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12 articles from 2008

24 July 2008 6:33 PM, PDT | From wenn.com | See recent WENN news

Paul Giamatti regrets turning down a wine ad campaign following the success of Sideways - because he'd be a wealthy man if he agreed to peddle Merlot.

The actor played a wine snob who hated Merlot in the 2004 movie and was then approached by grape growers in California to mock his film character in a TV and print ad.

He explains, "The Merlot growers tried to get me to do an ad campaign for them; I said no and now I feel like a fool - I could have used the cash."

And Giamatti admits his role in Sideways has turned him into the butt of jokes in restaurants.

He adds, "People are always pushing Merlot on me. Merlot was the thing I wouldn't drink so everybody thinks it's hilarious to try to make me drink a glass - and they think nobody's ever done that before."

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24 July 2008 7:09 AM, PDT | From wenn.com | See recent WENN news

Actor Paul Giamatti's favourite movie experience was on the set of a little-known British film about a kid who couldn't stop farting.

The Oscar nominated star of Sideways has gone on to become one of Hollywood's most respected actors, but he fears his best work came on 2002 film Thunderpants, which featured Ned Beatty, Stephen Fry and Harry Potter's best friend Rupert Grint.

Giamatti says, "Thunderpants is a fine motion picture that I made in England a long time ago about a kid who farts uncontrollably.

"This came across my desk and I had to be a part of it... I play a guy from Nasa who kidnaps him (kid) so that he can power a rocket.

"Strangely enough this picture never made it across the Atlantic but I think it was huge in England for a while. It's one of my favourite pictures; I loved making this movie... It's every variation on a fart joke that you could possible imagine."

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21 July 2008 5:02 AM, PDT | From wenn.com | See recent WENN news

The U.S. Television Critics Association has named New York advertising drama Mad Men its TV programme of the year.

The show, set in 1960s Manhattan, landed the coveted prize as well as gongs for outstanding new show and outstanding drama.

Other winners at the awards ceremony in Beverly Hills, California on Saturday included Tina Fey's comedy series 30 Rock - which took two awards including a comedy prize for Fey.

The full list of winners is as follows:

Programme Of The Year: Mad Men

Outstanding New Programme: Mad Men

Outstanding Achievement In Drama: Mad Men

Outstanding Achievement In Comedy: 30 Rock

Outstanding Achievement In News + Information: The War: A Film by Ken Burns + Lynn Novick

Outstanding Achievement In Children's Programming: WordGirl

Outstanding Achievement In Movies, Mini-Series + Specials: John Adams

Individual Achievement In Comedy: Tina Fey, 30 Rock

Individual Achievement In Drama: Paul Giamatti, John Adams

Heritage Award: The Wire

Career Achievement: Lorne Michaels.

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17 July 2008 10:31 AM, PDT | From Studio Briefing | See recent Studio Briefing news

It was evident that cable television had finally come into its own as two basic cable shows, AMC's Mad Men, and FX's Damages, received Emmy nominations today (Thursday) for best series -- the first basic-cable shows to make the lists. Pay TV cable also made quite a showing, with HBO's John Adams capturing 23 nominations, the most for any series, including a best actor nomination for Paul Giamatti in the title role. Among sitcoms, NBC's 30 Rock led with 17 nods, while AMC's Mad Men was tops in the best-drama category with 16 nominations.

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17 July 2008 6:10 AM, PDT | From PEOPLE.com | See recent PEOPLE.com news

The TV Academy got a birthday cake for its 60th birthday Thursday morning – while American Idol's Ryan Seacrest, Project Runway's Heidi Klum and Dancing With the Stars' Tom Bergeron, as well as Deal or No Deal's Howie Mandel and Survivor's Jeff Probst, all got nominations in the first-time ever category of top host for a reality-competition show. While Deal or No Deal and Survivor both failed to earn nods as best reality-competition show, all the other programs did, along with Top Chef and Amazing Race. In drama, as expected, it was a Mad world, with AMC's critical

Stephen M. Silverman

23 June 2008 8:09 AM, PDT | From ifc.com | See recent IFC news

By Neil Pedley

As the temperature rises, romance blooms amongst the geriatric set, "Mary Poppins" goes Bollywood, and parents will get their first chance to lay eyes on that which will likely have them driving to Toys "R" Us all summer long.

"Elsa and Fred"

Seeing anyone under 30 fall in love on screen is elusive these days, and so director Marcos Carnevale's gentle and endearing tale of romance between a couple with a real-life combined age of 176 is quite the breath of fresh air. In a role that nabbed several awards in his native Spain, Manuel Alexandre stars as Fred, an embittered widower whose chance encounter with Elsa (China Zorilla), a mischievous Fellini fanatic, leads the pair to Italy to fulfill her dream of reenacting the famous Trevi Fountain scene from Fellini's "La Dolce Vita." In Spanish with subtitles.

