of the list of best-selling music artists. In 1958 The entire family moved to Australia, settling in the Brisbane area.1960, the Brothers were given their own half-hour weekly television show in Brisbane when Barry was still only 13, and the twins were 10!  In 1963, they signed their first recording contract with Festival ]Records in Australia. They released their first Bee Gees written single, "Three Kisses of Love", and wrote songs for other artists the Bee Gees had been voted the top songwriting team in Australia in both 1965 and 1966. Yes, they had been named Australia's best group in 1966. In January, 1967, the Gibb family journeyed back to Great Britain. While on this journey, the Bee Gees finally got their first #1 in Australia with "Spicks and Specks".  By 1969, after numerous hits, the stress of working together and other personal matters, the group split up. It would take 15 months for the group to come back together again. Two Years On", the next Bee Gees album. That album contained "Lonely Days", which became the Brothers first #1 single in the US, and their first gold US single.The 1972 album "To Whom It May Concern" produced the single "Run To Me", another huge hit. By 1975 The Brothers Gibb were back on top, commercially and creatively, as "Main Course" went gold and platinum, both "Nights on Broadway" and "Jive Talkin'" shot to #1, and "Jive Talkin'" was a gold single. 1976's "Children of the World" went gold and platinum, both "You Should Be Dancing" and "Love So Right" were gold singles, and "You Should Be Dancing" went to #1 as well.  Saturday Night Fever" gained the music which propelled it into the stratosphere. The soundtrack to "SNF" became the best-selling album ever (a title it held until Michael Jackson's "Thriller" took over), and it remains the best-selling soundtrack album to this day. They keep on performing hit after hit and they were named the best rated band in 1978.On March 10, 1988, younger brother Andy died at age 30 from myocardial, an inflammation of the heart muscle due to a recent viral infection. Maurice, who had been the musical director of the Bee Gees during their final years as a group, died suddenly on January 12, 2003, from a strangulated intestine.They then decided to retire the groups name. This article, by no means, has covered all of the great hits that this family had over the more than 4 decades that they were performing. The Bee Gees, in my opinion, were one of the greatest performing families of all times. music Thu, 14 Feb 2008 14:59:58 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/TributeToMarilynMonroe There is and old saying that states: Imitation is the highest form of flattery. If this is true then Marilyn Monroe has to be the most remembered women in the history of films. Even today, after more than 45 years after her untimely death,her legendary likeness still appears on T.V.,in magazines and books. I remember ,even back then, how women[and maybe a few men] would dress like her, walk like her, and even try and sound like her. They would constitutionally talk about her. They would try and outdo each other when the least bit of gossip would appear in one of those supermarket tabloids. I think that to really know her one must know the history of this unique individual. Her apparent vulnerability and innocence, in combination with an innate sensuality, has endeared her to the global consciousness. She was born Norma Jeane Mortenson on June 1, 1926 in Los Angeles, California, to Gladys Baker. As the identity of her father is undetermined, she was later baptized Norma Jeane Baker. Gladys had been a film cutter at RKO studios, but psychological problems prevented her from keeping the job and she was eventually committed to a mental institution.  On June 19, 1942 she wed her 21-year-old neighbor Jimmy Dougherty, whom she had been dating for six months. "She was a sweet, generous and religious girl," Jimmy said. After he shipped out to the merchant marines, Marilyn got a job on an assembly line and caught the eye of photographer David Conover. After only 2 years she was doing steady modeling jobs and also taking drama classes. She started making a few films and in 1947 she appeared with Betty Davis in "All About Eve" but it was her performance in " Niagara' that delivered her to stardom. And who could ever forget "Gentlemen Perfer Blonds" Photoplay magazine voted Marilyn the Best New Actress of 1953, and at 27 years old she was undeniably the best-loved blonde bombshell in Hollywood. On January 14, 1954, Marilyn married baseball superstar Joe DiMaggio. It lasted only 9 months. Marilyn received further recognition for 1959's Some Like It Hot, winning a Golden Globe for Best Actress in a Comedy.  