• In a massive David vs. Goliath battle, the band “Supernova”, whose “Chewbacca” track won them fans when it appeared on the Clerks soundtrack and in the film, have won the rights to maintain exclusive ownership of their band’s name — This announcement just on the heels of the Tommy Lee band project that touted that very group name on “Rock Star” all summer long. That new band tours in a few months, though it looks like they’ll need to do it under a totally new name. The decision, in short, bars the CBS-created rockers from touring, recording and selling merchandise as “Supernova” once the order takes effect. Some articles on the big news:

We imagine this news will proliferate throughout the day. Nice ink for Clerks and nice press for a little band that’s been with View Askew from the beginning! Good on ya, guys. Congrats.

• Kevin brings the happy news today (via his blog) that super-producer Scott Mosier tied the knot with his girlfriend Alex “Cookie” Hilebronner on September 1st. We’d like to offer our sincerest congratulations and best wishes to the happy couple — We know Scott’s been one of the biggest lurkers here at News Askew since we started, so we’re sure he’s reading this right now. That being said, for the rest of us, here’s Kevin’s personal congratulatory post as well:

A day none of us thought would ever come…

Uber-Producer Scott Mosier is legally off the market.

On Friday, September 1st, Scott Mosier married Alex “Cookie” Hilebronner in a small, Van Nuys courthouse civil service. The pair met on “Jersey Girl” (proving to the critics, once and for all, that something good came out of that much-maligned flick), and tied the knot on the fourth anniversary of their first date (i.e. – the first time they boned).

For anyone who knows Mosier, the news of the nuptials was akin to peace in the Middle East: it’s something we thought we’d never see. Scott had long maintained a staunch, “I’ll never get married” position – so much so that it would’ve been less shocking had Mosier announced “I’m suddenly turning gay,” than “I got married.” That Cookie was able to change Mos’ mind is nothing short of miraculous, and speaks volumes about her charms (both emotional and, one would suspect, sexual).

Join me in extending a hearty “Congrats” to the happy couple.

• DVD Bits runs a new report from a fan in attendance at Kevin’s recent Australian appearance at the Astor Theater. A few new photos are attached as well as a nice summary of the evening’s questions. A snippet:

• Lots of Lee in the news today. So let’s kick off the newsbites — First up, the “My Name Is Earl” season one DVD gets a mention in the new issue of FHM, page 86. They have a picture of Jason and Ethan, along with a couple of words about the DVD. If anyone wants to hook us up with a scan, we’ll post it up (our scooper didn’t send one).

• We DO have a scan of this wonderful A-rated review of the Earl Season one disc from Entertainment Weekly. Very high rankings especially for the extras, including the commentary track for the disc and that Alterna-pilot episode that we just can’t wait to watch.
• And rounding out the Lee news, Nancy Cartwright (who is best known for voicing Bart on “The Simpsons”) is hosting an auction at her home in Northridge Sept. 30, 5:30 P.M. Money is being raised to fund the Devenshire District Youth Center as she is the honorary mayor of the city. She mentions that there will be Lee-signed items as part of the auction. Contact 818-882-7236 for more details.
• The New York Times ran a piece on VA Alum Matt Damon. It’s a retrospective on his career (with a few bits about upcoming films) and it also mentions his recurring involvement in View Askew projects. You can check out the electronic version HERE.

• Ok, first up — Kevin officially confirms that the street date of the Clerks II has been moved up to November 28, 2006. Just a couple short months away until this gem can be a part of our collections! The cover we previously posted, he reveals, is also incorrect, as a Chicago Sun-Times quote will appear on the cover.

Kevin also confirms that the disc will indeed be packed with features, including an ironic 37 minutes of deleted film footage:

We’ll of course keep you updated on this exciting disc — With this and Evening Harder on the way, it’s going to be a happy Fall for our DVD players.

• We’ve been telling you about Affleck’s turn in “Hollywoodland” lately, and now a major film festival has backed up that claim — Ben’s been awarded the “Best Actor” trophy from the Venice Film Festival this weekend. Major congratulations to Affleck, who channels the late George Reeves to perfection in the flick. A much-deserved award for a guy who’s been a friend to View Askew for many years.