Opens in limited release.

"Finding Amanda"

Fans of the small

Neil Pedley

10 June 2008 9:03 PM, PDT | From avclub.com | See recent The AV Club news

John Adams was one of the unlikeliest founding fathers, more swept up in the events of the American Revolution than out in front of them. Because of that, he's been an ideal subject for two ground-level studies of how America came to be: David McCullough's epic biography John Adams, and HBO's seven-part, nearly nine-hour adaptation of same. As portrayed by Paul Giamatti on HBO, Adams is a preening neurotic, worried about how his peers perceive him. And yet he's hardly unsympathetic. If anything, Adams' foibles help humanize the radical changes of the late 18th century. John Adams begins with Adams' defense of the British soldiers involved in the "Boston Massacre" and ends with his death on July 4th, 1826—fifty years after the adoption of the Declaration Of Independence. Screenwriter Kirk Ellis rolls through history in episodic fashion, emphasizing the personality clashes behind such landmark events as the first presidential.

Noel Murray

21 March 2008 9:44 AM, PDT | From Watcher | See recent Watcher news

Laura Linney said she enjoyed the six months it took to make the ambitious miniseries “John Adams,” which is airing on HBO Sunday nights.

Linney, who plays Abigail Adams, traveled to Hungary for the seven-part miniseries (scenes set in both Holland and France were filmed outside Budapest). The cast, including Paul Giamatti as founding father John Adams, also filmed in Richmond, Va., and in Virginia’s Colonial Williamsburg, both of which have a wealth of historic buildings.

“I’m not a history buff, but I understand why people can become addicted to it,” Linney said in a phone interview before “John Adams” debuted March 16 (my review of the miniseries is here, several other reviews are here). “We all read a lot” as preparation for filming.

But there was one aspect of the filming that she couldn’t prepare for and which she didn’t enjoy: The corsets she wore were a real pain,

Tempo

19 March 2008 10:13 AM, PDT | From Studio Briefing | See recent Studio Briefing news

HBO, which was shaken by the decision of Entertainment President Carolyn Strauss to step down followed by word that it would not put the series 12 Miles of Bad Road from producer Linda Bloodworth-Thomason on the air after filming six episodes, finally got some good news Tuesday. Its latest miniseries, John Adams, starring Paul Giamatti in the title role, got off to a solid start with 2.65 million viewers tuning in for the first two episodes Sunday night. The audience figure is regarded as high for a premium cable channel, although it's not nearly as high as several earlier HBO hits.

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14 March 2008 11:27 AM, PDT | From Watcher | See recent Watcher news

Founding father John Adams isn’t your typical HBO protagonist. His greatest failing is not a penchant for murder, adultery or multiple wives. He’s not even much of a narcissist. Now that’s shocking.

The man portrayed in the miniseries “John Adams” (7 p.m. Sunday, HBO) is polite and well-spoken. And his devotion to his formidable wife, Abigail (portrayed here by Laura Linney with her typical fire and intelligence), has made the story of their long marriage a romance for the ages.

Adams’ greatest failing was a tendency to offend those whom he wished to win over, yet his passionate tenacity is still impressive more than 200 years later. Despite his temper and his unwillingness to compromise his beliefs — or maybe because of those qualities — the lofty concept of America as an independent, democratic nation became a reality.

Much of Adams’ career was founded on the idea that “a man may give offense,

Tempo

11 March 2008 6:18 PM, PDT | From wenn.com | See recent WENN news

Paul Giamatti became so stressed on the set of new TV movie John Adams, he took up smoking again - eight years after he quit.

The actor, who plays United States founding father Adams in the two part historical epic, blames co-star Tom Wilkinson for tempting him to pick up cigarettes again in between takes.

He says, "I'd had enough. It was a tough job. John Hancock was on the phone to his agent... and Ben Franklin (Wilkinson) was having a Marlboro Light.

"So I said, `Give a founding father a cigarette. This revolution is killing me.' It was a very tough time."

Giamatti is planning to take up yoga to help him quit: "It helped me quit smoking before. So it may help me again."

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10 January 2008 5:48 PM, PST | From wenn.com | See recent WENN news

Oscar nominee Paul Giamatti was involved in a minor traffic accident in New York City on Wednesday night.

The Sideways star was pulling into traffic on Lafayette Street when he and a taxi driver nudged into each other.

Nobody was hurt in the accident, which police have described as "a minor fender-bender", reports website Tmz.com.

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12 articles from 2008