Taboo Tuesday

Welcome back to the Two Minute Drill. I'm your host, Doug Q and I hope you all had a great Memorial Day weekend!! Lets get to it shall we?

Jurors in the Michael Jackson trial will hear closing arguments this week and may start deciding Jackson's fate as soon as Friday. Last week before the long break, the prosecution showed a video tape to the jury of the accuser telling his side of the story to sherrif's deputies. The video was graphic as it described what Jackson allegedly did to the boy. Aftewards the defense shocked everyone by not rebutting the video and simply rested their case. Does the defense really think they have this case in hand that easily? That may have been an arrogant and dumb move by the defense and it may cost them the case. That video will still be fresh in the minds of the jury when they start deliberating and that is a dangerous omen for Jackson. We might know by the end of next week. We'll just have to wait and see.

Paris Hilton's rep announced Tuesday that the hotel heiress is engaged to longtime boyfriend Paris Latsis. So its Paris and Paris. And when they have a child they (allegedly) are going to name it Paris also. Latsis, who is an heir to a Greek Shipping company fortune, has been dating Hilton for 8 months. He waited for her to return from a European publicity trip (For House of Wax) to pop the question.

You just know she spit it out!

Speaking of Paris Hilton, she's been causing a stir with her recent Carl's Jr commercial. The commercial features a bikini clad Hilton eating a "Spicy Six-Dollar Burger" while washing a car. The commericial has drawn the ire of several TV watchdog groups who say that the commercial is too provacative and should be pulled. Carl's Jr has basically responded with a "F U" to all those opposed to the spot. Well, not in those terms, but thats basically what they are saying. Carl's Jr has stated that their prime demographic is men 18-35 and thats who they are going to marke to. If that means having Paris Hilton dance around half naked for almost 30 secs and then only seeing the actual burger for 1 sec, then so be it. I honestly feel that thats what the commercial is. Its more of a showcase for Paris than a burger commercial. There was a commercial a few years ago that featured some girl riding a mechanical bull and eating a burger. It was considered a bit risque as well, but at least that one prominetly featured the product that was adverstised. OK, I'm done with this topic. Does Paris Hilton really need more attention?! ;-)

 

Weekend Box Office

Lots of money, make we will

 

1)Star Wars:Episode III- Revenge of the Sith, $70.7 mil: Whew, long intro for that one. Of course I couldve just shortend the title, but what fun is that? Seriously, "Sith" is on track to surpass the numbers put up by "Episode II" a few years back and may even reach the $471 million that "Episode I" took in. Lucas is just raking it in isnt he? I caught this film over the weekend and being a newly dubbed Star Wars "poser" I enjoyed this film. It was interesting to see how the whole Saga is now wrapped up and all the loose ends taken care of. But on a personal note, I still dont see what the big deal is regarding having Peter Mayhew play Chewbaca. I mean its not like you can see him and its not like he actually speaks in the movie. Chewie's roar is a sound effect using various animal roars. Whatever, still a good film.

2) Madagascar, $61 mil: A good opening considering the competition. This film really came at a great time as there are no real big family films out right now. It filled a need and movie goers flocked to it in droves. This movie actually may determine the future of CGI animation. The reason? The last few CGI animated films (With the exception of Shrek 2) have declined in ticket sales. Some people blame the storylines while others think that CGI has ran its course and that maybe audiences want something different. I think that CGI might bring people to the theatre, but a good story is going to keep them there and bring them back. Still, if Madagascar underperforms, look for big changes in the animation depts around Hollywood.

3)The Longest Yard, $60 mil:For all those other young males that didnt see Star Wars or already had seen it, this was the film of choice. Sandler's hot streak continues with this solid opening. Usually, Sandler and Comedy = box office gold, but lets not forget about "Little Nicky". Still, this film seemed like a good one and the audiences reacted accordingly.

4) Monster in Law, $11.0 mil: Considering the top 3 films took in over $190 million, this actually is a pretty good number. For the ladies out there and the couples, this was the film to goto. Another film that I caught, it was funny and had a sweet storyline. J-Lo really shines in comedies and I think she should stick to those for now.

5) Kicking and Screaming, $6.5 mil: Still hanging around is this little Will Ferrel flick. He also has Bewitched coming soon, so we'll be getting our Ferrel fix this summer for sure.

