Fame

1. Fame (1980): At the New York City High School for the Performing Arts, students get specialized training that often leads to success as actors, singers, etc. This movie follows four students from the time when they audition to get into the school, through graduation. They are the brazen Coco Hernandez, shy Doris Finsecker, sensitive gay Montgomery MacNeil, and brash, abrasive Raul Garcia.

2. Fame TV Series (1982): The show was produced by MGM Television and was first broadcast on the NBC television network in the US on January 7 1982, producers William Blinn and Mel Swope. The last new episode was broadcast in the US on May 18, 1987. Some seasons of the show were broadcast by the BBC in the United Kingdom and Channel 7 in Australia. Following its cancellation, two versions of the series were syndicated in reruns: the original hour-long episodes, which usually contained a primary plot, a sub plot and two or more musical numbers; and a second version, stripped of the musical numbers and the sub plot and reduced to 30 minutes in length. The show's theme song was a pop hit for singer Irene Cara, having been featured in the motion picture. A re-recorded version of the theme, using similar instrumentation to the 1980 track, was used in the TV series and sung by co-star Erica Gimpel, who played Coco Hernandez. Although Gimpel left the series midway through the third season (after the show moved from NBC to first-run syndication in 1983), her opening vocals were still heard on the show for two more seasons. An updated version of the song, featuring a modern, synthesized hard-rock flavor, was introduced in the fall of 1985 and performed by new cast member Loretta Chandler (Dusty). This version ran for the final two seasons of Fame. "I Still Believe In Me", from an episode of the series entitled "Passing Grade", was nominated for an Emmy Award for Best Original Song. It was performed by Erica Gimpel and Debbie Allen and co-written by Gary Portnoy who would go on to co-write and sing the Theme from Cheers (Where Everybody Knows Your Name). In the UK, two singles credited to The Kids from "Fame", "Hi-Fidelity" and "Starmaker", reached the top ten.

3. Fame (2009): A reinvention of the original 1980 hit film, Fame follows a talented group of dancers, singers, actors, and artists over four years at the New York City High School of Performing Arts today known as Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts.

By Richard Moody

Paul Newman (1925 - 2008) First Anniversary 26.09.2009

Paul Newman Biography


Paul Leonard Newman was born on January 26, 1925 in Cleveland, Ohio. With more than five decades’ worth of great performances to his credit, Paul Newman was one of Hollywood’s most talented and beloved actors. He was not only an actor, but a humanitarian, donating 100% of the profits from the food company he founded to numerous charities.
Newman grew up in Shaker Heights, Ohio, with his older brother Arthur and his parents, Arthur and Teresa. His father owned a sporting-goods store and his mother was a homemaker who loved the theatre. Newman got his first taste of acting while doing school plays, but it was not his first love at the time. In high school, he played football and hoped to be a professional athlete.
Graduating high school in 1943, Newman briefly attended college before enlisting in the U.S. Navy Air Corps. He wanted to be a pilot, but he was told that he could never fly a plane as he was colorblind. He ended up serving as a radio operator and spent part of World War II serving in the Pacific.
After leaving the military in 1946, Paul Newman attended Kenyon College in his home state of Ohio. He was on an athletic scholarship and played on the school’s football team. But after getting into some trouble, Newman changed course. “I got thrown in jail and kicked off the football team. Since I was determined not to study very much, I majored in theater the last two years,” he told Interview magazine in 1998.
After finishing college in 1949, Paul Newman did summer stock in Wisconsin where he met his first wife, actress Jacqueline Witte. The couple soon married, and Newman continued to act until his father’s death in 1950. He and his wife moved to Ohio to run the family business for a time. Their first child, a son named Scott, was born there. After asking his brother to take over the business, Newman and his family relocated to Connecticut where he studied at the Yale School of Drama.
Running out of money, Newman left Yale after a year and tried his luck in New York. He studied with Lee Strasberg at the famed Actor's Studio alongside Marlon Brando, James Dean, and Geraldine Page.
Newman made his Broadway debut in William Inge’s Pulitzer Prize-winning comedy Picnic in 1953. During rehearsals he met actress Joanne Woodward, who was serving as an understudy for the production. While they were reportedly attracted to each other, the happily-married Newman did not pursue a romantic relationship with the young actress.
Around this time, Newman and his wife welcomed their second child together, a daughter named Susan. Picnic ran for 14 months, helping Newman support his growing family. He also found work on the then-emerging medium of television.
In 1954, Paul Newman made his film debut in The Silver Chalice for which he received terrible reviews. He had better success on Broadway in the Tony Award-winning The Desperate Hours (1955), in which he played an escaped convict who terrorizes a suburban family. During the run of the hit play, he and his wife added a third child (a daughter named Stephanie) to their family.
A winning turn on television helped pave the way for Newman’s return to Hollywood. Working with director Arthur Penn, he appeared in an episode of Philco Playhouse, “The Death of Billy the Kid,” written by Gore Vidal. Newman reteamed with Penn for an episode of Playwrights ’56 for a story about a worn-down and battered boxer. Two projects became feature films: Somebody Up There Likes Me (1956) and The Left-Handed Gun (1958).
In Somebody Up There Likes Me (1956), Newman again played a boxer. This time he took on the role of real-life prizefighter Rocky Graziano—and demonstrated his considered acting talents to movie-goers and critics alike. His reputation was further magnified with Penn’s The Left-Handed Gun; an adaptation of Gore Vidal’s earlier teleplay about Billy the Kid.
That same year, Paul Newman starred as Brick in the film version of Tennessee Williams' play Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958) opposite Elizabeth Taylor. He gave another strong performance as a hard-drinking former athlete and disinterested husband who struggles against different types of pressures exerted on him by his wife (Taylor) and his overpowering father (Burl Ives). Once dismissed as just another handsome face, Newman showed that he could handle the challenges of such a complex character. He was nominated for his first Academy Award (Best Actor) for this role.
he Long Hot Summer (1958) marked the first big-screen pairing of Newman and Joanne Woodward. The two had already become a couple off-screen while he was still married to his first wife, and they wed in 1958 soon after his divorce was finalized. The next year, Newman returned to Broadway to star in the original production of Tennessee Williams’ Sweet Bird of Youth. The production saw Newman acting opposite the great Geraldine Page, and was directed by Elia Kazan.
Newman continued to thrive professionally. He starred in Otto Preminger’s Exodus (1960) about the founding of the state of Israel. The following year, he took on one of his most famous roles. In The Hustler (1961), Newman played Fast Eddie, a slick, small-time pool shark who takes on the legendary Minnesota Fats (Jackie Gleason). For his work on the film, Paul Newman received his second Academy Award nomination.
Taking on another remarkable part, Newman played the title character—an arrogant, unprincipled cowboy—in Hud (1963). The movie posters for the film described the character as “the man with the barbed wire soul,” and Newman earned critical acclaim and another Academy Award nomination for his work as yet another on-screen antihero.
In Cool Hand Luke (1967), Newman played a rebellious inmate at a southern prison. His convincing and charming portrayal led audiences to cheer on this convict in his battle against prison authorities. No matter how hard they leaned on Luke, he refused to bend to their will. This thoroughly enjoyable and realistic performance led to Paul Newman’s fourth Academy Award nomination.
The next year, Newman stepped behind the cameras to direct his wife in Rachel, Rachel (1968). Woodward starred as an older schoolteacher who dreams of love. A critical success, the film earned four Academy Award nominations, including one for Best Picture.
A lesser-known film from this time helped trigger a new passion for the actor. While working on the car racing film, Winning (1969), Newman went to a professional driving program as part of his preparation for the role. He discovered that he loved racing and started to devote some of his time to the sport.
That same year, Newman starred alongside Robert Redford in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969). He played Butch to Redford’s Sundance, and the pairing was a huge success with audiences,bringing in more than $46 million domestically. Recapturing their on-screen camaraderie, Newman and Redford played suave con men in The Sting (1973), another hit at the box office.
Around this time, Paul Newman scored his first racing victory at a Connecticut track in 1972. He went on to win a national Sports Car Club of America title four years later. In 1977, Newman made the leap and became a professional racer.
Newman’s life was rocked by a personal tragedy around this time. In 1978, his only son Scott died of an accidental overdose of alcohol and prescription drugs. Newman established the Scott Newman Center, which seeks to stop drug abuse through educational programs.
During the 1980s Newman continued to amass critical praise for his work. In Sydney Pollack’s Absence of Malice (1981), he played a man victimized by the media. The following year he starred as a down-and-out lawyer as The Verdict (1982). Both films earned Newman Academy Award nominations.
While he was widely considered one of the finest actors of his time, Paul Newman had never won an Academy Award. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences decided to correct this error by giving Newman an honorary award for his contributions to film in 1985. With his trademark sense of humor, Newman said in his acceptance speech that “I am especially grateful that this did not come wrapped in a gift certificate to Forest Lawn [a famous cemetery].”
Shifting some of his energy away from acting, Newman started his own food company in the early 1980s. He was making bottles of salad dressing to give them out as gifts for Christmas one year with his friend, writer A. E. Hotchner. Newman then had an unusual idea as to what to do with the leftovers—he wanted to try selling dressing to stores. The two went on to found Newman's Own, whose profits and royalties are used for educational and charitable purposes. The company’s product line now extends from dressings to sauces to snacks to cookies. Since Newman’s Own inception, over $250 million has been donated to thousands of charities worldwide.
A few years later, Paul Newman established the Hole in the Wall Camps to give children with life-threatening illnesses a memorable, free holiday. In 1988, the first residential summer camp was opened in Ashford, Connecticut. There are now eight camps in the United States, Ireland, the United Kingdom, and France. Some of the funds raised by Newman’s Own have gone to support the Hole in the Wall Camps.
In addition to his charitable efforts, Newman continued to perform. He returned to the character of Fast Eddie from The Hustler in 1986’s The Color of Money. This time around, his character was no longer the up-and-coming hustler, but a worn-out liquor salesman. He is drawn back in the world of pool by mentoring a young upstart (Tom Cruise). For his work on the film, Paul Newman finally won the Academy Award for Best Actor.
Approaching his seventies, Newman continued to delight audiences with more character-driven roles. He played an aging, but crafty rascal who struggles with renewing a relationship with his estranged son in Nobody's Fool (1994). The next year, Newman enjoyed a triumph in another arena. He was part of the winning team at the Rolex 24 at Daytona. With this victory, Newman became the oldest driver to win this 24-hour-long race.
Newman played a crime boss in Road to Perdition (2002), which starred Tom Hanks as a hit man who must protect his son from Newman's character. This role brought him another Academy Award nomination—this time for Best Supporting Actor.
In his later years, Paul Newman took fewer acting roles, but was still able to deliver impressive performances. He earned an Emmy Award for his nuanced depiction of a lay-about father in the television miniseries Empire Falls (2005), which was adapted from the Pulitzer Prize-winning Richard Russo novel. The miniseries also provided him the opportunity to work with his wife Joanne Woodward.
Known for his love of race cars, he lent his distinctive voice to the 2006 animated film Cars, playing the part of Doc Hudson—a retired racecar. He also served as the narrator for the 2007 documentary The Price of Sugar, which explored the work of Father Christopher Hartley and his efforts to help the workers in Dominican Republic’s sugar cane fields.
That same year, Newman announced that he was retiring from acting. “I’m not able to work anymore as an actor at the level I would want to,” he said during an appearance on Good Morning America. “You start to lose your memory, your confidence, your invention. So that’s pretty much a closed book for me.”
Newman, however, wasn't going to leave the business entirely. He was planning on directing Of Mice and Men at the Westport Country Playhouse the following year. But he ended up withdrawing from the production because of health problems, and rumors began to circulate that the great actor was seriously ill. Statements from the actor and his representatives simply said he was “doing nicely” and, reflective of Newman’s sense of humor, being treated “for athlete’s foot and hair loss.”
A private man, Newman chose to keep the true nature of his illness to himself. He succumbed to cancer at his Westport, Connecticut home on September 26, 2008. This is where he and his wife had lived for numerous years to get away from the spotlight and where they chose to raise their three daughters, Nell, Melissa, and Clea.
As the news of his death spread, praise and tributes began pouring in. "There is a point where feelings go beyond words. I have lost a real friend. My life–and this country–is better for his being in it," friend Robert Redford said after learning about Newman’s death.
Paul Newman will be long remembered for his great films, his vibrant lifestyle and his extensive charitable works. And his relationship with Joanne Woodward will always be regarded as one of the most successful and enduring love stories in Hollywood history.