On June 29, 1956, Marilyn wed playwright Arthur Miller.Arthur wrote the part of Roslyn Taber in 1961's The "Misfits" especially for Marilyn. Unfortunately the marriage ended on Jan. 20th, 1961. The misfits was to be Marilyn's last completed film. At the 1962 Golden Globes, Marilyn was named female World Film Favorite And if you were alive back then, you would surely remember her singing happy birthday to President John F. Kennedy. But sadly on the morning of August 5, 1962 the 36 year old Marilyn died in her sleep at her home in Brentwood California. Marilyn's popularity has extended beyond star status to icon. Today, the name "Marilyn Monroe" is synonymous with beauty,and sensuality. The legendaryMarilyn Monroe will be remembered long after most of us are no longer here. moviesandtv Mon, 03 Dec 2007 14:37:07 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/FreeSeventiesMusic Get Instant Access to Unlimited Music with No download fees ! The world's best music, the coolest movies and videos and much, much more! More than 50 million users are connected to this system every day, downloading their favorite music, movies, software and more! Who's your favorite 70's musician? Do you stilll remember "Disco" Or do you like Christian,Country, Rock and Roll,Jazz, Blues, Classical etc. If you grew up tin the 70's, you'll love the collection of music that you can download. How about the music that the Bee Gees recorded! [They were named the best band in the world in 1978] I was actually a big fan of the Rolling Stones who are still active today. With such great albums as "Sticky Finger" that was realeased in 1971. Others such as "Goats Head Soup"[1973],"Exile On Main Street [1972], It's Only Rock And Roll [1974],Black And Blue [1976] and many more. And what about some of the other greats such as Led Zepplin, Black Sabbath, Pink Floyd, The Who, AC/DC,Queen, Aerosmith Rush and David Bowie music Fri, 07 Mar 2008 09:36:13 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/AlPacinoOwnStory The greatest and most accomplished actor of his generation, Al Pacino became a cultural icon thanks to revered performances in a wide range of classic films, including “The Godfather” (1972), “Scarface” (1983) and “Glengarry Glen Ross” (1992). Coming to prominence during the 1970s – a period commonly regarded as Hollywood’s last Golden Age. He is amoung a select few of actors that can honestly be called "A Living Legend" His birth name is Alberto Pacino and he was born on April 25, 1940 in East Harlem,New York. He was educated in the high school for the performing arts, Hew York.He studied acting at the Actors Studio and the Herbert Berghof studios which is located in NYC. Al's mother, Rose Gerard Pacino died when Al was only22. She used to take Al to the movies after work and she is credited with planting the seed for his future acting career. She died at the age of 43. Al's father, Salvatore Pacino has owned a variety of business's and currently lives in California with his fifth wife. He divorced Al's mother when Al was 7 years old. In 1966, Pacino studied under legendary acting coach Lee Strasberg (alongside whom he would l after feature in the 1974 film The Godfather Part II). However, it did put him in financial straits until the end of the decade when he had won an Obie Award for his work in The Indian Wants the Bronx and the Tony for Best Featured Actor in a Play for Does the Tiger Wear a Necktie?.  He made his first screen appearance in an episode of the television series N.Y.P.D. in 1968, and his largely unnoticed movie debut in Me, Natalie came the following year. It was the 1971 film The Panic in Needle Park, in which he played a heroin addict, that would bring him to the attention of director Francis Ford Coppola. Pacino's rise to fame came after portraying Michael Corleone in Coppola's blockbuster 1972 Mafia film The Godfather  In 1973 Pacino starred in the very successful Serpico and the less popular Scarecrow alongside Gene Hackman. In 1974, Pacino repriced his role as Michael Corleone The Godfather Part II In 1975. He enjoyed further success with the release of Dog Day Afternoon, In 1977, Pacino starred as a race-car driver in Bobby Deerfield. During the 1970s, Pacino had four Oscar nominations for Best Actor for his performances in Serpico, The Godfather Part II, Dog Day Afternoon, and Justice for All.Pacino also won a second Tony Award for The Basic Training of Pavlo Hummel and performing the title role in Richard III for a record run on Broadway. 1983's Scarface, directed by Brian DePalma, proved to be a career highlight and a defining role. Upon its initial release, it did well at the box office, grossing over $45 million domestically.Pacino earned a GoldenGlobe nomination for his performance in Scarface as a Cuban drug gangster. He had stated that this movie was the best of his career. In the 80's he went into a four year hiatus and returned to the stage.His greatest stage success of the decade was David Mamet's American Buffalo, for which Pacino was nominated for a Drama Desk Award.Pacino has since turned acclaimed performances in such crime dramas as Carlito's Way (1993), Donnie Brasco (1997), the multi-Oscar nominated The Insider (1999) and Insomnia (2002). In 1995, Pacino starred in Michael Mann's Heat, in which he and fellow film icon Robert De Niro appeared on screen together for the first time. They were both together againin the Godfather Part 111. He then went back to the stage and did "Looking For Richard". {Pacino's greatest stage successes of the decade were in revivals of Eugene O'Neill's Hughie and Oscar Wilde's Salome.} He then went on to make "The Devils Advocate" He has won two Golden Globes since 2000, the first being the Cecil B. DeMille Award for lifetime achievement in motion pictures, and the second for his role in the highly praised HBO miniseries Angels in America. On October 20, 2006, the American Film Institute named Pacino the recipient of the 35th AFI Life Achievement Award.[5] On November 22, 2006, the ]University Philosophical Society of Trinity College, Dublin awarded Pacino the Honorary Patronage of the Society.