Even with those top 3 films raking in the cash, the box office is STILL down from last year. Box office watchers are pointing at things like audiences being harder to entertain or audiences not going to the theatre when many of this high end home theatre systems are replicating the experience at home. But no one is pointing to the REAL reason: The high cost of going to the movies!!!!!! Tickets are now $10-12 nationwide and dont even get me started on food and soda prices. Its getting out of hand when snacks for two cost you $30!!! Until they realize that prices are too high, then I think theatre chains are gonna suffer. Whatever happened to double features and discount films?

OK, that should do it for now. Here's a teaser for the next update: I will be providing a preview (more like proposal) of the new version of "Star Tours" that Walt Disney Imagineering and Lucasfilms will be pitching to Disney management soon. It sounds like it could be an awesome ride. Here's a taste of it:

 

"the villain turns up his afterburners, seemingly casting a fireball through our detonated windshield. For a brief Backdraft moment, guests feel the heat of his discharge."

Stay tuned!

Thursday Rant Session

Hello again everyone. This is the Two Minute Drill. I'm your procrastanor Doug Q. Lets just get to it shall we?

The Michael Jackson Trial is wrapping up and the jury may start deliberating the case next week. Thus far the defense has planted some reasonable doubt, but the prosecution has landed some pretty good hits against Jackson as well. I dont think he's going to be found guilty of conspiracy or holding the family hostage. But the molestation charges are the big thing here and I'm split as to how thats going to turn out. Do I think he's guilty? I'm not 100% convinced and the jury has to be otherwise he's gonna walk. I shudder to think of the thought of Michael Jackson in prison. He's not gonna last.

American Idol is over and Carrie Underwood is the champ. It was a great season of "AI" and there was alot of good singers this year. I think this is the first season where everyone that was in the final rounds had a chance to win. The show will be back again next January (Cmon, you think FOX is gonna let their cash cow go away) so until then...Seacrest. Out! hehehe

Speaking of FOX, they recently announced that they have finished the November-May sweeps months as the most watched network among 18-49 year olds. This demographic is the most sought out by advertisers and network execs. FOX was bolstered mainly by American Idol, 24, the Simpsons and the return of Family Guy. FOX is hoping to carry this momentum into the fall season with the hope that their new shows will catch on.

Revenge of the $ith

One big thing i missed by not updating earlier this week was the aftermath of "Revenge of Sith" opening to HUGE numbers last week. After making almost $50 million in first day sales alone, "Sith" steamed to a take of $108.4 million for the weekend. That is the 2nd best opening for a three day period ever. "Spider-man" still holds that record pulling in $110 million its opening weekend. And yet even with this big blockbuster opening, ticket sales are STILL down from last year. "Sith" accounted for 70 percent of all box office sales this weekend. This upcoming weekend, "The Longest Yard" and "Madagascar" will open and hopefully with these two strong films will kick start the box office and get them out of this lloonngg slump.

I think part of the problem with this summer compared to past summers, is that there isnt that many big blockbusters opening in May. Other than "Sith" the other big films arent opening til June/July. Next year doesnt look too promising either as only "Superman Returns" and "Pirates of the Carribean 2" are slated for the summer with all the other big projects still in limbo. Where's "Spider-Man 3" you ask? Summer..2007!!!

THe Dodgers are stuck in freefall mode right now. Their fast start basically a thing of the past. This team is still the same one that started red hot so they can still pull out of this slump.

Random Disneyland News: (Since u cant get enough! ;-) ) The 50th Anniversary Celebration is a SMASH success as Disneyland has been topping all attendance projections. The park has even extened its operating hours for the next few weeks as it tries to deal with the crush of people.50th merch is also flying off the shelves and they cant keep those cool golden mouse ears on the shelves. In fact, a quick check of ebay reveals that people are selling these mouse ears for 20-30 bucks a pop (retail price=10.00). Attendance remains high at Disneyland and they havent reached the peak summer months yet. Unfortunatley, the same cannot be said about "California Adventure" which, even with all the extra bodies Disneyland is pulling in, cant even reach the modest numbers park execs have set for it. Look for big changes at California Adventure in the next few years. They have two new attractions on the way in the form of a Monsters, Inc. ride and a interactive show with Crush, the turtle from "Finding Nemo". Even with these two additions, the park doesnt expect to do well this summer. If you're lookin for relief from overcrowding goto California Adventure! ;-)

OK, that will do it for now. Hopefully, the delayed updates are a thing of the past. Til the next time we meet.

Update

Be patient my friends. I havent forgotten about this blog. I will have an update tonight hopefully, so please hang in there. Like you couldnt live without this right? hehehehe. Take care everyone

 

DQ

Two Minute Thursday: Episode III

A Long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away....I would update this blog everyday!

