TF: Mmm…Well.you’ve done some cartoon voice work yourself. Didn’t you play a part in Kevin Smith’s Clerks Cartoon?

PD: For some reason, Kevin thought I could act, so he kept sticking me in to do voices, I did George Lucas’ voice in the trial Episode ”

TF: Where’d you learn that one?

PD: He’s my old boss, I used to write and produce the Ewoks and Droids shows, way back when. It was one of my first jobs I ever had.

Time for an update.

There are a few irons in the fire, some of which are out of left field, but very welcome. Look for two cyber-related announcements in the coming weeks that should delight many and tickle the fancies of a few.

Also, for the ‘Green Arrow’ curious: I’ve turned in issue four of the new series, and I’ve seen the completed pencils of issue one, which Phil and Ande did a bang-up job on. It’s going to be one sweet book. Two more scripts get submitted, and DC starts soliciting for the book.

On the flick front: I’ll be turning in draft five next week. With all the Cons and various stuff, I got side-tracked. The thought now is to start shooting in December. More on that as it develops.

I understand I’ll be seeing some of you at Lincoln Center in a couple of weeks. I’m honored I was asked to be a part of the program, and hopefully, we’ll make it worth the price of admission.

For any of the intrepid heading up to Toronto, the ‘Vulgar’ screening is going to kick much ass. We’re throwing a huge shindig up there after the screening, and I’ll be introducing a screening ‘Jaws’ the day before. Should be very cool.

Coming up in the Rolling Stones ‘Hot’ issue, I’ve got a brief interview with Stan Lee. Worth checking out.

The ‘Dogma’ DVD is going to be HUGE. The menus and animation sounds cool, and the packaging is sweet – ‘Fight Club’ sweet. It’s still slated for January.

The ‘Clerks’ Cartoon DVD is shaping up nicely as well. That’ll be late January.

We’re going to be offering a nifty new item very soon: a box set for your Askew DVD’s. They should be done and ready in a few weeks. We’ll have pics to show you soon.

That short I mentioned once before is now a no-go, but we may be shooting it during VA5. More on that as it develops.

And that’s about it for now.

Well I went to the Almost Famous screening last night with a reception afterwards for scmoozing. (Not too often there’s an open bar at a movie screening. Too bad I don’t drink.) Cameron Crowe was supposed to be there but apparently pre-production on his latest got moved up and he was in L.A. instead. Major bummer there. And if any of the cast was there, they were well-hidden so my plans to become Anna Paquin’s love slave were foiled. I was also kept from meeting Jason Lee and making an ass out of myself by being a fanboy. Damn and blast! Cool people I spotted included Chris Cornell and Kim Thayil, both formerly of Soundgarden.

The movie was excellent. I’m sure you already know the plot so I won’t bore you with a retelling. There are a lot of great moments in the film and it was great to see the two young actors (Fugit and Hudson) be able to hold their own on the screen when there wasn’t anyone else around. Of course Jason Lee was excellent and it’s getting easier and easier to see him as being able to hold an entire film, like say Fletch, on his own. Rather, I already believed that, but I think mainstream audiences will be better able to accept it now…. I’m sure Lee fans will want to see more of him on the screen but it felt about right to me. Better you come away from a film wanting more instead of wanting less.

The audience, which was all local media and promotions people – no “regular public” – was enthusiastic and everyone I spoke to afterward enjoyed the film. I think that anyone who enjoys Cameron Crowe and has an idea what the film is about won’t go away disapointed. Jeffrey Wells called it a Best-Picture contender which seems a little optimistic to me, but here’s hoping.

Tue, Sep 12 9:30pm HBO East
Thu, Sep 21 10:30pm HBO East
Fri, Sep 22 11:00am HBO East
Mon, Sep 25 12:40am HBO East
Sat, Sep 30 3:30pm HBO East

Crowed Out

Everyone says I’ve written too much about Almost Famous, so this is the last time until I get into it again at the Toronto Film Festival, about a month from now. And here’s the hot news: the Almost Famous DVD is going to be a corker. According to writer/director/producer Cameron Crowe, it’ll have two versions of the film – the two-hour, two-minute version that’ll hit theaters on September 15, and a two-hour, 40-minute version on the disc’s flip side that’ll be called Untitled. I got this from Crowe himself last weekend.

