Saturday Hot Links
Time for the 161st installment of Saturday Hot Links.
Today: The We Remember The Genius Of Mike Nichols Edition.
Mike Nichols dead at the age of 83.
Mike Nichols remembered by Hollywood.
Mike Nichols remembered by Broadway.
Mike Nichols remembered by Meryl Streep and Tom Hanks.
Mike Nichols to be honored by Lincoln Center Thursday night.
Todd McCarthy (THR) on Mike Nichols.
Pete Travers (Rolling Stone) on Mike Nichols.
Frank Rich remembers Mike Nichols.
Listen to Mike Nichols commentary on Who’s Afraid of Virginia Wolf [audio].
Indiewire: The Best 5 Mike Nichols Movies.
How people decide what movies to see [infographic].
Bob Marley’s name to be used to market legal cannabis.
When Universal’s classic monsters hit the big screen for the first time.
Alien conspiracy theorists think the government is on the verge of spilling big secrets.
Christopher Nolan takes on a new gig: Guest editor of Wired magazine for this month’s edition.
New Jersey’s war hero pigeon.
Is current cinema as good as the romanticized 1970s Golden Age.
50 writers you need to see live.
Related: 10 most famous writers’ houses worth visiting.
What NYC is planning on doing to all of its old payphones.
Related: Is New Y0rk City going to get a floating park.
Kinda related: Lauren Bacall’s NYC apartment for sale for $26M.
First official Batmobile up for auction.
Presale market alive and well at AFM.
Why Ava DuVernay’s potential Oscar nomination is a huge deal.
The amazing life of sand.
Massive Game of Thrones family tree tracks every house.
Why do they dye cheese yellow.
Chuck Wendig: How to motivate yourself as a writer.
Salad vending machines are coming to L.A.
Over 30 movies being adapted into TV shows.
Silicon Valley job title generator (e.g., Shareability Maven).
Are you not watching the HBO series “Sonic Highways”? You should be — and here’s why.
The top 10 ugliest Christmas sweaters of all time.
“True Detective: Season 2”: Everything Indiewire knows about it.
2014 National Book Awards announced.
Revealed: The lost chapter of Interstellar [comic book].
How is wind chill calculated.
Steve Jobs movie dead at Sony.
Related: Analysis why Steve Jobs movie is dead at Sony.
Georgia O’Keefe painting sells for $44M.
Of course, Hollywood producers are now wooing “Serial”.
Related: “Serial”: How to make sense of a social media phenomenon.
Why do dogs sniff their butts.
Aereo files for bankruptcy.
5 lessons from J-school that will make you a better writer.
6 filmmaking tips from Jean-Luc Godard.
10 turkey myths debunked.
A nice overview of the recent Academy celebration for the 2014 Nicholl Fellowship winners.
15 real movie locations you can actually visit.
62 last name meanings.
10 live-action shorts advance for Oscar consideration.
Staring at your phone while texting is like putting a 60 pound weight on your spine.
How the Theory of Everything screenwriter convinced Stephen Hawking’s ex-wife to let him adapt her memoir.
What happens to stranded sea otters [video].
15 things you probably didn’t know about Scott Pilgrim vs. the World.
How Los Angeles neighborhoods got their names.
A nice NYT feature on Robert Osborne — for 20 years, the face of Turner Classic Movies.
Man shows up drunk for a job interview, stabs the boss.
Watch Richard Linklater and cast discuss creating Boyhood [videos].
How Mr. Rogers saved the VCR.
Make your own Aaron Sorkin monologue Mad-Lib style.
Find out what famous brains are most like yours.
Nina Jacobson isn’t afraid to fight Hollywood’s old guard.
The best sandwich from each state.
Disney hits $4B in global box office.
The Godfather mansion hits the market for $2.8M.
39 cancelled Star Wars projects.
Related: 10 Star Wars mysteries the stand alone films could answer.
Most heavy boozers aren’t actually alcoholics.
The 30 highest grossing indie films of 2014 [so far].
Researchers translate ancient Egyptian spellbook.
The 13 best assembling the team movies [videos].
10 amazing things your ashes can do after you die.
The latest blog post from screenwriter Bob Saenz: Screenwriting is Easy & Other Lies.
The 19 best drone photos of 2014.
What’s worse than a remake? A remake of a reality TV show.
Or this: A new version of “All in the Family”?
9 people who killed JFK according to conspiracy theorists.
How New Line lost Dumb and Dumber To — then got the franchise back.
Netflix to expand to Australia and New Zealand.
Here’s what Pixar voice actors look like in real life.
Every rom-com for the last 80 years owes something to It Happened One Night.
50 great films from 2014.
Local film industry in Latin America is hot.
Christopher Nolan talks the enigmatic ending of Interstellar.
Snag Films has a doc on the last days of Jimi Hendrix’s life [video].
Stephen Colbert questions Jon Stewart’s patriotism on “The Colbert Report” [video].
Finally the Black List celebrates 10 years as a haven for screenwriters.
Screenwriting Master Class tip of the week: Three opportunities to work with me through the end of the year. Here they are:
November 24 — Story Concepts That Sell: This is a 90-minute webinar that runs next Monday, beginning at 4PM Eastern / 1PM Pacific. You cannot overstate the importance of a story concept to the marketability of a spec script. Learn how to generate, develop, and assess story ideas, zeroing in on the best ones.
December 2 — Core VIII: Time: This 1-week online screenwriting class helps writers develop a cinematic understanding of time and how to use narrative devices like flashbacks, montage, and much more.
December 10 — Four-Day Quest Writing Workshop — Santa Monica: This is an incredible value. A 4-day immersive writing workshop combined with a 16-week online platform. In the process, you learn the foundation of Character Based Screenwriting, develop your story in Prep, then pound out a first draft in Pages. There are just a couple of spots left. Give yourself (or someone you know) a truly notable holiday gift: The Quest Writing Workshop.
Some testimonials:
“I can’t think of a single book or lecture I’ve read that outdoes the Screenwriting Master Class. The teaching is clear and comprehensive. The response from classmates, inspiring, and the feedback from Scott, invaluable.” — Brianna Garber
“Of all the classes I’ve sampled around the web, NOBODY draws the crowd you do, and NOBODY gives as much useful information. It’s your infectious enthusiasm that gets us all going. I’m so grateful to be a small part of the pot you stir.” — Cyd Madsen
“I have no hesitation in recommending Scott’s classes. His character-based approach to screenwriting, combined with his generous insights and constructive criticism, have helped me create real, flawed characters that readers and audiences can identify with, and from which powerful, engaging stories spring organically.” — Simon Littlefield
“Scott is an enthusiastic and thoughtful teacher and is able to engage with students of any ability. I always come away from Scott’s classes enlightened, empowered, filled with new ideas and concepts, ready to tackle my screen writing again.” — Peter Van Schellebeck
As always, I look forward to the opportunity to work with you!