Richard’s comment

I’ve been a big fan of Paul Newman for five years some of my favorite movies was “Cool Hand Luke, Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid, Hud, Hemingway’s Adventure of a Young Man, The Hustler, Sweet Birds of Youth, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, The Verdict, Absence of Malice, The Color of Money, Nobody’s Fool, Road To Perdition, Our Town & Empire Falls” Whilst I was on holiday in the Lake District I went to a shop and I bought some Newman’s Own salad dressing. I bought one for home and one for college to have in our Cook and Eat session.

By Richard Moody

Richard's favourite Jean Claude Van Damme Movies

1. Maximum Risk (1996): Alain Moreau (Jean-Claude Van Damme) is a cop in Nice, France. Alain is at a funeral that is being held for a fellow cop, when Alain’s partner Sebastien (Jean-Hugues Anglade) shows up. They discover that his name was Mikhail Suverov, and Mikhail was born on the exact same day Alain was. As it turns out, Mikahil is the twin brother Alain never knew he had. Tracing his brother's steps back to New York City, Alain discovers that Mikahil was a member of the Russian Mafia, who was chased down and killed when he attempted to get out. Of course, now Alain is mistaken for Mikhail, who was also mixed up in a war between Mafia organizations. With his only real ally being Mikhail's fiancé Alex Bartlett (Natasha Henstridge), Alain sets out to avenge his brother's death, which is complicated not only by the Mafia, but by two corrupt FBI agents.

2. Double Team (1997): Having successfully completed his final mission three years prior, which was to retrieve a truck load of plutonium stolen from a US military base in Croatia by freelance international terrorist Stavros (Mickey Rourke), government anti-terrorist agent Jack Paul Quinn (Jean Claude Van Damme) is relaxing by his pool in South France with Kathryn, his pregnant wife. Quinn is approached by a government representative who tells him that Stavros, Quinn’s nemesis, has become active again and tries to convince Quinn to come out of retirement telling Quinn that he ‘can’t retire until he [Stavros] does’. Quinn is reluctant to return to duty but agrees after the same representative is killed by Stavros shortly after the meeting with Quinn. Quinn and Yaz shelter from an explosion whilst breaking into the hospital to rescue Quinn's wife and son. Acting on intelligence received, Quinn travels to Antwerp, Belgium where he meets up with quirky arms dealer Yaz, played by Dennis Rodman, who equips Quinn with weaponry and then proceeds to meet the Delta team put together to capture Stavros. Stavros has been tracked to an amusement park but Quinn hesitates to give the order to shoot Stavros when it becomes apparent that Stavros is meeting with his six year old son. Stavros exploits Quinn’s hesitation and a shootout ensues in which Stavros’ son is killed and Stavros is able to escape into a hospital, pursued by Quinn. Stavros and Quinn fight in the hospital’s maternity ward with Stavros getting away after knocking Quinn unconscious in an explosion. Quinn wakes up on ‘The Colony’, an inescapable, invisible penal institution island for secret agents reminiscent of The Village from The Prisoner. Quinn learns that he has been sent to the Colony due to his failure to capture Stavros, that his family has been told he was killed and that only agents considered ‘too valuable to kill but too dangerous to set free’ are committed to the institution. The occupants of the Colony are expected to help analyse terrorist threats and have to register themselves present every day using a fingerprint scanner. Meanwhile, Kathryn receives a call from an art gallery in Rome telling her that they would like to display her sculptures and that they will fly her out immediately. When she arrives, Stavros kidnaps her. Whilst analysing information received from a terrorist bombing, Quinn picks up a message from Stavros telling him that Stavros has captured Kathryn and so Quinn realises he must escape the Colony if he is to save her. Quinn devises a system to fool the fingerprint scanner and is able to leave the island by attaching himself to cargo due to be extracted from the island from the air. Quinn goes to Yaz, the only man who can help him, pleading for assistance in return for access to CIA bank accounts. Yaz agrees to help and the two go to Quinn’s house where they are ambushed by Stavros’ men. After fighting the men off, Quinn receives a message from Stavros telling him that he must go to Rome for his baby’s sake. When they arrive in Rome, Yaz learns that Quinn’s wife is pregnant after Stavros delivers a sonogram of the baby to the given rendezvous. Quinn emails Stavros encouraging him to meet in a town square, knowing that Stavros will have to take the bait. At the meeting point, Quinn catches sight of Kathryn in a car but is intercepted by Stavros before he can reach her and a shootout occurs as Kathryn is driven away. Quinn tracks Stavros’ henchmen down to the hotel suite where Kathryn was being held and finds a clue to her whereabouts - a prescription bottle label. Meanwhile, Kathryn is transported to hospital where she gives birth. Using the prescription bottle and with Yaz’s help, Quinn is able to track down the hospital where he finds Kathryn but discovers that Stavros has taken his son. Thanks to assistance from a nurse, Quinn locates Stavros and the baby in an explosives-rigged Roman amphitheater. Stavros leaves Quinn in the middle of a minefield with his son and then unleashes a tiger. Thankfully Yaz arrives on a motorbike and is able to snatch the baby, leaving Quinn to escape from the tiger and go after Stravros. Quinn and Stavros fight in the minefield until Stavros steps on a mine (after Yaz moved the markers) and is left stranded. Quinn, his son and Yaz run as Stavros is charged by the tiger and takes his foot off the mine, a chain reaction rips the amphitheater apart and Quinn is able to shield his friends from the ensuing blast by sheltering under a Coke dispenser. Stavros is killed by the blast.

