OCR Text |
Show DAILY Id 2004 Friday, September HERALD B3 UJL 1 1JU news and notes Celebrity m--;- : -- v- ; : J ..... Keviil Smith's 'Clerks' Still at work after a shift 10-ye- ar V Anthony Brcznican THE ASSOCIATED " V en years ago, Kevin Smith be-came the patron saint of the slothful ' The aspiring New Jersey filmmaker proved that if a guy worked hard enough, he could still make his dreams come true while spending a lot of tirfte collecting comic books, debating nnH collincr rioa. the morife nf iwniliar rettes and candy to dead-eye- d consumers. film "Clerks," a $27,000 he shot mainly with friends in their spare time, became an icon of independent cinema by inspiring a generation of homegrown filmmakers. "It's the kind of movie where you go, 'If that counts, I can make a movie, too,"' said Smith, who makes self deprecation a kind of second career. "It's flattering on one level, but it's also a backhanded compliment because it's like, 'Dude, your movie looks so bad, that even a chimp can make a movie at this point.'" DVD titled Tuesday's new three-dis- c an"Clerks X" commemorates the niversary, documenting the movie's entire history, from Smith's birth to the audition tapes to the day Miramax chief Harvey Weinstein purchased the flick at the Sundance Film Festival Working on the DVD inspired Smith to write a sequel; "The Passion of the Clerks," which he plans to begin filming in January. After creating a with his later films "Mallrats," "Chasing Amy," "Dogma," "Jay arid Silent Bob Strike Back" and "Jersey Girt" Smith said he wanted to go back to his roots and re- 7 - ' 0 CRESS X-' Associated Julian ne Moore is part of a public service campaign the need for children's arts education programs. Press to promote Children need Moore for arts programs m black-and-whi- te THE ASSOCIATED tions starting in October and continue until next March Moore has received four Os- -' car nominations, including best actress nominations for 2002's "Far From Heaven" and! 1999's "The End of the Affair," and best supporting actress nominations for 2002's "The ' Hours" and 1997's "Boogie Nights." Her next film, "The Forgotten," opens Sept! 24. The EIF is the official chari- ty of the entertainment industry. It also sponsors initiatives for cancer research cardiovascular research and cessation of smoking. Montblanc is a nearly centu-- , ry)ld designer of jewelry and stationery. PRESS Julianne Moore wants to give children more time for and she's their imaginations doing it one watch at a time. The actress will appear in a public service campaign bearing the slogan, Time is Precious: Use it Wisely," seeking to highlight the declining resources available for s ar ! children's arts education programs and reverse the trend. With each purchase of a Montblanc watch or pen, the luxury accessory brand will , make a contribution to the National Arts Education Initiative, a program of the Industry Foundation Enter-tainme- cult-fanba- nt (FJF). The campaign will run in fashion and lifestyle publica On the Net i www.eifoundation.org super-low-budg- visit his fictional dwellers. cash-regist- er Smith's original movie centered on two guys one from a convenience store, the other from a video store and their disintegrating morale over the course of a day as they endure customers from hell : : .1 i a u a jiu cuuiuueiiiix: ov j uiai uie worn taioi iter's name was Dante. ""I just wanted to make a movie that I thought was representative of me and my friends," Smith said. "A lot of movies I went to see were fun to watch and totally I'm entertaining and escapist. But what going to identify with John McClane in 'Die Hard? I would never jump off a building, I would never shoot a terrorist. I would nev er take my shirt off in public He wanted to make a movie about what wanders into the mind of a guy who feels like he's going nowhere: "Star Wars," hockey, porn movies ; The humor in Smith's movie was the kind of shameless joking guys do around a poker game, or in tiie back of a classroom, wherever thev think no one else is listening. ' Before the gross-ou- t comedy craze of Ttu&iWc Cswvioliinrr AKvff Mara tAmarL can Pie" and MTV's "Jackass," "Clerks", opened the door. Although it featured no violence, no nudisex, the coarse diaty and no logue earned it an NC-1- 7 rating and Mira-ma- x hired attorney Alan Dershowitz to successfully argue the ratings board down - Darrcll Hammond to host news, doc Emmys '- --0 DAMIAN .. DOVARfiANESAssoclatedjPress Writer and director Kevin Smith in his office in Los Angeles. Ten years ago with his film r "Clerks," Smith became the patron saint of slackers. shoot-'em-u- , : toanR. Before that, even Brian CHalloran, a community theater actor who won the role of Dante, said he never thought the movie would make it to the big screen "I thought it was hysterical, but the vulgarity of certain things, the shock value at that time in 1993 ... I didnt think it would become a feature film," he said. "If anything, it was just something I would have a copy of on VHS to show friends. 