Welcome back to the drill!!!

Well for you hardcore Star Wars fans, THIS is it. This is the day you have all been waiting for! The Saga is now complete. Revenge of the Sith opened @ midnite today in theatres nationwide. For many, this was the end of a lloonngg journey that began when George Lucas first announced that he was doing prequels to his first three Star Wars films.

I hope the wait was worth it for those people that waited like weeks and weeks to be the first in line. Although this movie had to seriously kick ass to justify losing like seven weeks of your life. Hmm..just my thoughts.

I'll be checking out the Star Wars saga this weekend and see what this is all about. As far as Star Wars go, I have only seen "Return of the Jedi" (Episode VI..hehehe) and never really got caught up in the hype like alot of my friends did. We'll see how it goes. (Special thanks to Arturo M. for hookin it up with the DVD's)

Other than Star Wars the next big thing going on is E3. The Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3, get it?) Lame humor aside the big 3 of games (Nintendo,Sony and Microsoft) unvieled their next generation of game systems. Here are some pics of the systems that will be vying for your hard earned cash later this year and next year:

First up the Xbox 360 (Release date: Holiday 2005)

Next up the Playstation 3. (Release Date: Spring 2006)

And last but in no way least, The Nintendo Revolution (Release Date: TBA 2006. Rumored to be Summer)

Who will win this next round in the video games? The gamers of course. ;-)

 

In honor of Star Wars, just wanted to leave you all with a  "Top 10" list from "The Late Show with David Letterman" This one is actually talking about Episode I. Enjoy and see you next time!

Top Ten Star Wars' Fans Complaints About The New Movie

10. Lame scene where Ewoks are freed from captivity by Reverend Jesse Jackson.

9. R2-D2 sexier with the implants in.

8. "A long time ago, in a galaxy far away" replaced with "Make me a billionaire, losers."

7. You never find out what the "Matrix" is.

6. When theater lights come back on, you're still a 40-year old virgin.

5. Scene where Millennium Falcon hits an iceberg feels tacked on.

4. There's no glowing hockey guy.

3. Somebody forgot to cut price tags off wookie costumes.

2. Most of special effects budget went toward giving Yoda a realistic looking rash.

1. Media is virtually ignoring its release.

 

Taboo Tuesday

Hello again. No excuses for the delay's because I dont have any good ones. ;-) Lets get to it shall we?

Well for Star Wars fans out there, their day is coming. May 19th the long saga of Darth Vader will be complete when Revenge of the Sith is released. There have been rumblings about George Lucas possible making MORE Star Wars movies after this. However Lucas himself is adamant about the fact that "Sith" is the final one. He hopes to get back into more mainstream fare and leave the the world of sci-fi "far, far away".

"Sith" has been hyped up for many many months and has caught the eye of not just hard core fans but casual fans as well. I personally love the tagline "Sith Happens". Clever.

The Michael Jackson trial continues in Santa Maria California. The defense so far has done a good job of busting down the prosecutions case against MJ. We still havent seen the cavalcade of stars that the defense promised in their opening statements, but its still early in their phase of the trial.

One thing I have to say is that I am not 100% convinced that MJ is guilty. I mean the way I see it, most of the victims seem to have had money as their only motivation to come forward. Dont believe me? Then ask yourself this question: If you were a parent and someone sexually molested your child how much money would it take for you to keep quiet about it? Because if you truly loved your child, no amount of money should be enough to offset the emotional and mental trauma that your child will go through for the rest of their lives. Think about that for a second before you condemn Jackson.

BOX OFFICE REPORT (Again..better late than never!)

 

Jane Fonda and Jennifer Lopez in "Monster in Law"

 

1)Monster In Law, $23.1 Mil: Another number 1 opening for J-Lo. This film also marked the return to films by Jane Fonda. Asolid opening, but again shows that overall box office numbers are down (More on that later)

2)Kicking and Screaming, $20.1 Mil: Will Ferrel comedy movie. Need I say more? ;-) Actually, many thought this would be the number one movie since Ferrel always draws well. Not a bad number though considering that this wasnt really viewed as a blockbuster type movie.

3)Unleashed, $10.9 Mil: Jet Li plays man-dog. Weird movie, but it found its audience. The fact that it made that much despite the fact that it only opened in 1,957 theatres is very good.

4) Kingdom of Heaven, $9.6 Mil: That thud you hear is some FOX movie exec getting dropped. HUGE disappointment to say the least. However, this film may do better overseas. Either that or it will be up to the DVD sales to help spark interest and get some of that $150 million budget back. Lets see if the marketing changes on this one!