By Richard Moody

The Best Of Bela Lugosi & Lon Chaney Jr

1. Dracula (1931): Renfield (Dwight Frye), a British solicitor, travels through the Carpathian Mountains via stagecoach. The people in the stagecoach are fearful that the coach won’t reach the local inn before sundown. Arriving there safely before sundown, Renfield refuses to stay at the inn and asks the driver to take him to the Borgo Pass. The innkeeper and his wife seem to be afraid of Renfield’s destination, Castle Dracula, and warn him about vampires. The innkeeper's wife gives Renfield a Crucifix for protection before he leaves for Borgo Pass, whence he is driven to the castle by Dracula's coach, which was awaiting him at Borgo Pass, with Dracula himself disguised as the driver. Renfield enters the castle after his driver and his luggage disappear, and is bid welcomed by charming but odd nobleman Count Dracula (Béla Lugosi), who is a vampire. Dracula and Renfield discuss the purchase of Carfax Abbey in England, and afterwards Dracula departs. Renfield faints when he opens a window and a bat comes in, and Dracula, morphed from bat, forces his wives to get away from Renfield. He then bites him. Aboard the Vesta, bound for England, Renfield has now became a raving lunatic slave to Dracula, who is hidden in a coffin and gets out for feeding on the ship's crew. When the ship arrives in England, Renfield is discovered the only living person in it; the captain is lashed on the wheel and none of the ship’s crew is discovered. Renfield is sent to Dr. Seward’s sanatorium. Some nights later, Dracula hypnotizes an usherette and tells her to inform Dr. Seward (Herbert Bunston) that he is wanted on the telephone. Before leaving, Dracula meets with Dr. Seward, who introduces him to his daughter Mina (Helen Chandler), her fiancé John Harker (David Manners), and the family friend Lucy Weston (Frances Dade). Lucy is fascinated by Count Dracula, and that night, after Lucy has a talk with Mina and falls asleep in bed, Dracula enters her room as a bat and feasts on her blood. She dies in an autopsy theatre the next day after a string of transfusions, and two tiny marks on her throat are discovered. Several days later, it is seen that Renfield is obsessed with eating flies and spiders, devouring their lives also. Professor Van Helsing (Edward Van Sloan) analyzes Renfield's blood, discovering Renfield’s obsession. He starts talking about vampires, and that afternoon chats with Renfield, who begs Dr. Seward to send him away, because his nightly cries may disturb Mina’s dreams. When Dracula awakes and calls Renfield with wolf howling, Renfield is disturbed by Van Helsing showing him a branch of wolfbane. It stops wolves, as Van Helsing says, and also is used for vampire protection. Dracula visits a sleeping Mina in her bedroom and bites her, leaving her the same marks Lucy had. She talks to the others about a dream of hers, when Dracula visited her. Then, Dracula enters for a night's visit at the Sewards. Van Helsing and Harker notice that Dracula does not have a reflection in the mirrored top of the cigarette case. When Van Helsing shows that "most amazing phenomenon" to Dracula, he smashes the mirror and excuses himself, leaving. Van Helsing deduces that Dracula is the vampire. Meanwhile, Mina leaves her room and runs into Dracula’s hug in the garden, and is discovered there unconscious. The next day, newspapers write about a “beautiful lady” who lured little children playing in the park with chocolate and then bit them. Mina recognizes the beautiful lady as Lucy, who has risen as a vampire. Harker wants to take Mina at London for safety, but he is finally convinced to leave Mina with them. Van Helsing orders nurse Briggs (Joan Standing) to take care of Mina when she is sleeping, and not to remove the garland of wolfbane around her neck. Renfield again escapes from his cell and listens to the three men discussing vampires. Before Martin (Charles K. Gerrard), his attendant, arrives to take Renfield back to his cell, Renfield narrarates to Van Helsing, Harker and Seward how Dracula convinced Renfield to allow him to enter the sanatorium by promising him thousands of rats with blood and life in them. Dracula enters the Seward parlour and talks with Van Helsing. Dracula tells him that Mina is now his after fusing his blood with hers, and Van Helsing swears revenge by sterilizing Carfax Abbey and finding the box where he sleeps; he will then thrust a stake through his heart. Dracula tries to hypnotize Van Helsing, almost succeeding, but Van Helsing shows a crucifix to the vampire and turns away. Dracula, Renfield & Mina near the end of the simultaneously filmed Spanish film.Mina is visited in her bedroom by Harker, and they talk about the night. Harker notices Mina’s changes, as she now becomes step by step a vampire, and when a bat (Dracula) enters the room and squeaks to Mina, she answers and tries to attack Harker. Fortunately, Van Helsing and Dr. Seward arrive just in time to save Harker. Mina confesses what Dracula has done to her, and tries to tell Harker that their love is finished.Later that night, Dracula hypnotizes Briggs into removing the wolfbane from Mina’s room so he can enter. Van Helsing and Harker see Renfield, having just escaped from his cell, heading for Carfax Abbey. They see Dracula with Mina in the abbey, and when Harker shouts to Mina, Dracula sees them thinking Renfield had trailed them. He strangles Renfield and tosses him from the staircase, and is hunted by Van Helsing and Harker. Dracula is forced to sleep in his coffin, as sunrise has come, and is trapped. Van Helsing prepares a wooden stake while Harker searches for Mina. He finds her in a strange stasis, and when Dracula moans in pain when Van Helsing impales him, she returns to her old self. Harker leaves with Mina while Van Helsing stays. The sound of church bells is heard.

2. The Wolfman (1941): Upon the death of his brother, Larry Talbot returns from America to his ancestral home in Wales. He visits a gypsy camp with village girl Jenny Williams, who is attacked by Bela, a gypsy who has turned into a werewolf. Larry kills the werewolf but is bitten during the fight. Bela's mother tells him that this will cause him to become a werewolf at each full moon. Larry confesses his plight to his unbelieving father, Sir John, who then joins the villagers in a hunt for the wolf. Larry, transformed by the full moon, heads for the forest and a fateful meeting with both Sir John and Gwen.