The official announcement can be found HERE, while Joblo has some nice words of congrats to pass on as well. Let us add to the praise, and also finish up with this IMDB posting on the accolades that Ben’s been enjoying:

Ben Affleck is seeing something that has eluded him for a long time — good reviews. There are plenty of them for his performance as actor George Reeves — who played Superman in the 1950s’ TV series — in Hollywoodland. Gene Seymour in Newsweek writes: “Ben Affleck’s portrayal of Reeves epitomizes the movie’s solicitousness and grace. Affleck gives his all to his star-crossed character, evoking Reeves’ vocal inflections and physical presence (even his creeping middle-age puffiness) with startling precision and affecting sympathy.” Chris Kaltenbach in the Baltimore Sun writes: “The scenes featuring Reeves, played with just the right mix of professionalism and exasperation by Ben Affleck, are the best things about Hollywoodland.” Susan Walker in the Toronto Star comments, almost in amazement: “Somehow Ben Affleck is perfect as … Reeves.” And Philip Wuntch in the Dallas Morning News concludes: “Affleck’s thoughtful performance reflects the despair of a natural-born charmer who discovers that charm isn’t enough to reach Hollywood’s heights. Those who insist that Mr. Reeves’ rise and fall mirrors Mr. Affleck’s career trajectory are entitled to their opinions, but Hollywoodland definitely is an upward step.” Several critics agree, however, that Affleck is better than the film itself. As Manohla Dargis writes in the New York Times: “Ben Affleck has packed on the pounds, slipped on some tights and given this exasperating film far more than it gives in return.”

• Kevin hints that the location of the Movies Askew gala, Cinespace, may hold an “Evening Harder” watching party sometime in early November – How cool is THAT? No details yet, but man, it gets harder and harder living on the east coast all the time. As soon as details are announced, we’ll have ticket info here.
• Coming Soon confirms a September 12th release for the Jason Mewes-Paris Hilton DVD “Bottoms Up”.
• A Moobys shirt was spotted by a sharp scooper on The Food Network this weekend:

• This just in: Clerks’ Marilyn Ghigliotti will appear at the Arclight in Los Angeles today with her short “Bad Hair Day” as part of the LA International Short Film Festival. Details:

LA Shorts Fest
Program 51
Saturday, September 9, 2006
Theatre #13
The Arclight Cinemas
6360 Sunset Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90028
(at Sunset and Vine)
www.lashortsfest.com
Tickets are $10, and there are 7 shorts in the program.

Bad Hair Day is written, directed and produced by Sheila Cavalet. Starring and produced by Marilyn Ghigliotti. About a divorced women struggling at trying to make a fresh start on her own when after a trying day, eventually she realizes that she can do it with the help of her family and friends.

• The folks over at DVDActive seem to have nabbed the first glimpse at the cover for the forthcoming Clerks II DVD. They also list specs for the disc, the first we’ve seen — Not sure if this is official, but here goes:

Sounds great to us — We’re expecting they’ll pack it all onto one disc. We don’t expect the sheer amount of deleted scenes we’ve seen in the past, though the documentary sounds fantastic (and we assume will be built from Train Wreck footage). We’ll keep you posted, and of course have a first look right here as soon as a test disc comes our way. Until then, see below’s newsbites for a scan that holds even more clues.

• The extensive short film contest “Movies Askew”, hosted for the past hear by View Askew Productions, held a gala event awarding the top prizes last night, September 6th, at Cinespace in Hollywood, California. Kevin, Jennifer, director Richard Kelly, and many contest finalists, stars, and other personalities were on hand to celebrate the culmination of our first-ever private, fan-created film festival.

In photos above, courtesy Movidude74, the grand prize goes to “Up Syndrome” (see the photo of Kevin and the winner above). An unplanned special recognition was awarded in absentia to “Perils in Nude Modeling” presented by Richard Kelly. And, in the final photo, the director of “Chingaso the Clown” accepts the Audience Award. Congratulates to all the winners, finalists and thanks to all who took the time to participate in this fantastic event. Will we do it again? Stay tuned and find out details.

The grand prize winner took home an amazing package of Panasonic goodies, including the spectacular AG-DVX100A camera.

• Much thanks to the overwhelming amount of fans who sent us their Clerks II ticket stub for a chance to win the newly released “The Tick vs. Season One” on DVD, from Buena Vista Home Video. We have five lucky randomly selected winners from all the entries received straight ahead. If you see your name here, and you don’t hear from us first, hit us with your shipping info, and we’ll get your prizes out to ya.

See that? Checking out View Askew flicks in the theater is the gift that keeps on giving. Sorry we couldn’t give ya all a prize. Thanks to all who enetered, and thanks again to Buena Vista for offering up the fun prizes. If you dig the fast, dry humor of Clerks: The Animated Series, you’ll certainly love The Tick as well.