5) Crash, $7.0 Mil: Not a bad drop off from last week considering its only playing in about 1700 theatres nationwide. Word of mouth is keeping this film going, since the marketing campaign basically fizzled.

So we're in the third week of May and box office numbers are WWAAYY down from a year ago when big budget hits "Van Helsing" and "Troy" were in theatres. With "Revenge of the Sith" opening Thursday there is hope from the movie industry that it will help jump start a weak (so far) movie season. There are no other films opening this week, since most planners figured that "Sith" would bury all new entries. I suspect "Monster in Law" and "Kicking and Screaming" will be the films of choice for those that get shut out of watching "Sith". Stay tuned

 

OK, that will do it for now. Til the next time (Which hopefully wont be a week from now!!)..

DQ

Taboo Tuesday

Hello everyone! Welcome back to the Drill. I took a bit of a break after Thursday's mega update day! ;-) Hopefully I can get back on track here this week.

So What To Talk About?

It seems like there's times when I have a ton of stuff to talk about but for whatever reason I never get around to putting it here. I could start off by talking about the fallout from the "Happiest Homecoming" celebrations that took place last week. I know some people were wondering why I didnt have more pics of the floats. So for you that asked here you go:

I'm your puppet....

A wandering rhino from the Lion King Float

The Lion King Float

The Little Mermaid makes an appearance

Beauty and the Beast

The final float. Wish i had a better pic of it...

 

BOX OFFICE REPORT (BETTER LATE THAN NEVER EDITION)

Orlando Bloom in "Kingdom of Heaven"

1) Kingdom of Heaven, $19.6 mil: Whoa, talk about bombing hard. A VERY weak opening for a film of this magnitude. Although overall the box office numbers are WWAYY down. The first week of May is usually the kickoff to the Summer movie season, so this isnt a good sign. "Kingdom" cost over $100 to make so unless there's some serious word of mouth of the DVD sales kick butt, this one will be a hard pill to swallow for 20th Century FOX

2) House of Wax, $12.0 mil: Paris Hilton.on film..with no nightvision. hehehe..Expectations werent as high for this one, so WB might still make a nice little profit. I'm thinking moviegoers are gettin tired of the horror films though.

3) The Hitchhikers Guide..,$9.7 mil: Last weeks number 1 tumbles down two spots. Having never read the books, I cant say this one caught my eye. Although hopes were high for this one as well. We'll see how long it hangs around in the top 5.

4) Crash, $9.1 mil: Here's an example of a film that isnt hyped up alot, but features a strong cast and an intriguing storyline that tries to be different. A solid opening.

5) The Interpreter, $7.8 mil: FREEFALL!! ;-) I guess word of mouth hasnt helped this film. Reviews have been mixed depending on who I talk to. Well from 1st to 2nd to 5th in the span of three weeks isnt THAT bad. But it isnt good either

Here's the teaser poster for "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire"

The teaser trailer is online at the official site. http://harrypotter.warnerbros.com/gobletoffire/ 

I still think they should've used my idea from a few months ago! ;-)

OK, that will do it for now. Hope you are all doing good! Til the next time we meet...

DQ

Goblet Update

Geez, my third update today. And one more photo to boot.

 

Behold..the GOBLET OF FIRE!!!

FINALLY we get to see what the movie version looks like. Its pretty cool actually. For your Harry Potter fans, this Saturday on ABC during the premier of "Harry Potter and The Chamber of Secrets" they will be previewing "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire." We may also catch a glimpse of the trailer. Speaking of trailers, WB is planning on unvieling the first *TEASER* trailer for "Superman Returns" when it releases "Batman Begins" next month.

 

OK, thats it for now. Seriously!

DQ

Happiest Thursday..prt 2

OK, here's part two of the photo update.

The begining of the LLOONNGG Golden Carpet for VIP's

A view of the carpet from the hub of the park.

Sleeping Beauty Castle: May 4th

Sleeping Beauty Castle May 5th! Christina Aguilera is on stage

Aguilera performing "When You Wish Upon A Star"

Special Guest Art Linkletter waves to guests on the morning of May 5th. Linkletter, riding aboard Walt's old electric surrey, was the MC on Disneylands Opening Day back in 1955!

Honorary Disneyland Ambassador Julie Andrews unviels the "Golden" horse on King Arthurs Carrousel.(May 4th)The horse is one of several golden ride vehicles throughout the park.