3. Abbott & Costello Met Frankenstein (1948): Chick Young (Bud Abbott) and Wilbur Grey (Lou Costello) work as baggage clerks in LaMirada, Florida. When Wilbur mishandles two crates belonging to 'McDougal's House of Horrors' museum, Mr. McDougal (Frank Ferguson) demands that they deliver them in person so that they can be inspected by an insurance agent. McDougal boasts to Wilbur's girlfriend, Dr. Sandra Mornay (Lénore Aubert), that the crates contain "the remains of the original Count Dracula" (Bela Lugosi) and "the body of the Frankenstein Monster" (Glenn Strange). Dracula awakens, hypnotizes Wilbur, and spirits away his own coffin (and the revived Monster) before anyone else sees them. McDougal then arrives with the insurance agent. Finding the storage crates empty, he accuses the boys of theft and has them arrested. Mornay receives Dracula and the Monster at her island castle. Sandra is a gifted surgeon who has studied Dr. Frankenstein's notebooks, and has been posing as Wilbur's girlfriend as part of Dracula's scheme to replace the Monster's brutish brain with one more pliable — Wilbur's. Wilbur and Chick are bailed out of jail and mistakenly believe Sandra to be their benefactor. Actually Joan Raymond (Jane Randolph), who also seems to like Wilbur, is responsible for the good deed. Joan is secretly working for the company that is processing McDougal's insurance claim, and hopes Wilbur will lead her to the missing 'exhibits'. Meanwhile, Larry Talbot (Lon Chaney, Jr.) has taken the apartment across the hall from Wilbur and Chick. He has tracked Dracula and the Monster from Europe, and knows them to be alive. Talbot asks the boys to help him find and destroy the villains. Wilbur is amenable to the plan, but Chick thinks both of them are crazy. Talbot's desperate insistence that he be locked in his room before moonrise impresses Chick even less. But unbeknowst to Wilbur and Chick, Talbot transforms into the Wolf Man when the moon rises. When Wilbur brings over Talbot's luggage that he forgot at their apartment, he is stalked unsuspecting by the Wolf Man, and narrowly escapes without realizing he was even in danger. The following night, Wilbur, Chick and Joan go to Sandra's castle to pick her up for a costume ball. Sandra has told Wilbur to come alone, and receives the extra guests rather icily. While the ladies powder their noses, Wilbur answers a telephone call from someone wanting to speak to a 'Dr Lejos'. It is Talbot, who informs them that they are in the "house of Dracula". Wilbur reluctantly agrees to search the castle with Chick, and soon stumbles upon an underground passageway, complete with boat and dock. Behind a secret revolving wall, Wilbur again encounters Dracula and the Monster, but escapes. Wilbur's every attempt to get Chick to witness the villains fails - thanks to the revolving wall. Meanwhile, Joan has discovered Dr Frankenstein's notebook in Sandra's bureau, while Sandra has discovered Joan's employee I.D. in her bag. Suavely re-attired, Dracula (a.k.a. Dr. Lejos) is introduced by Sandra to Joan and the boys. He commends Sandra on her 'choice', expertly massaging the ego of Wilbur, who does not realize the true context of the remark. Also working at the castle is the naive Dr. Stevens (Charles Bradstreet), who questions some of the specialized equipment that has arrived. Dracula manages to deflect Dr. Stevens' questions by pairing him with Joan and shooing off the 'young people' to their ball. Sandra claims to have a sudden splitting headache and will not be able to attend the event. When Dracula consults Sandra in private, she admits that Dr. Stevens' questions, Joan's insurance credentials and Wilbur's inquiries have made her nervous, and wants to postpone the experiments. Impatient, Dracula asserts his will by hypnotizing her, and biting her in the throat. At the ball, the boys encounter Talbot and McDougal. Dracula arrives unexpectedly with Sandra, now under his spell. Dracula easily deflects Talbot's accusations, making the man appear disturbed. Dracula takes Joan for a dance while Sandra lures Wilbur to a quiet spot. Just before she can bite Wilbur's neck, Chick and Larry approach looking for Joan, and Sandra flees. As they search the grounds, Talbot transforms into the Wolf Man. Wilbur escapes, but the Wolf Man finds and injures McDougal. Noting that Chick has a wolf mask, McDougal concludes that Chick attacked him for revenge. (The fact that Chick is dressed like Talbot does not help the situation). Chick manages to slip away, only to witness Dracula hypnotizing Wilbur. Chick becomes somewhat hypnotized himself, while Wilbur and an entranced Joan are brought back to the castle by Dracula and Sandra. The next morning, Chick is still on the lam when he finds Larry, who confesses that he was McDougal's attacker. Now finally convinced, Chick agrees to help Larry rescue Wilbur and Joan. While Wilbur is being held in a pillory, Sandra finally explains to him the plan to transplant his brain into the Monster. She and Dracula leave him to prepare the Monster for the operation. Chick and Talbot arrive, free Wilbur, and head off to save Joan. Wilbur, meanwhile, is lured back to the castle by Dracula, who easily overpowers his mind. While the Monster receives an electrical boost in the lab, Sandra is about to open Wilbur's skull when Talbot storms in and casts her aside. Chick fends off Dracula with a chair, lifting it over his head to swing it at the vampire and inadvertently knocking out Sandra in the process. But just as Talbot is about to untie Wilbur, he once again transforms into the Wolf Man. Dracula returns to the scene, only to have a tug-of-war with the Wolf Man over Wilbur's gurney. Dracula flees, with the Wolf Man giving chase. Chick arrives to untie Wilbur just as the Monster, now at full power, breaks his own restraints and rises from his stretcher. Sandra attempts to order him back as Dracula can, but the Monster defiantly throws her through a window to her death. Dr. Stevens, meanwhile, has managed to find Joan and gets her to the boat. Dracula, in an attempt to escape, transforms into a bat, but the Wolf Man snares him and both fall over a balcony and into the rocky seas below. Joan abruptly wakes from her trance, while the boys escape the castle and head to the pier, with the Monster in pursuit. Once again Chick and Wilbur encounter Mr. McDougal, who still insists that he wants his exhibits. They loudly reply, "..here comes one of them now!" When the Monster appears, McDougal and his partner jump off the pier. Chick and Wilbur attempt to escape in a rowboat that is securely tied to the pier. The Monster throws barrels at them, in a series of near misses. Wilbur finally unties the boat, while Stevens and Joan arrive and set the pier ablaze. The Monster turns around and marches into the flames, succumbing as the pier collapses into the water. Just as Chick and Wilbur relax, they hear a disembodied voice (Vincent Price) and see a cigarette floating in the air: "Allow me to introduce myself, I'm the Invisible Man!" The boys jump off the boat and swim away as the Invisible Man lights his cigarette and laughs. (This scene presaged 1951's Abbott and Costello Meet the Invisible Man, though Price did not star, and all characters were different).

By Richard Moody

Kevin Bishop

I was watching the DVD called “Muppet Treasure Island.” As I was watching the movie I was also listening to music on my IPod.
I was listening to the album “Limp Bizkit – Significant Other” and one of my favourite songs was “Limp Bizkit – Break Stuff.”
Kevin Bishop played Jim Hawkins in the movie with Rizzo & Gonzo sailing to an Island and I thought he played a brilliant part in that movie. I didn’t realize he was English actor, writer and comedian, also I remembered he was in “Suzie Gold” in Summer Phoenix’s movie.
Summer Phoenix is related to Joaquin Phoenix and the late River Phoenix.

In 2006 I learned that was Kevin Bishop impersonated George Michael in Star Stories. He also impersonated Michael Douglas and Daisy Beaumont impersonated Catherine Zeta-Jones in Star Stories. I couldn’t give over laughing when I was watching “The Kevin Bishop Show” as these were sketches and impersonations. The show was related to his other show like “Star Stories & No Signal.”
Some of the best bits I liked were when Kevin plays “The Notorious B.F.G.” taken off from the movie “Notorious.” The other bits I like to watch are “Christopher Walken Night, Free Fall Maniacs, Macintyre Undercover, Andy Sugar, The Cry Factor & Gritty Bafta” also “Stephen Hawking – The Break-Up.” It seems to have been a long time since I use to watch Kevin Bishop on TV back in early 2000’s.

By Richard Moody

Top 10 Dragon Movies

1. Pete’s Dragon (1977): A young troubled boy named Pete and his guardian dragon Elliott elude the abusive Gogan family, who all use Pete as a slave instead of a loved child. When Pete can successfully run away from them with his dragon, he stumbles into the town of Passamaquaddy- an ocean front harbor town filled with superstitious fishermen, drunken hooligans and wary townsfolk. Pete's arrival does not mix well with the citizens, as his dragon Elliott accidentally causes town rioting and gossip among the town drunks about the dragon. Expecting to be an outcast yet again, Pete is taken in by the kind Nora who lives in a lighthouse with her father Lampy. While Pete bonds with Nora and Lampy, the townsfolk have not lowered their guards and suspicions about the dragon. And when Dr. Terminus arrives, a phony con artist posing as a doctor, he sees Elliott the Dragon as the ultimate profit to his fame. With Passamaquaddy filled with superstition, greed and lack of imagination, life will not be easy before the town can ever believe Pete's dragon

2. George and the Dragon (2004): George (James Purefoy), a knight returned from the Crusades, wishes to retire from soldiering, find a wife, and settle on "an acre of land with two head of cattle." To conclude the transaction, he agrees to help the land's owner King Edgaar )Simon Callow), whose daughter Princess Lunna (Piper Perabo) has disappeared. Also in search of the princess are Garth (Patrick Swayze), betrothed of the unwilling princess, and the mercenary El Cabillo, a title which passes through different men, and begins with the (uncredited) Val Kilmer.The princess has been kidnapped by a female dragon, which lays an egg and then seemingly dies a few days later. Rather than escaping, the princess decides to guard the egg, which she believes holds the last dragon on earth, whom she has named Smite. George's father Sir Robert (Paul Freeman), a previous friend of King Edgaar's and an amputee from his own previous run-in with the mother dragon, gives his son George a Dragon Horn, which "sounds a note only a dragon can hear".When George encounters the princess, he attempts to destroy the egg but she knocks him unconscious each time he tries. They then, in company with other companions, transport the egg by wagon back to her father. Along the way they stop at a convent, where Lunna's cousin is a nun, and a friar is an old friend of George's. The princess's betrothed, Garth, catches up with them at the convent, and she says she will not marry him because she does not love him. He then kidnaps her to force her to marry him, as it is part of his plan to take over the kingdom.Mercenaries arrive, led by the El Cabillo, who then reveals himself to the group as Tarik (Michael Clarke Duncan), a Moor who was a close friend of George's seen at the beginning of the film before the two part ways. But El Cabillo's men revolt against him, as they wish to capture the Princess and claim the reward. While they are all fighting, the baby dragon hatches, the monk Elmendorf is killed saving the Princess from a flying spear and King Edgaars men and Sir Robert's men arrive to join the fray. During this fight, Garth and George are fighting, but turn to find themselves facing a mutual enemy: the former second-in-command of El Cabillo, the leader of the mutiny. They fight him off together, while taking shots at each other. This conflagration is interrupted as the wall of the castle keep explodes across the screen. The mother dragon has returned.The combatants all flee. George is last to the door of the keep but debris prevents his escape. In the castle courtyard the former combatants all listen in silence as the dragon makes much noise within the keep. The Princess Lunna fears the worst for both George and the dragon she has named herself.Within the keep the mother dragon seems preoccupied with her child and George is largely frozen lest he attract the mother dragon's attention. George notices a lance protrudes from the mother dragons side. This is the lance of his father still lodged in the beast. George slowly approaches the lance and takes hold. He asks God's forgiveness for what he must do.The scene shifts to the castle courtyard a roar is heard. George emerges from the keep with a bloodied lance. Believing that George has slain the dragon the men are overjoyed. The Princess Lunna however is not and, overcome with sorrow for both the dragon's death and George's betrayal, flees on horseback. George pursues with King Edgaars horse and his blessing to marry his daughter. There is a chase along the shore of a large body of water but George is not alone in the chase. Garth has also pursued. Garth knocks George from his steed and they fight. Garth has the advantage and as he raises his sword for the killing blow the mother dragon leaps from the water and swallows Garth whole.The Princess Lunna realizes that George did not actually kill the dragons. They kiss and presumably live happily ever after