The longer Untitled version should be a helluva treat, with all kinds of good stuff that had to be cut out for the theatrical release. I’m told it’s the version that Crowe and others on his Vinyl Films staff prefer. I know about these missing elements because some of them are in the script I first read in May 1999 (and reviewed that month in my Mr. Showbiz column).

Sometime between now and the film’s opening day I’ll probably run some of these cut scenes in the column.As the film’s associate producer Scott Martin told me last week, “There’s so much great material that wasn’t included [in the theatrical version].”

Last weekend I went to the Almost Famous junket in San Diego on DreamWorks’ dime. I saw the film a second time and enjoyed it just as much as my first encounter. I still think it doesn’t quite coagulate at the very end due to the omission of a certain scene, but this is the difference between a grade of 93% (an A-minus) and a grade of 98% (an A-plus).

It was a welcome sight seeing my screener copy of “Sci-Fi’s Exposure: A Tribute To Star Wars” on the doorstep when I got back from work yesterday. I had to drop everything I had planned to sit down and watch it. The special’s been crafted as a Star Wars fan’s dream, containing 5 segments of some of the best and most famous tributes to Star Wars put on film.
Best of all, it’s hosted by Kevin Smith, who gave tribute to his childhood love of Star Wars by throwing references into all 4 of his films (and counting!). Kevin intros and outtros both the show itself and each of the 5 short film segments that Exposure showcases. Best of all, the crew makes perfect use of their location, the interior and exterior of Kev’s Red Bank comic shop, Jay & Silent Bob’s Secret Stash. Those of you who’ve never had the pleasure of going inside will want to watch this over and over again with the pause button handy to take in the many props in the background from all of the View Askew flicks.
Kevin’s hosting duties really shine in this one. Exposure’s tight MTV-style edits lend themselves perfectly to Kev’s antics and expressions. He smoothly takes the scripted material and runs in his own direction with it, still managing to fit in all the facts while at the same time throw in some clever one-liners and anecdotes from his past. He’s the perfect anchor for the show, and holds it all together just right. Bravo, Kev. Hopefully we’ll see him take on some more hosting gigs in the future once folks see what a great job he does here.
Sci-Fi has kindly asked that we not provide video clips or stills from the show, but we DO have a slew of EXCLUSIVE behind-the-scnenes photos of Kev filming the host segments. You won’t see these anywhere else, folks. Check out a larger version by clicking any of the thumbnails you see here.

Exposure’s format is simple — The host introduces a short film, the creators of said film come on for a couple minutes and discuss the film itself, then the film, in its entirety, is shown (complete with MTV-style credits in the lower left-hand corner when it begins). This episode, which is a tribute to films inspired and created by George Lucas, features 5 segments, some of which you may have seen, some of which you may have missed, and one that no one has EVER seen. Let’s take a look at each of these shorts with a little detail and my opinions of what we saw:

The folks who put the show together close everything with a nice little outto from Kev, and even a dedication to Sir Alec Guinness. Very timely, and very classy. Good job, folks. Keep in mind that these are just a handful of the multitude of Star Wars-themed parodies out there, with more popping up all the time. Kevin mentions a few of them (Trooper Clerks and Waiting For Anakin‘s websites both get some quick screentime), and there’s plenty of other places on the web to download your own copies for posterity. Perhaps if this episode is successful, Sci-Fi will consider airing a sequel to it. It’d be nice to see Kevin Rubio’s Troops on the television screen, for sure.
Sci-Fi’s really got a slick show with Exposure, and I certainly intend to watch it weekly now that I’ve discovered it. The short film format keeps folks with short attention spans interested, and everything is packaged quite well. The combination of good hosting, comments from the writers/producers/directors, and of course, the films themselves, makes for a very entertaining hour of television. The one-hour Exposure: A Tribute To Star Wars airs on SCI FI Wednesday, August 23 @ 10 pm ET and will re-air four times over the following six days. After that, it will never be seen again. Be sure and tune in, and get those VCRs warmed up so you can add this gem to your collection. Read more at exposure.scifi.com!