Andrews on May 5th speaking to guests in front of Sleeping Beauty Castle

LeAnn Rimes performs the official theme for the 50th Anniversary "Remember When..". (May 5th)

The Grand Finale for the days festivities. Everyone has now "Come Home" ;-)

Finally pics of yours truly with two Disney Legends.

Me and Tony Baxter

Me and VP of Walt Disney Imagineering Marty Sklar.

Whew, thats alot of pics! Hope you guys enjoyed the journey! Stay tuned to the Drill because coming in July: My MULTI-part history of Disneyland series to coincide with the OFFICIAL Anniversary date if July 17th. But I will be updating alot til then so dont worry! ;-) Til the next time we meet...

 

DQ

 

Happiest Thursday on Earth....

Hello everyone!! Welcome back to the Drill. I've got quite the eye candy update for you all. So sit back and enjoy!

As you may know by now, Disneyland kicked off its "Happiest Homecoming on Earth" celebration today in honor of Disneylands 50th anniversary. I have included in this update pics of the celebration and some pics of me with legendary (To Disney freaks like me anyway..) Imagineers Tony Baxter (The man responsible for Big Thunder Mtn and Splash Mountain...) and Marty Sklar (VP of the dept and one the last imagineers that personally worked with Walt Disney) Here come the badnwidth busters:

First up, a shot of the new floral design in front of the Main St Train Station

ignore the random people!

Now some random shots of the new "Parade of Dreams"

Quite possibly the most awesome float in the parade!

The lead float

The finale.

Some random shots of the various photo mosiacs in the park:

Grim, Grinning Ghosts..

My favorite one...

OK, I'm going to cut this one off here. More to come....

 

DQ

Taboo Tuesday

So its come to this...weekly updates! Hello, for those of you that may have forgotten my name is Doug and THIS is the Two Minute Drill. After starting off as a daily column, went to every other day, to twice a week, to recently weekly. This isnt permanent, more of a time and cheap connectivity issues. So bear with me and soon I'll be back to daily postings.

 

RANDOM RANTS AND STORIES

-The Dodgers finished the month of April 14-8 which is their best April in recent history. Many have written off this teams fast start as merely a fluke and are already awaiting their collapse. Sorry to break it to you naysayers, but this IS a good team. They arent a OVERPOWERING team, but they are good and that says something. Everyone thought this team would be in dead last most of the year or MAYBE 3rd place. Instead the offense came rushing out of the gate and the pitching has proved to be unsinkable on some nights. May brings with it a tougher schedule for LA's REAL team, so this month may actually prove to be the make or break month for the Dodgers.

-We are now 2, count em 2 days away from the "Happiest Homecoming on Earth" festivities at Disneyland. At first I was confused as to why they would be celebrating Disneyland's 50th Anniversary a full 2 months before the actual date. Then I looked at the date more closely: 05-05-05..flip it around..50-50-50. Duh! Gotta love that marketing dept!! It should be a blast on Thursday, but many in Disneyland's exec offices are wondering: "If we are bringing out all the big guns for this May date, what are we gonna do for the REAL Anniversary?" July 17th, 2005 is the actual 50th anniversary date and there is concern that date will have none of the pomp and circumstance of the May 5 date. In the next few weeks, Disneyland execs will be hastily putting together another celebration ceremony. Waiting in the wings for that date of course, is the RELAUNCH of Space Mountain. Recent info indicates that the ride itself remains unchanged, but the special effects and sound system have been brought into the 21st century. One cool new addition, is a special "night time only" soundtrack by VanHalen. In fact, upon closer inspection of the new sign installed outside the ride, the fiber optic writing reveals the name "Rock It Mountain". The new tagline? "By day it ROCKETS, by night it ROCKS!" Sounds like fun, but I just hope they brought back the OG soundtrack too.

-The Lakers should find out in a few days whether or not Phil Jackson will return to their team. I'm starting to think he is NOT going to return. Why would he want to? I mean this team is at least 2 or 3 years away from competing again. Does Phil really have the patience or desire to go through a rebuilding? I honestly dont think so. Of course, as you long time readers may know, I could be wrong. One thing is for sure, unless Mitch Kupchak starts acting like a REAL GM and not some guy who makes stupid trades and stupid contract offers, then it wont matter whose on the bench. Because his moronic moves will just continue to hamper the team.

-Shaq and the Miami heat are into the second round of the playoffs. The curse of the Shaq-bino continues! ;-)

OK, that will do it for now. I hope you are all doing good. I'll try to get updating this thing more often. Til the next time we meet.

DQ