[6] His latest film 88 minutes is due to be released in 2008 His next release is Righteous Kill where he will be teamed with his Heat co-star Robert De Niro. Pacino is set to play surrealist Salvador Dalí in the film Dali & I: The Surreal Story. Although he has never been married,he has three children.He has been romantically involved with some of the top female stares in Hollywood and other less known beautiful women. This is certainly not an all inclusive story of Al Pacino's life, but it will give you some of the highlights of one of the best, if not the best, actors in history. It never hurts to be well-informed with the latest on actor. Compare what you've learned here to future articles so that you can stay alert to changes in the area of actors.  moviesandtv Mon, 26 Nov 2007 16:12:32 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/HalleBerryBio .Half African-American, half Caucasian, Halle stands at 5' 7" inches tall and has the measurements 36C-22-37. She been named as one of People Magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People eight times (matched by Julia Roberts) and became one of Playboy's 100 Sexiest Women of the Century (1998). Her popular face has been seen as a spokes model for Revlon cosmetics. .Born August 14, 1966, in Cleveland, Ohio, Halle Berry is the youngest daughter born to Jerome and Judith Berry, an interracial couple. Halle Berry, and her older sister Heidi, spent the first few years of their childhood living in an inner-city neighborhood. Her abusive father, Jerome Berry, abandoned his wife and children, and left the family when Halle was four years old. Halle was raised almost totally by her mother, Judith, a psychiatric nurse.  .Judith then moved her family to the predominantly white Cleveland suburb of Bedford. This rough start to her life did not deter her from excelling in whatever she did. Halle attended a nearly all-white public school, and as a result, she was subjected to discrimination at an early age. Throughout high school, Halle participated in a variety of extracurricular activities, holding positions of newspaper editor, class president, member of the honor society, varsity cheerleader, and prom queen. .Halle Berry won Miss Ohio, Miss Teen All-American, and in 1986, was first runner-up in the Miss USA pageant. She was the first African American to represent the U.S. in the Miss World competition in London. Halle Berry attended Cleveland's Cuyahoga Community College, where she studied broadcast journalism. Halle abandoned her idea of a career in news reporting however, choosing wholeheartedly devote her time to a career in entertainment.   .She first moved to Chicago, then New York City, where Halle Berry found work as a catalog model. Halle's acting career began in television with a role on the short-lived sitcom "Living Dolls". This was followed by a year-long run on the CBS prime time drama "Knot?s Landing". Halle's first big screen break came later that year when she was cast as Samuel L. Jackson?s drug addicted girlfriend in Spike Lee?sJungle Fever. More substantial supporting roles followed, including that of a stripper in the action-thriller "The Last Boy Scout", starring Bruce Willis. This success lead to Halle as the woman who finally wins Eddie Murphy?s heart in the romantic comedy "Boomerang".  .Halle Berry, now with a few films under her belt, accepted more offbeat roles, making cameos in the documentary "CB4" which traced the rise and fall of the titled rap group. Halle Berry then starred in the live action version of "The Flintstones", featuring Halle as a Stone Age seductress, a very sexy and successful performance. Halle's next role was a no-holds-barred performance as a rehabilitated crack addict seeking to regain custody of her son in "Losing Isaiah". The story was set in the midst of a bitter custody battle with adoptive parents, played by Jessica Lange and David Strathairn. Later that year, Halle overcame Hollywood's racial barriers when she was cast as the first African American to play the Queen of Sheeba in Showtime?s movie "Solomon & Sheeba". Halle has been introduced as the new Bond Girl. .Halle's private life has made headlines several times. She raised public attention while revealing Wesley Snipes (Jungle Fever costar) was a violent boyfriend and responsible for her partial deafness. Her marriage to singer Eric Benet ended in divorce with former hubby asking her to foot all divorce bills and support him through spousal support. Berry has also been linked to names such as Shemar Moore and Matt Damon.  .On New Year's Day in 1993, Halle tied the knot with Atlanta Braves' outfielder David Justice, but they later divorced him 1997. Halle became engaged to soul singer Eric Benet on August 14, 1999 and married him on January 24,2001. However, the couple separated on October 1, 2003 and filed for divorce on April 26, 2004. Halle has a stepdaughter named India (born in 1991) from Eric Benet's previous partner.  .Her breakout role arrived in 1999. She was cast for the title role in Martha Coolidge's adaptation of Earl Mills' biographical book, the musical drama Introducing Dorothy Dandridge (1999), which handed her both a Golden Globe Award and an Emmy Award for Best Actress in a Television Movie.  .With her work as an actress being noticed, Halle was offered parts in a string of films, including Bryan Singer's adaptation of the Marvel's hit comic, the blockbuster X-Men (2000, with mutant friends Anna Paquin, Patrick Stewart, Rebecca Romijn-Stamos and Famke Janssen) and teamed with John Travolta in Swordfish (2001). Halle was launched toward super stardom when Marc Forster cast her as Leticia Musgrove in his romance-drama Monster's Ball Her outstanding acting netted her an Academy Award for Best Actress and a nomination for a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Drama. She followed it up with the role of a James Bond's girl in Die Another Day (2002), repriced the role of Storm in the X-Men sequel, X2 (2003), and starred as psychiatrist-turned-patient Miranda Grey in Mathieu Kassovitz's mystery Gothika (2003).[one of my favorites] Her staring in Cat-women was an unfortunate mistake. She may have looked great, but she got nominated for a worst actress award.  .She recently starred in Darnell Martin's adaptation of Zora Neale Hurston's classic novel, Their Eyes Were Watching God (2005, TV) and provided her voice for Cappy in CGI animated sci-fi movie, Robots. She will also be seen in the forthcoming films Nappily Ever After, Foxy Brown, and The Guide. .At the time of this article. Halle Berry was four months pregnant and I wish her all the best in the world, because I truly believe her to be a beautiful person on top of being an outstanding actress.   moviesandtv Fri, 07 Mar 2008 13:00:48 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/EpicMovies The themes of the film also mirrored the changes occurring in Hollywood, as a new vanguard of younger directors were coming to the forefront. This unforgetable film was directed byMikeNichols who also produced "Who's Afraid Of Virgina Wolf". Recent college graduate Benjamin Braddock is trapped into an affair with Mrs. Robinson, who happens to be the wife of his father's business partner and then finds himself falling in love with her teenage daughter, Elaine. Benjamin is clearly uncomfortable with sexuality, but he is drawn into the affair with the older, but still attractive, Mrs. Robinson. Their affair appears to last most of the summer. All of their scenes pass in a musically-backed montage, showing the endless pass of time.The inspiring sounds of Simon and Garfunkel One scene is edited so that it appears Benjamin is walking directly from his parents' dining room into the hotel room he shares with Mrs. Robinson. This seems to highlight the separation of him and his parents, though they all still live toghether in the same house. Every generation says it won't happen to them. "I'm not going to be like my parents. I'm not going to sell out my dreams." Breaking away from your parents, establishing your own identity, holding on to what you know to be true- these issues are timeless ones - and ones that came blazing into the open in the Sixties. No film captured this better than the The Graduate. In a world of crushed dreams, Benjamin Braddock finds the meaning of having true love. For anyone who grew up during this period, watching it again floods the mind with what love really meant back then. The film was nominated for 7 Academy awards including best picture,best actor,best actress,best supporting actress,best adapted screenplay and best cimematography. But to all's dismay, the film won only one award--Best DirectorI remember it as being the best picture that I had ever seen.I feel in love with the red "Alfa Romeno" convertible that was used in the film. With the sounds of Simon and Garfunkel blasting in the backround, you got the feeling of not only speed, but also one of freedom. What a true classic movie! moviesandtv Tue, 27 Nov 2007 17:31:28 -0600 http://www.squidoo.com/AlbertFinney Saturday Night And Sunday Morning. is a 1960 film adaptation of the novel of the same name by Alan Sillitoe. Sillitoe adapted the screenplay himself and the film was directed by Karel Reisz. It tells the story of Arthur Seaton,played by Albert Finney, a young Nottingham factory worker, who is having an affair with Brenda, played by Rachel Robertas, the wife of an older co-worker. He also has a relationship with Doreen,played by Shirley Anne Field, a woman closer to his own age. It is a terrifying glimpse into an age where work, booze, and death were all that Britain's young men had to look forward to."What I want is a good time, the rest is all propaganda," is Seaton's saying, but in the end, he realizes he's fighting a losing battle as an affair with his best friend's wife (Roberts) ends badly.She is pregnant and her husband finds out about her affair. Arthur earns a beating from the cuckolded husband's squaddie brother for his peccadillo. He ends up back with Doreen and the final scenetakes place on the top of a hill where both of them are talkingabout their future planes. It seem that Arthur is finally realizing that marriage is probably unavoidable. He has falleni n love with Doreen and they end up talking about what type of house Doreen would like to eventually live in. Actually this film takes place about the same time that the world seems to be going through a cultural revolution that led us into the sixties. The Beatles,Rolling Stones, and many other groups will come into their own during this decade. This is a black and white film that will end up as a trueclassic for its time. Finney was voted the most promising newcomer at the British Academy's (BAFTA) awards. To me it kind of symbolized the struggles that most of us go through during our rebellious younger years and the inevitable realization about how we are going to spend the rest of our lives. moviesandtv Thu, 29 Nov 2007 15:08:58 -0600