3. Dragonslayer (1981): A medieval kingdom called Urland is being terrorized by a dragon named Vermithrax Pejorative. An expedition led by a young man calling himself Valerian (Clarke) comes to the house of sorcerer Ulrich of Craggenmoor (Richardson), the only remaining wizard alive. They explain to the sorcerer that their king, Casiodorus (Peter Eyre), desperate to assuage the monster, offers it a virgin chosen in a lottery twice a year. The wizard foresaw their arrival and his own death but agrees to help. Before he can do so however, a brutish knight from Urland named Tyrian (Hallam), who has followed the expedition under orders from the king, turns up to intimidate him. Ulrich invites Tyrian to stab him to prove his magical powers, and dies instantly, to the horror of his young apprentice Galen Bradwarden (MacNicol) and elderly servant Hodge (Sydney Bromley). They burn Ulrich's body and place the ashes in a leather pouch.Galen decides to take the job himself when the wizard's magical amulet begins to obey his Latin incantations, and travels to Urland with the villagers and Hodge in tow. On the way, he accidentally discovers Valerian to be a female: her father passed her as a man to spare her the lottery. The poorer villagers suspect that the daughters of wealthy or powerful people are secretly kept out of it as well.In an effort to discourage the expedition, Tyrian kills Hodge from a distance using a bow. Galen witnesses the murder through a vision in water but is not fast enough to intervene.Arriving in Urland, Galen inspects the dragon's lair and attempts to seal its entrance by causing rocks to fall from the cliff. Manipulating the amulet inexpertly he nearly kills the whole delegation and himself but apparently succeeds in entombing the monster. The village celebrates in the evening, and Valerian abandons her manly disguise. However the feast is interrupted by Tyrian who drags Galen to the court of King Casiodorus. After seeing Galen's clumsy efforts at magic tricks, King Casiodorus guesses that he is not a real wizard and complains that his attack may have angered the dragon instead of killing it, as his own brother and predecessor once did. The king then confiscates the amulet and has Galen locked away. His daughter Elspeth (Chloe Salaman) comes to taunt Galen, but is shocked when he informs her of rumours the lottery is rigged. Casiodorus is unable to lie convincingly when she confronts him.Meanwhile the dragon has stormed its way through the rubble and emerges from its lair with a vengeance. An earthquake ensues, and Elspeth releases Galen in the confusion. Galen narrowly escapes on horseback, but without the amulet. The village priest, Brother Jacopus (Ian McDiarmid), leads his congregation to confront the dragon, denouncing it as the Devil, but the dragon kills him and then heads for the village.When Galen returns to the village, he finds that Vermithrax has already begun to retaliate by setting it on fire. Valerian and her father, Simon the blacksmith (Emrys James), conceal Galen from the king's soldiers. Galen still wants to kill the dragon, but must steal back the amulet from the king to do so.When the lottery begins anew, Princess Elspeth rigs the draw so that only her name can be chosen, in reparation. The King is appalled but unable to oppose her decision. When shortly afterwards Galen is caught searching the king's quarters for the amulet, the monarch returns it to him so that he might save Elspeth. Then, with Simon's help, Galen uses the amulet to enchant a heavy spear (dubbed Sicarious Dracorum, or "Dragonslayer") that the blacksmith has forged strong enough to pierce the dragon's armored hide. Meanwhile, Valerian gathers pieces of dragon hide and uses them to make Galen a shield. She makes a discovery while doing so: Vermithrax has a litter of kits.Galen sets out to kill the dragon and rescue the princess. Valerian thinks his plan is suicide, but gives him the shield. They admit to having feelings for each other.As Galen attempts to rescue Princess Elspeth by cutting her chains, he is confronted by Tyrian, who demands that the sacrifice be made to save the kingdom. The knight is considerably more skilled at combat, but Galen surprises him by cutting with the supernaturally sharp Dragonslayer right though a wooden pole, spearing him. The Princess however, instead of fleeing, has descended into the dragon's cave to her death. Galen follows her and finds the young dragons feasting upon her corpse. He kills them with considerable difficulty then finds Vermithrax nesting by an underground lake of fire. He manages to wound the monster but the spear is broken and only Valerian's shield saves him from incineration. Vermithrax loses Galen but finds her children's bodies and flies away to rampage.After his failure to kill Vermithrax, Valerian convinces Galen to leave the village with her, with her father's blessing. Simon believes the time for magic and dragons is over; like other villagers he is turning to the newly arrived religion of Christianity. As the two lovers board a boat together however, the amulet gives Galen a vision that explains his teacher's final wishes. Ulrich had asked that his ashes be spread over "burning water", and Galen realizes that the wizard had planned the whole thing. He was too frail to make the journey himself, so had his servants make the trip for him by carrying his ashes. Galen returns to the cave, spreads the ashes and speaks an incantation, and the wizard is resurrected from the flames of the burning lake. Despite the disappointment of realizing he had no powers after all, but was merely channeling those of his master via the amulet, Galen is overjoyed to have him returned. Ulrich however reveals that he is only back for a short time and that Galen must destroy the amulet when the time is right. The wizard then transports himself to a mountaintop and attracts the dragon's attention. The sun is eclipsed. After a brief battle, the monster grabs the old man and flies away with him. Galen crushes the amulet with a rock, causing the wizard to explode and obliterate the dragon.Inspecting the wreckage, the villagers credit God with the victory, while the king arrives and drives a sword into the dragon's broken carcass to claim the glory for himself. No one thanks Galen or praises the late wizard's sacrifice.As Galen and Valerian leave Urland together, he confesses that he misses both Ulrich and the amulet. But then he says, out loud, "I just wish we had a horse." As if on cue, a white horse appears to take the incredulous lovers away.

4. Dungeons & Dragons (2000): The story concerns an evil wizard named Profion (played by Jeremy Irons) who attempts to control red dragons with a powerful artifact, and overthrow idealistic young Empress Savina of Izmer (Thora Birch). The young heroes destined to stop this cataclysmic event are Marina Pretensa (Zoe McLellan), an eager but inept apprentice wizard, and Ridley Freeborn and Snails (Justin Whalin and Marlon Wayans), two thieves who happen to be at the wrong place at the wrong time. They are accompanied on their impromptu quest by the hard-drinking and equinophobic dwarf Elwood Gutworthy (Lee Arenberg), and the mysterious dark-skinned elven ranger, Norda (Kristen Wilson) sent by Empress Savina first to stop the heroes, but later to assist them. They are pursued along the way by Damodar (Bruce Payne); Profion's head enforcer, and leader of Izmer's elite fighting unit, the Crimson Brigade. As part of their quest, the heroes are required to recover a magic gemstone from the Master of the Antius City Thieves's Guild, Xilus (Richard O'Brien). Ridley completes a maze to gain the "eye of the dragon".

