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April 14, 2005 - April 20, 2005

News for Apr. 20, 2005

No straitjacketing Adrien Brody

4/20/05, 9:39 pm EST - Xoanon

LOS ANGELES—It's 2 o'clock in the afternoon and Adrien Brody looks like he just came from a GQ pictorial. Nattily dressed in a handsome pinstriped black suit and a white shirt, this Oscar awardee has always impressed us with his classy taste in clothes. The lanky, 6'1 1/2" tall New Yorker with the angular features and dark hair exudes an air of confidence as he walks into the hotel room. At 22 (22? Adrien recently turned 32 folks -Xo), Brody acts and speaks with a maturity that belies his age. [More]

Happy Birthday Andy Serkis!

4/20/05, 8:48 am EST - Xoanon


Today is Andy Serkis' birthday! Andy was born on April 20th, 1964 in London, England. That makes him 41 years old today! Happy birthday Andy!

News for Apr. 19, 2005

HP Delivers Digital Foundation to Entertainment Industry

4/19/05, 9:43 pm EST - Xoanon

HP's strategy to drive the digital transformation of the entertainment industry took a major step forward today with the announcement that Sony Pictures Entertainment, Ascent Media Group, Warner Bros. Studios and Infinity Broadcasting are leveraging HP innovation to revolutionize the way they create and distribute content...Warner Bros. Studios and HP also announced that they have teamed to restore the 1933 classic motion picture "King Kong." One of the American Film Institute's 100 most beloved films and named to the National Film Registry of the Library of Congress, the original camera negative of "King Kong" has long been destroyed, leaving only elements and prints that have been deteriorating over the years. Warner Bros. Studios has brought the best elements and prints from all over the world and has scanned them into a 4K digital file. Using HP's "dirt and scratch" technology, which was developed by HP Labs, the 72-year-old classic will be digitally restored to its 1933 brilliance. A new camera negative as well as new archival elements will be created so that the film will be saved for generations to come. This new, restored version of "King Kong," as it was originally released, will be screened theatrically and broadcast on television, as well as released on Warner Home Video. [More]

Weta Workshop Site Updated

4/19/05, 9:30 pm EST - Xoanon

Weta Workshop's website has been updated! Take a look at all the goodies contained inside! This is one of the places I would LOVE to work for! [More]

What's on the Web

4/19/05, 9:27 pm EST - Xoanon

Peter Brown from the San Francisco Examiner writes: Wow, fans of Peter Jackson need to — no, have to — check out Kong is King (www.kongisking.net/), a site devoted to all things Kong and what has become a behind-the-scenes production Web site to the upcoming "King Kong 2005" movie from the "Lord of the Rings" emperor. [More]

Jack Black: The 'Yes Man'

4/19/05, 9:09 pm EST - Xoanon

Warner Bros. Pictures has acquired an unpublished British book by Danny Wallace, the author of Random Acts of Kindness: 365 Ways to Make the World a Nicer Place and Join Me: The True Story of a Man who Started a Cult by Accident. The new book, Yes Man, is a memoir about Wallace's encounter with a mystery character on a late-night bus, after which he started saying yes to everything. As a result, he found romance and happiness. Jack Black and Mike White, the star and writer, respectively, of School of Rock, will produce the project with David Heyman. [More]

News for Apr. 18, 2005

KongisKing.net Desktop Wallpapers!

4/18/05, 2:59 pm EST - Xoanon

KongisKing.net Wallpapers - Ignatz Kiwi created these FANTASTIC wallpapers for KongIsKing.net, showcasing just some of the AMAZING artwork created by Kong Artists Atomicmutant, david, Ignatz, snowman & Tane! Thanks to nessa for all the legwork! [More]

The Biggest NZ Soundstage Images

4/18/05, 2:17 pm EST - Xoanon

The Biggest NZ Soundstage Gandalf writes: With the recent official opening of the NZ's biggest sound stage (see news report here) and continuing production on Kong now moving indoors, I thought I'd send through a few pics of the facility at Stone Street here in Wellington. As you'll see from these photos the full studio complex is BIG, with some of the buildings dwarfing the large exterior blue screen supported by a wall of shipping containers. The Stone Street studios sit just over a small hill from the airport and nearby to the Weta Workshop and Weta Digital facility. Also close to the studios were the Skull Island and Village Wall sets and of course the Venture, as you'll see in my updated King Kong 2005 Location map. [More]

News for Apr. 17, 2005

'33 Kong Poster

4/17/05, 10:45 am EST - Xoanon

'33 Kong Poster Ron writes: Hi guys! Thought you might like to see one of the original posters from the 1933 release of the film. This is the original 6 sheet-that's almost 7 feet by 7 feet is size! A truly gigantic poster befitting the great Kong! It's one of only three copies of this amazing poster still in existence! [More]

News for Apr. 16, 2005

Weekend Kong Chat

4/16/05, 11:15 am EST - Xoanon

It is time to come together and talk Kong! The chatroom has been a great success, however some people have been popping in at odd hours when there is no one to chat with. To that end we've devised 2 KONG Chat times, a set time and day of the week for all Kong chatters to meet and have fun! Tonight's chat will be at 5:30PM Eastern Standard Time (click here for more info). World times are below, if you need more help click here.

5:30PM (Saturday) EST in New York, Montreal
2:30PM (Saturday) PST in Los Angeles, Seattle
11:30PM (Saturday) (Central European Time)
7:30AM (Sunday) in Sydney
9:30AM (Sunday) in Auckland, Wellington

Get The KongisKing.net Newsletter Today!

