Tarantino Film Editor Dies During LA Heat-Wave Hike

Influential director made 'Bonnie and Clyde,' 'Little Big Man'

(AP) - Director Arthur Penn, a myth-maker and myth-breaker who in such classics as Bonnie and Clyde and Little Big Man refashioned movie and American history and sealed a generation's affinity for outsiders, died last night, a day after his 88th birthday. Daughter Molly Penn said her father (no relation to actor Sean) died at his home in Manhattan of congestive heart failure. More»

Heat wave breaks official thermometer

(NEWSER) - Heat records melted in a scorching day across southern California yesterday, with downtown Los Angeles recording the highest temperature since records began in 1877. The National Weather Service's thermometer hit 113º around noon before breaking down, and officials say the day's true temperature could have been even higher, the Los Angeles Times reports. More»

California loses its grip on the movie business

(NEWSER) - LA is starting to feel like a has-been actor; the city can’t even get gigs playing itself. Next year’s Battle: Los Angeles, for example, was shot in Louisiana, while Starz’s TV version of Crash set up shop in New Mexico. New York is accustomed to being bypassed for the likes of Toronto and Vancouver, but it's a new indignity for the City of Angels, brought about, the New York Time s explains, by the generous incentives other states have offered filmmakers to hit the road. More»

Tarantino's flick has the best shot at top Oscar

(NEWSER) - Though everyone is buzzing about Avatar’s best-picture prospects, Tom O'Neil was an early predictor of Inglourious Basterds snagging the top Oscar prize—and now he’s defending his position. Even though it came out eons ago (in August), the disappointing performance of many much-hyped late-year films leaves Basterds in a position to make a “late-year dash” a la Gladiator or Braveheart, he writes in the Los Angeles Times . More»

(NEWSER) - Inglourious Basterds had a glorious opening weekend, scalping the box office for $37.6 million to give Quentin Tarantino the best opening of his career, USA Today reports. District 9 continued its strong showing in second place with $18.9 million, while GI Joe: The Rise of Cobra ($12.5 million), The Time Traveler's Wife ($10 million), and Julie & Julia ($9 million) rounded out the top five. More»