5. Reign Of Fire (2002): During Underground construction in London around the year 2008, a huge, hibernating dragon is discovered and springs to life, instantly incinerating all construction workers with its fiery breath. The only survivor is 12-year-old Quinn Abercromby, whose mother (Alice Krige) was chief of the construction crew that he was visiting after school. The dragon escapes, and soon thousands of them work their way across Europe and eventually the rest of the world, burning everything and multiplying at an exponential rate. Brief newspaper and TV news accounts reveal that among other things, Paris was burned by the dragons but terrorists were initially suspected, an attack in Kenya kills dozens of people, paleontologists discover dragon fossils in Antarctica during Arctic heating, scientists prove the dragons are a separate species that coexisted with the dinosaurs, and who were responsible for the dinosaurs' extinction. Scientists infer that when the dragons began to starve, they went into hibernation until the Earth could replenish itself. The United Nations calls an emergency session after a large dragon nest is discovered in Pakistan. By late 2010 (as the news accounts also reveal), the world powers begin to use Nuclear weapons which only hastens the destruction of the planet, causing a nuclear holocaust, and soon all semblance of organized government and society falls apart, save for small communities of survivors. Twelve years later, in 2020, the adult Quinn (played by Christian Bale) leads a small community of survivors living in a medieval stone castle in Northumberland. Their hope is to outlast the dragons, wait until they die out again (as they presumably did several times before) and go into hibernation. Unfortunately, the people are beginning to starve while waiting for their crops to ripen. Eddie Stax (David Kennedy) and his children attempt to leave the castle for food, but they actually lure a dragon to them. One of Eddie's children's friends, and one of his children, are killed by the dragon, and most of the crops are burned. Days later, a team of American volunteers arrive, led by Denton Van Zan (Matthew McConaughey) and bringing a Chieftain tank and an Agusta A109 helicopter, piloted by Alex Jensen (Izabella Scorupco). Van Zan and his heavily armed band of 200 soldiers have devised an elaborate tracking system to hunt and kill dragons. Mistrusting, but needing each other, Quinn and Van Zan work together and kill the dragon that destroyed the crop. The inhabitants of the castle celebrate the victory, only to be chastised by Van Zan, who is disgusted by their behaviour, having lost three of his men in the battle. Afterwards Van Zan and Alex tell Quinn that all dragons his unit have encountered so far are female. Their hypothesis is that there is only one male worldwide. Alex was said to have discovered this two years before, while working out how they breathe fire (Apparently, and provingly, the dragons secrete two separate chemicals in glands in their mouth, and then emit a flammable gas which sparks a giant explosion). Van Zan orders his soldiers to pick the best of Quinn's men at the castle, pressing them into service in Van Zan's band. This enrages Quinn and he engages Van Zan in a fight; however, Van Zan is a battle-tempered and hardened soldier and he begins to beat Quinn mercilessly until others run to pull him off of Quinn. Made to look weak in front of his community, Quinn becomes angry and shouts at everyone that are now willingly joining Van Zan that the dragon will follow them and then backtrack their trail to find out where they came from. He warns that the castle will be destroyed if this happens. Also Quinn is frightened because he has seen the male dragon before: it was the one that killed his mother and all of the construction workers at the beginning of the movie. Van Zan and his unit go to London to find the single male dragon and discover a road block. Van Zan then sends Alex to find a new way around. The male dragon soon arrives and incinerates nearly the entire number of Van Zan's soldiers, save for Alex, Van Zan, and a wounded soldier. Van Zan realizes the mistake he made in trying to engage the dragon, as it had killed almost everyone in his unit within a few seconds (with just 'one pass'). Quinn's warning is realized, as the male dragon follows their route back to the castle and attacks it. Some castle inhabitants successfully hide in an underground shelter that is designed to survive the intense heat. Quinn's close friend, Creedy (Gerard Butler), attempts to bring more castle inhabitants down to the shelter but is killed by a follow-up attack that also seals the shelter entrance. Defeated, Van Zan returns to the castle, freeing Quinn and the surviving children from the castle's shelter. Quinn tells Van Zan that they and Alex will hunt the male dragon in London. They use the helicopter to follow the River Thames to the city, unnoticed, where they see that the dragons are beginning to starve and are resorting to cannibalism. Van Zan's plan is to fire a magnesium and C4 explosive charge, placed on a crossbow bolt, into the dragon's chest during the brief moment it exposes its chest as it inhales, drawing air to produce fire. During the battle, Van Zan is unable to destroy the dragon using his crossbow and attacks the dragon with no more than his battle-axe in a head-on leap. He is killed when the dragon swallows him in mid-air. Quinn and Alex are able to lure the dragon to street level, and Quinn destroys it with his own crossbow by firing the explosive bolt into the dragon's mouth. At least three months after the male dragon is slain, Quinn and Alex are seen erecting a radio tower and receive a transmission from another group of survivors in France. The sun is shining brightly, and it is said that there have been no dragon sightings for three months. The now hopeful Quinn resolutely dedicates himself to rebuilding civilization, undaunted by the remote possibility of the dragons returning, stating, "They'll burn, and we'll build."