4/16/05, 11:13 am EST - Xoanon

The latest newsletter is ready to go! Do you want to receive our free weekly newsletter? Packed with tons of info to keep you up to date on the latest? Plus filled with exclusives from time to time! Join the crowd of over 1800 mailing list members! Sign up now! [More]

Plane Spotting in Wellington

4/16/05, 10:50 am EST - Xoanon

Plane Spotting in Wellington mtrmsd writes: On Saturday the 14th I was just wandering around Wellington to see what I could find and ran into the studio. As I was taking pictures of the blue screen, some crew started to roll out a biplane (as seen in PD 118 -Xo). It looked pretty cool and I believe they were taking it out of the lot. Sadly I missed it exiting. [More]

Ubisoft to Take E3 2005 by Storm

4/16/05, 10:49 am EST - Xoanon

Today Ubisoft, one of the world's largest videogame publishers, announces its lineup of titles for the 2005 Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3), to be held May 18–20, 2005 at the Los Angeles Convention Center in Los Angeles, California. Ubisoft will showcase its titles at booth #1300 in the South Hall...Peter Jackson's King Kong [PlayStation 2, Xbox, next-generation console]: Experience the must-have game based on Universal Pictures' King Kong film from Academy Award winning director Peter Jackson. [More]

Working class hero

4/16/05, 10:44 am EST - Xoanon

Jamie Bell has thrown away the dancing shoes, but he clings on to his roots in a depressed part of Britain. As he leaps from the roof of a shed, Jamie Bell, the ballet-dancing hero of Stephen Daldry's 2000 film whose nimble footwork pirouetted him into the hearts of cinema audiences worldwide, lands awkwardly on a board, driving a giant rusty nail through his bare foot. [More]

News for Apr. 15, 2005

Production Diary: Day 131

4/15/05, 5:23 am EST - Xoanon

Production Diary: Day 131

Peter Jackson is tired...let's face it, he is no Superman, I mean he is nearing the very end of production on King Kong and he is running on fumes. His crew are an amazing bunch of Apt Pupils, but they can only do so much. Peter is beginning to feel Buried Alive and needs some help, his Majestic film is about to collapse if he doesn't get some people in there to aid him. So he decides to call in The Usual Suspects. Take a look who aids PJ on his quest! [QT6 240x132px 8Mb] [QT4 320x176px 14Mb] [QT6 480x264px 18Mb] [Bit Torrents!]

Email us your questions and PJ may answer them in a future Production Diary!

Like what you see? Discuss it in our Chat Room! [Click Here] Or the Message Boards? [Click Here]

News for Apr. 14, 2005

Victoria University pays tribute to LOTR scriptwriter

4/14/05, 7:17 pm EST - Xoanon

Lord of the Rings producer and scriptwriter Fran Walsh is to be awarded an honorary Doctor of Literature from Victoria University at its May graduation ceremonies. The Academy Award-winner graduated with a Bachelor of Arts from the university in 1981 and has supported the university’s scriptwriting programme by making scripts from her movies available to students, the university said in a statement. [More]

One Last Look at New York

4/14/05, 1:05 pm EST - Xoanon

Last look at New York set... Gandalf writes: Here's a last look at the New York set, or rather the last remaining pieces of the largely demolished set. In just over a week since my last visit, only two portions are left to remove - the section with Crowe's Hardware Store and the block with the Princess Theater. As I'm sure all the fans are, I look forward to seeing the New York set again on the big screen. [More]

Kong Chat Tonight

4/14/05, 12:52 pm EST - Xoanon

It is time to come together and talk Kong! The chatroom has been a great success, however some people have been popping in at odd hours when there is no one to chat with. To that end I've devised a KONG Chat time, a set time and day of the week for all Kong chatters to meet and have fun! The bi-weekly Kong Chats will be Thursday nights at 8:30PM Eastern Standard Time (a new Saturday chat has been added click here for more info). World times are below, if you need more help click here. [Kong Java Chat Room] [irc chat settings: SERVER www.theonering.net ROOM: #kongisking.net]

8:30PM (Thursday) EST in New York, Montreal
5:30PM (Thursday) PST in Los Angeles, Seattle
1:30AM (Friday) in GMT (UK)
2:30AM (Friday) (Central European Time)
10:30PM (Friday) in Sydney, Australia
12:30PM (Friday) in Auckland, Wellington, New Zealand

Promotional Blogs on the Rise

4/14/05, 12:40 pm EST - Xoanon

Until about a year ago, promotional blogs were few and far between. There was the occasional attempt, but most efforts served more as examples of what not to do. That isn't the case anymore. Marketers use blogs, both in text and video form ("vlogs"), to connect with audiences and generate buzz about products, offerings, and events. Blogs are reaching new creative heights, and companies are establishing a new standard of blog marketing. Leading the way is the entertainment industry, which has embraced blogs for their popularity with TV-watching and movie-going audiences. Among those using them is Peter Jackson, director of "Lord of the Rings" and the upcoming remake of "King Kong." [More]

Happy birthday Adrein Brody!

4/14/05, 8:45 am EST - Xoanon


Today is Adrien Brody's Birthday! Adrien was born on April 14th, 1973 in New York City. That makes him 32 years old today! Happy Birthday Adrien!

Send your birthday wishes here!


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