http://www.lauriejacobson.com/guestbook/index.php Blog en Grab your blankets and beach chairs, Oscar is going casual. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced Monday the slate of movies for its first outdoor screening series to be held at its new Oscars Outdoors venue on Vine Street. The lineup, which kicks off June 15 with a screening of "Casablanca," is a mixture of classics and contemporary films designed to appeal to a broad swath of the moviegoing public. Screenings will take place Friday and Saturday evenings through Aug. 18, with Saturday evenings devoted to family-friendly fare, such as Rob Reiner's "The Princess Bride" and Disney's animated classic "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs." The organization behind the Oscars purchased the 3.5-acre lot near the intersection of Vine and Fountain Avenue in 2005 for $50 million, with the intention of building a world-class movie museum on the lot. In October, however, the academy announced a partnership with the Los Angeles County Museum of Art for the project, and the movie museum is now set to be housed in the former May Co. department store on Wilshire Boulevard at Fairfax Avenue. Rather then sell off the land in Hollywood, which sits next to the academy's Pickford Center for Motion Picture Study, the academy opted to open the outdoor theater. The academy spent $2 million renovating the land, which now includes a graded lawn area that seats about 350 patrons on blankets and low-rise lawn chairs, and a 10,000-square-foot plaza available for receptions. With the series, the academy is hoping to serve the Hollywood community that was initially promised a museum on the site, academy President Tom Sherak said. "It was not an easy decision to not build a building here," said Sherak, who presented the amphitheater's programming in a midmorning news conference alongside City Councilman Eric Garcetti. "We are not going to abandon this community." During the event, Sherak asked Garcetti whether he would authorize the closure of Homewood Avenue, which directly faces the screen, when films are showing to allow those without tickets to sit outside the amphitheater and watch the movies. Garcetti responded, "I'd be happy to look at it." The academy also announced a slate of summer and fall public programs at its other theaters and plans to ramp up its preservation program. The $2-million initiative, titled Film-to-Film, began in 2011 and has preserved or acquired about 300 titles, including such feature films as "Sleuth" and "The Cardinal," in addition to silent films and Oscar-nominated shorts. (The academy film archive had already preserved 1,000 titles since it began its work in 1992.) "We must preserve as much of our film heritage on film as soon as we can," said Randy Haberkamp, the academy's managing director for programming, education and preservation, during the conference. The academy tested out the amphitheater Saturday night with a staff screening of John Hughes' comedy "Ferris Bueller's Day Off," and an invitation-only screening of "Field of Dreams" is set for May 19. Sherak and past academy presidents Sid Ganis and Robert Rehme intend to serve popcorn. The evening is sure to be nostalgic for Sherak, a former exhibition executive, who views the outdoor theater as the closest he could come to creating a drive-in theater for Hollywood. "We wanted to take the present and add in a piece of the past.... Come, bring your blankets and beach chairs. Come and get away from the rigors of life." Screenings are $5 for the public, with children 10 and younger admitted free. Tickets go on sale on the academy's website on June 1. Wed, 16 May 2012 18:04:29 -0400 http://www.lauriejacobson.com/guestbook/index.php/post/2099/ Actor Nick Stahl has been missing for a week... The Carnivale star has a drug issue, was last seen on LA's skid row, has not updated his Twitter account since May 1... I am terrified about his whereabouts and if he is still alive... xo L Wed, 16 May 2012 18:02:26 -0400 http://www.lauriejacobson.com/guestbook/index.php/post/2098/ The Hollywood star who played the most leading roles in feature films was John Wayne (1907-1979), who appeared in 153 movies. The star with the most screen credits is John Carradine (1906-1988), who has been in over 230 movies. Do kids today even know who these superstars are?! xo L Wed, 16 May 2012 17:53:10 -0400 http://www.lauriejacobson.com/guestbook/index.php/post/2097/ What a character to do a film about: TODAY’S BIRTHDAY Jack Johnson, 1878: The son of two ex-slaves, Johnson was the world’s first African-American heavyweight champion. At the height of his career, Johnson was excoriated by the press for having twice married white women, and he offended white supremacists by defeating former champion James J. Jeffries, the “Great White Hope.” In 1912, Johnson was convicted under the Mann Act for transporting his wife-to-be across state lines. Sentenced to a year in prison, he fled the country. Every black hero was driven out or conquered in some way... Sat, 31 Mar 2012 18:04:34 -0400 http://www.lauriejacobson.com/guestbook/index.php/post/1840/ I apologize... I took a writing job last June that was to last 3 months. Tomorrow, April 1 will mark the 11th month. It should also mark the month of my freedom from this project which has hung around my neck like a mill stone. 2012 looks to be a very exciting year for some new projects...I cannot wait to begin advancing with them...and then sharing that with you. This has been a black period for me and the light at the end of the tunnel is beautiful. April is my birthday month, perfect for my rebirth. As our former Governator used to say: "I'll be back!" xo L Sat, 31 Mar 2012 18:00:44 -0400 http://www.lauriejacobson.com/guestbook/index.php/post/1838/ Been ages since I've been here as I have been hunkered down finishing a book... but Davy's passing today is simply news I cannot ignore. He was a friend, a client, and a very bright light in an increasingly dark time. He was one of the most positive and incredibly well-adjusted people I've ever had the pleasure and honor to have called my friend. Fans may send cards to: PO Box 400, Beavertown, PA 17813 Safe Travels, my friend, Laurie Wed, 29 Feb 2012 22:56:09 -0500 http://www.lauriejacobson.com/guestbook/index.php/post/1724/ My project is winding down now...6 months of Hell...this is the 7th...should be done by Christmas. I will celebrate long and hard, believe me... Meanwhile, I have spoken with both the Canadian and Japanese press about the re-opening of the Natalie Wood case. All this very painful for my friend Lana Wood, Natalie's sister...being interviewed for the Malaysian Marie Claire on Hollywood bad boys now and then! I'm very international these days. And we lost Ken Russell, one of my complete favorite directors...I saw The Music Lovers and then when to the Nuart Theater and saw everything he'd done before that...his emotional agony floored me! So perfect for my 20s...and his wonderful troupe of players, his colors and revelry...Thank you, Mr. Russell. It was exquisite. Cannot wait to reclaim my life and redo my website for 2012! Thanks for bearing with me. xo Laurie Thu, 01 Dec 2011 21:50:15 -0500 http://www.lauriejacobson.com/guestbook/index.php/post/1487/ That's how long it's been since I last posted.M"summer job" has stretched on into October and will see November before it's completely through...wow, what an ordeal...looking forward to returning to my own life and my own projects. Just wanted to make some contact and let you know I'm still alive!! More soon. And if you haven't done so already, no time like Halloween to read HOLLYWOOD HAUNTED!!> An autographed copy makes a great gift!! xo Laurie Thu, 20 Oct 2011 03:16:20 -0400 http://www.lauriejacobson.com/guestbook/index.php/post/1411/ Euphoric Libyan rebels took control of most of Tripoli in a lightning advance Sunday, celebrating the victory in Green Square, the symbolic heart of Moammar Gadhafi’s regime. Gadhafi’s defenders quickly melted away as his 42-year rule crumbled, but the leader’s whereabouts were unknown and pockets of resistance remained. State TV broadcast Gadhafi’s bitter pleas for Libyans to defend his regime. Opposition fighters captured his son and one-time heir apparent, Seif al-Islam, who along with his father faces charges of crimes against humanity at the International Criminal Court in the Netherlands. Another son was under house arrest. At last, some good news!! xo L Mon, 22 Aug 2011 17:07:12 -0400 http://www.lauriejacobson.com/guestbook/index.php/post/1259/ Amazing story of an actress's scandal and tragic suicide. Read about the Chinese Garbo!!! http://www.twolia.com/blogs/heres-looking-like-you-kid/2009/08/04/the-life-of-ruan-lingyu/ xoxo L Mon, 15 Aug 2011 22:43:42 -0400 http://www.lauriejacobson.com/guestbook/index.php/post/1211/