6. The Last Dragon (2004): The story begins 65 million years ago, sometime in the late Cretaceous period. A Tyrannosaurus rex is stalking a creature that has been raiding its territory and food sources. The creature is revealed to be a juvenile Prehistoric dragon. The T. rex had not eaten for days and prepares to attack the young dragon: in an attempt to defend itself, the dragon extends its wings to give the illusion that it is much larger than it really is, but the T. rex is not convinced and continues to advance. The young dragon then tries another tactic: it utters a deafening, piercing scream that carries for miles. Although the screech disorientates the T. rex, hurting its sensitive ears, the attack only goads the dinosaur on. Suddenly, the dragon's mother swoops down from the sky to the rescue and attacks the T. rex, slashing the dinosaur's skull with its talons. During the short fight, both animals cause serious injuries to the other; the T. rex breaks the female dragon's wing and in retaliation, the dragon breathes a jet of fire at the Tyrannosaurus's face. The Tyrannosaurus limps away with fatal burns, while the female dragon is left unable to hunt for herself or her offspring. 65 million years in the future, at the London Museum of Natural History and Science, England. Dr. Jack Tanner, a young palaeontologist, who has been fascinated with dragons since childhood is introduced. Upon discovering talon marks on a skull of a T. rex, Dr. Tanner shares his theory about the creature that caused the damage to the skull with other palaeontologists. He tells them that the damage was caused by a creature unknown to science. However, he says that it was not the talons that killed it; a blast of fire, precisely aimed at the head was the cause of death, as evidenced by carbon deposits discovered down both sides of the skull. Unfortunately, his colleagues aren't convinced and Tanner's academic reputation is left in tatters. In his office Dr. Tanner studies photographs taken of a new discovery at Romania. Several human corpses, dating from the Middle Ages, were found in a cave in the Carpathian Mountains while some straying skiers were being rescued. Along with the bodies, a carcass of an unidentified animal was discovered. The Romanian authorities ask the museum to investigate the find. Most of the professors at the museum want nothing to do with the specimen, but Tanner asks if he can go on behalf of the museum. The museum agrees and Tanner prepares to travel to Romania, under one condition- if it is a hoax, they leave immediately: if it's of interest, the body is shipped back to London. Tanner, along with two associates, arrive to discover that the remains have been moved off the mountain, Tanner wonders what evidence may have been lost in the process. The three scientists enter the shed where the carcass is being housed and begin analysing the specimen. After initial analysis, Tanner notes that the creature has a scaly hide and a tail, suggesting a reptile, but also has wings and foot talons, characteristics of powered flight. When he finds the wings, he wonders if the creature could really fly, as its wingspan is too small to allow flight. After further investigation, Tanner finds that the bones of the creature have a honeycomb structure, which would allow for flight, being hollow but strong. Internal scans of the creature show a huge heart, needed to pump oxygen-rich blood to the chest muscles during hard work, and two bladder-like structures. Tanner suggests that they could be gas bladders: the gas contained inside is hydrogen, which is lighter than air and would give the creature extra lift. He tells his associates that the creature has everything needed for flight but that they don't add up. Back in the Cretaceous, two weeks after the fight with the T. rex, the mother dragon is dead, having succumbed to infection; the starving juvenile must now teach itself how to fly, while evading the scavengers seeking to feed on his mother's body: at present, only pterosaurs, but more dangerous creatures will come. The juvenile begins to eat the only food source available; its mother's carcass. While eating, an aged male dragon arrives to feast on the mother. The juvenile, sensing danger, flees, but the older dragon, seeking fresh meat, gives chase. The juvenile flees into a forest where the adult male cannot fly. Body working overtime, the juvenile begins to make hydrogen, essential for flight, as the adult is gaining on the juvenile, nature kicks in and the juvenile regurgitates the contents of its stomach to remove excessive weight and takes to the air, narrowly escaping the adult male. In the present, Tanner inspects inside the mouth of the creature and declares it a carnivore, but also notices molars and wonders about their purpose in a carnivore. He also notes a fleshy palate at the back of the throat and wonders if it could have been used to prevent backdraft from fire. Noting that the mouth shows no evidence of ever having been exposed to fire, he reconsiders. He theorizes that dragons breathing fire is biologically possible, explaining that the Bombardier beetle can emit liquid at a temperature of 200°C. The prehistoric dragon, now a young adult, is preparing to fight an Alpha male for territory and mates. Before it goes to fight the other adult male it eats rock rich in minerals, which is found at the heart of every dragon territory. The young adult ventures into the territory of an old Alpha male. The two fight and the young male succeeds in winning. Tanner says that to create fire, they need fuel, oxygen and a source of ignition. He then realises that he had already found fuel inside the flight bladders, hydrogen and methane, both combustible and lighter than air. He then takes samples of the crushed rocks found on the molars of the creature to discover they are rich in platinum, which can start a fire in a mixture of hydrogen and oxygen. Tanner is now convinced that his theories have been correct and the creature is a dragon. Tanner begins to wonder how dragons survived the K/T Event, when other large land-dwelling creatures like the dinosaurs didn't. The narrator then explains that at the K/T event, a meteor the size of Mount Everest smashed into the Earth, wiping out nearly all life on the planet. Sharks, Coelacanths, Turtles and Crocodiles all survived and all had one thing in common: they were all marine species. Tanner then remembers that crocodiles also have a false palate like the one found in their dragon, and deduces that it is an evolutionary relic passed down from a marine ancestor. The narrator continues to inform us that the land dwelling, Prehistoric dragon was wiped out, but explains that the Prehistoric dragon was not the only dragon species alive at the time of the K/T Event. There was also a Marine dragon, a cousin of the Prehistoric dragon, both descended from a common ancestor. It is explained that the Marine dragon lived in the sea and its the flight bladders became swim bladders allowing extra buoyancy, the wings became vestigial and served as fins, and the large tail became a rudder. As the land recovered from the impact of the meteor, some dragons returned to shallower waters and eventually made the transition back to land. Tanner suggests that the legends of sea serpents were actually recollections of true encounters with Marine dragons. One of his associates discovers that a fossil of a false palate had been found in bamboo forest, in China. Tanner theorizes that the Marine dragon came back onto land and evolved into a new species in the bamboo forests of Asia. The dragons of Chinese mythology are low-slung, elongated and slender; all characteristics of a body recently adapted from water. But Tanner wonders if this would have been suitable for living in a forest. We are taken back 50,000 years to the bamboo forests of China. Here we are shown the newly evolved Forest dragon, adapted to its new environment. We follow the dragon as it stalks its prey, and discover that the dragon has evolved a unique adaptation, mimicry. By controlling the flow of gasses out of its bladder, the dragon is able to mimic animals in distress. The vestigial wings, are too small to allow flight, the dragon only able to glide small distances; but the buoyancy of the gas bladders let it tread less heavily and thus quieter when stalking prey. The dragons also use their natural fire breathing abilities to cook their captured prey, as the fur on some of its prey is not easily digested. The dragon succeeds in dealing with several mammalian intruders to its territory, including wild pigs and tigers, but in the distance, another species watches the dragon's use of fire with inquisitive eyes, a species that will turn the dragon's own weapon on it: humans. In the present, Tanner, after theorising about the Marine and Forest dragons, begins to wonder what other dragon species may have evolved within this family of creature. Tanner's associate shows him something strange on the monitor, bone fragments. He thinks they may be ribs, but the ribs are intact. The three scientists lift the wings of the dragon to discover that it has four legs and two wings. Tanner is amazed saying, "No vertebrate that ever lived had six limbs". They check the DNA, knowing that if it is not a hoax then the limbs will show up in the DNA. The DNA test shows that the dragon has a genetic adaptation in the gene responsible for creating limbs. Tanner tells us that World mythology was correct all the time, all depictions of dragons show them to have six limbs. He cites the different depictions of dragons as evidence of a whole family of dragons existing all over the world. He dubs their carcass the Mountain dragon, and wonders if this is the dragon in European folk history.As the three scientists prepare the dragon carcass to be packed up and shipped to England, they perform one final check to see if they missed anything. They find the tip of a broken sword buried in its heart, Tanner goes to where the Romanian scientists are studying the human corpses and find the sword that the tip came from. The narrator tells us the dragons survived until the emergence of humans, who used the dragon's fire against it. These encounters between humans and dragons are recorded in folklore throughout the world. Tanner discovers that the human bodies show evidence of carbonisation, showing that the bodies were burnt, but their dragon specimen never breathed fire. As the Romanian authorities come for the dragon, Tanner studies x-rays that had been taken, he sees that the ovaries of the dragon show no follicular activity, and concludes that their dragon was a baby. The three scientists travel to the cave, hoping to find a nest. We are taken back over 500 years, to the Carpathian Mountains in the Middle Ages. Dragons have been driven to live in remote places of Europe by encroaching human. A female Mountain dragon is searching for a mate: she marks her territory with her scent. The female is near the end of her season. The scientists arrive at the cave and find rocks that have been scorched in symmetrical lines. They scan inside the cave using echo scanning. As the female returns to her den, a male dragon arrives, having travelled to Romania from his territory in the Atlas Mountains, and the female goes to him. Instinct then takes over as the two begin their courtship ritual, where they fly to a great height then freefall together, only pulling apart at the last instant. Inside the cave, Tanner finds a nest, containing egg shell fragments and one intact egg. Back in the 1400s we see the female dragon, using her fire to incubate the eggs inside the nest. The male returns from hunting, with no food. Instead, he brings another rock for the nest. The female, now being very protective of her nest, allows the male to enter the cave and take care of the nest. As the female takes her turn to hunt, the male enters the nest and places the rock on the nest. But instead of keeping the temperature at a high level, he lowers the temperature of the eggs in order for the eggs to develop into all females, as another male may be a rival for him; the resulting imbalance in sex ratio would have been tolerable in a healthy population but is a severe risk in a species which is now nearly extinct. The female returns from the hunt and finds the male not attending to the eggs. She quickly senses that something isn't right inside the nest. She finds out that the temperature in the nest is dangerously low and attempts to raise it again: one infant dragon has already died, but the other can still be saved. The male senses trouble and makes his escape.The adult female has been stealing livestock from local villages in order to feed her young daughter, despite the risk of provoking the villagers. As the adult female begins to teach her daughter the secret of fire, a pair of local knights arrive to kill the dragon. They find that the young female cannot defend herself because she cannot breathe fire yet, and kill her. The adult female returns to the lair too late and finds her daughter dead. One of the knights is soon killed by the enraged female, while the other narrowly manages to escape. With her daughter now dead, the adult female comes back into heat and begins trying to attract another mate. As winter comes, the female hibernates. More warriors (mercenaries paid by the locals) come to the den and catch her with her gas bladder nearly empty due to hibernation and attack her. She fights bravely, cutting down the mercenaries until only one man is left, badly wounded. As she rears above the man to crush him, he holds a spear upright. As she fatally impales herself on the spear, her toppling corpse crushes the last mercenary beneath her.In the present, Tanner discovers a chamber. He enters it and finds the adult female. Back at the museum in England, Tanner shows the specimens to his colleagues: the legends of dragons were real, but had been twisted

7. The Reluctant Dragon (1941): Humorist Robert Benchley attempts to find Walt Disney to ask him to adapt a short story about a gentle dragon who would rather recite poetry than be ferocious. Along the way, he is given a tour of Walt Disney Studios, and learns about the animation process. Humorist Robert Benchley visits the Disney Studios to sell Walt on the idea of animating the story of The Reluctant Dragon. While evading an officious young studio guide, Benchley stumbles into various studio activities and departments, including an art class, a sound effects session, the multiplane camera studio (at which point he notices the film has switched to Technicolor), the paint lab, a storyboard session for the "Baby Weems" segment, a movieola screening of the Goofy cartoon "How to Ride a Horse", and finally catches up with Walt in a screening room just as he's previewing the studio's latest film... The Reluctant Dragon!


8. Dragon Wars (2007): As a young boy, Ethan Kendrick (Cody Arens) encounters in a shop, owned and operated by antiques dealer Jack (Robert Forster), a mysterious reptilian scale that shines with a blue light. This light projects itself upon Ethan. Seeing this, Jack pretends to suffer a heart attack and sends Ethan's father, who is selling him an antique dagger, to get help. Ethan then listens as Jack narrates a story (largely shown in flashback) explaining the scale. Jack, having told this story, reveals that he is himself Bochun, and that Ethan is Haram, reborn to protect the Yuh-Yi-Joo from Burakai, who is soon to return. Jack gives Ethan a medallion formerly belonging to Haram and reveals that the Yuh-Yi-Joo is a girl named Sarah whom Ethan will find in Los Angeles. Ethan accepts the medallion and the responsibility of caring for the Yuh-Yi-Joo. Nineteen years later, Ethan has become a television news reporter, in which role he discovers that Buraki has returned. He then inquires into the news office's database for the location of a Los Angeles-based girl named Sarah, who is either nineteen or twenty years old and bears a dragon-shaped mark on her shoulder. His friend Bruce, despite his disbelief, helps Ethan search. The Sarah that Ethan wants, one Sarah Daniels, sees Ethan's news report and is terrified by the tracks Buraki has left. She hurries home and surrounds herself with protective symbols, which she does not understand but which she feels are the only tools she has by which to protect herself. Her friend Brandy, concerned but not quite understanding Sarah's problem, takes her to a tavern for a drink, hoping to distract her from fear. Sarah, still afraid, leaves the tavern and is attacked outside by three thugs, who are driven away by Jack. Word of her escape later reaches Ethan through another reporter. Buraki and his army continue to search for Sarah, attracting the attention of the U.S. Government and the notice of at least one civilian. Ethan eventually finds Sarah at a hospital. Although the hospital's receptionist refuses him entry, a doctor later revealed to be Jack in disguise allows him into Sarah's room. Ethan is about to explain the truth of their situation to Sarah when Buraki attacks the hospital, intent on capturing her. Ethan and Sarah flee in a car driven by Bruce, with Buraki in pursuit. They are stopped by a commander of the Atrox Army, but eventually escape him due to another intervention by a disguised Jack. Ethan subsequently explains the story to Sarah, who accepts it as true and Ethan as her protector. He then takes her to a practitioner of hypnotherapy, who helps her revive the memories of her previous life as the unsuccessful Yuh-Yi-Joo. The energy released by her body during the hypnotherapy session attracts Buraki, who destroys the hypnotherapist's house and follows Sarah and Ethan. In a car, Ethan and Sarah flee to a more densely-populated area of the city, where they meet with Bruce in a restaurant. When Bruce has left Ethan alone, Jack warns Ethan that the Yuh-Yi-Joo must fulfill her destiny. Ethan, defiant as a result of his new attachment to Sarah, demands autonomy. Moments later, Buraki finds Ethan and Sarah again. They attempt to escape him, resulting in a chase scene that culminates atop the U.S. Bank Tower. There, Buraki is distracted by several military helicopters, who proceed to attack him. Buraki then summons the Atrox Army to help him. This legion enters the city and advances through the streets, engaging the United States Army and the Los Angeles Police Department in battle. Here, the Atrox Army is shown to consist of black-armored, humanoid warriors; therapod-like cavalry called "Shaconnes"; small, winged western dragons called "Bulcos"; and huge, slow-moving reptiles identified in the dialogue as "Dawdlers", who carry powerful rocket launchers on their backs. The Atrox Army proceeds, crushing the American soldiers and their weapons while suffering moderate casualties. Ethan and Sarah are taken to an empty garage by two FBI Agents. The senior agent reveals that he has researched the legend of the Imoogi, and attempts to kill Sarah so that Buraki and his army would depart for another five centuries. The junior agent then kills his partner and gives the fugitives his car whereby to escape. Ethan and Sarah then enter the rural countryside in the car. Sarah, having given up hope of escape, remarks that wherever she goes, the Imoogi will find her. Ethan, who seems bent on saving her both from Buraki and from the Good Imoogi for whom she is destined, refuses to admit this. Sarah pauses, then tells him that she is now twenty years old, revealing herself to have come into her full power as Yuh-Yi-Joo. Immediately, the Bulcos knock the car over and capture Sarah. When Ethan regains conciousness, he finds himself tied to a pillar which stands before a menacing fortress in the midst of a darkened desert landscape. In front of it lies an altar from which Sarah is to be sacrificed to Buraki. Buraki is about to consume Sarah when Ethan's pendant unleashes a light that destroys all of Buraki's legions, though not the Atrox Leader or Buraki himself.Ethan attempts to retrieve Sarah, but is halted by the Atrox Leader, with whom he engages in combat. The Atrox Leader is killed by Ethan's pendant when he inadvertently strikes it with his sword. A revived Buraki knocks Ethan down and attempts to eat Sarah, but is unexpectedly attacked by the Good Imoogi. Ethan and Sarah then watch as Buraki and the Good Imoogi battle. Ultimately, Buraki wins. He then approaches Sarah, who offers herself to him. Just as Buraki is about to absorb Sarah's power, she redirects it into the open mouth of the Good Imoogi, who is instantly revived and continues to fight Buraki, transforming as he does into a gigantic Korean dragon. The two struggle for a few moments until the Good Imoogi, now the Celestial Dragon, disengages from Buraki, flies to the top of the latter's fortress, and burns him to ashes by firing a fireball down his throat.Having slain Buraki, the Celestial Dragon approaches Ethan, allowing Sarah's spirit to speak with him. Sarah, now a fully fledged Yuh-Yi-Joo, requests Ethan not to be sad, adding that she will love him for all eternity. The Celestial Dragon then takes Sarah back into his body and ascends to the heavens. Jack appears behind Ethan, reminds him that the two of them "have been given a great honor", and dissolves into dust. Ethan, recognizing that he will never see Jack again, whispers "Good-bye, old man". His own fate is undisclosed.

9. Eragon (2006): Eragon is a farm boy who is 17 years of age and lives in a small village named Carvahall in the fictional and magical country of Alagaësia that contains dragons and other fictional creatures. While hunting, he finds a dragon egg the size of a small cat from which hatches a blue dragon named Saphira. Eragon decides to keep Saphira a secret, but a pair of magical creatures, The Razac, are sent by Galbatorix, the King of Alagaesia to find Eragon and the dragon. This causes Ergaon to flee his home but when he returns he finds out his uncle Garrow has been killed by the Razac and so sets out on a journey to avenge him. Accompanied by a wise storyteller named Brom, Eragon and Saphira take up the legacy of legendary Dragon Riders. He learns magic, swordfighting, and dragon-riding to fulfil the legend of the dragon riders and his destiny: to help the Varden overthrow the Empire and its tyrant king, Galbatorix.

10. Dragon Storm (2004): Meteorites falling from the sky during a meteor shower act as transportation for dragons traveling within. The dragons wreak havoc on the surrounding medieval countryside and two rival monarchs, King Fastrad (John Rhys-Davies) and King Wednesbury (John Hansson) must join forces to face the threat. A messenger arrives to warn King Fastrad who does not believe him, until the dragons make their appearance and destroy his fiefdom. Fastrad and his top aids then head to the fiefdom of King Wednesbury, ostensibly to seek aid, but planning to overthrow him. Along the way they meet Silas (Maxwell Caulfield), a hunter who agrees, for a price, to escort and protect the party from the countryside's other dangers. They reach Wednesbury and Fastrad falsely accuses Silas of being a poacher in order to wiggle out of the debt. Silas is joined by the Mystic Scholar Ling (Woon Young Park), the vengence-seeking Remmegar {Richard Wharton), and King Wednesbury's warrior daughter Medina (Angel Boris). One of the meteors was damaged when it fell, killing its dragon passenger. Ling studies the dead beast and the party decides to set off to hunt the remaining dragons using a giant catapult/crossbow. While they are gone, Fastrad continues plotting against Wednesbury, and blackmails Wednesbury's aide to kill Silas.

By Richard Moody

Richard Moody's Complete Childhood 2 Orson Welles DVD's

1. Don Quixote (1992): Over the course of his lifetime, the legendary director Orson Welles (1915-1985) was forced to leave many of his grander movie-making projects unfinished, generally for want of sustained financial backing. Each successive unfinished effort generated buzz throughout the worshipful film community that only served to brighten the luster of his legend. Thus it was only a matter of time before one of his many admirers bought the rights to the fairly extensive footage he shot for his film Don Quixote (begun in 1955) and attempted to edit it into some semblance of a finished film, based on research into Welles' stated intentions and notes. A fuzzy, out-of-focus print of the resulting film was shown at the 1992 Cannes Film Festival, and it was immediately deemed as a hashed-up job, a travesty bordering on the sacrilegious, by the assembled deeply interested and knowledgeable viewers. Their criticism focused mainly on issues that ordinary viewers would deem excessively technical, but the gist of it was that this was a very un-Wellesian use of Welles' footage. However, the film does offer viewers a unique opportunity to see some of the master's mature story ideas onscreen. In addition to footage from the film, the movie is also a kind of semi-documentary homage to Welles, showing footage of the famed director at work.


2. It’s All True (1993): Both a documentary and a unique exercise in film restoration, It's All True tells the complex story of Orson Welles' ill-fated attempts to make an anthology film about the life and culture of South America and concludes with a reconstruction of one of Welles' unfinished segments, edited together from rediscovered original footage. The idea for Welles' South American project was conceived by the American government as a sort of cultural exchange to improve relations with Latin America. Using interviews and period footage, the filmmakers relate how the project quickly turned sour, as both the Brazilian government and RKO studio executives objected to Welles early footage; indeed, thanks to a local witch doctor, the film could literally be said to be cursed. Although Welles persevered, RKO eventually withdrew support from the project. The failures of It's All True and The Magnificent Ambersons, which was damaged by studio cuts made while Welles was overseas, are thought by many to have irreparably damaged the director's Hollywood career. It's All True concludes with a partial reconstruction of the "Four Men on a Raft" segment, in which Welles tells the true story of a dramatic, thousand-mile raft journey by four Brazilian peasants.


By Richard Moody & Nell Moody