'Hey, look what I got cast in once...'" Smith used his environment to craft a story, taking a lesson from Robert Ro- - NEW YORK He wont be live from New York, but he will be on tape. dal, worked the midnight shift for the movie, and never expected to get paid. "It was definitely fun, and yet we all had real jobs," said CHafloran. "And we all got done with our real jobs and then got down at night, and by to the store around the time we got into makeup and into costume, and we were ready to shoot after; V, everything was lit, it was 11:30. Then we'd shoot until 5 in the morning or straight up until 6 when the store would open. Then we'd help Kevin open the store and move all the film equipment." Other story points were also dictated by circumstance. t Smith wanted to put his friend Jason g Mewes in the movie as Jay, a stoner who perpetually ornaments the parking lot. The character was basically Mewes as himself, but he was jittery about playing the part. "He needed somebody to talk to, but I didn't want anyone to take away from this one-ma- n show," Smith said. Thus was born Silent Bob, and the director played the role himself. "Clerks" played no more than 96 theaters and earned only $3.1 million, but it became a hit on video and spawned an animated series, whMmaking cult stars out of Jay and driguez, another homegrown director who made his breakthrough in 1992 with the p "FJ Mariachi" (later $7,000 gtossily remade as "Desperado.") Here's what Smith had at his disposal a convenience store, a lascivious stoner friend, and a comic book collection. AH he so he sold the needed were the cameras comic books. That made him a few thousand dollars. ; He also ran up dozens of credit cards and collected several thousand in flood relief money after a storm washed over his New Jersey neighborhood. j Smith's other means of investment: mom and dad, who gave him $3,000. : "It was pretty huge, because my old man at that point was a government employee. He worked at the post office and he didn't make much more than 15 or 20 grand, tops," Smith said. "That was a big chunk forthem." He talked the owner of the convenience store into letting him shoot the movie there after closing time. The solid metal security gae stayed down over the main windows to make it simpler to control interior lighting and enable them to shoot at night when the, story was supposed to take place during the day. Smith adjusted the script to explain the shutters: part of Dante's terrible day involved being unable to open the gate. He paints a sign with shoe polish that reads: "I assure you we're open." CHalloran and his co-stJeff Anderson, who played the rude video store clerk Ran "Saturday Night Uve" cast member Darrell Hammond has been tapped to host the 25th annual news and: documentary Emmy Awards. Unlike "SNL," the ceremony wont be live from New York. Instead, it will be taped at the Marriott Marquis Hotel on Sept. 13 and then telecast on Sept. 25 on the Discovery Times Channel "We are pleased to have Darren Hammond join these prestigious news personalities at this year's celebration," Peter Price, president of the National Television Academy, said Tuesday. "Mr. Hammond brings the special credential of having impersonated many of' America's most prominent newsmakers and newscasters." Peter Jennings, Diane Sawyer, Wolf Bhtzer, Brian Wflhams and Dan Rather win present awards. Rather is among many newsmen and political pundits Hammond has imitated during his run on NBCs "SNL" He's taken on almost everyone in the Bush administration (Dick Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld, John Ashcroft, Colin Powell, Tom Ridge), and is wett- known for his portrayal of former President Bill Clinton. "We're delighted that Darren Hammond has agreed to host this year's ceremony," said Discovery Times General Manager Vivian Schiller. "It's only fitting that he stand up in front of the very people he 10-3- 0 7 . trash-talkin- .' Silent Bott The duo will return with Dante and Ran--' dal in the "Clerks" sequel, but Smith said they'll be more realistic than the slapstick': buffoons they became in recent years, reflecting Mewes real-lif- e sobriety after bat; tling drug addictioa ar eight-seaso- Franz Ferdinand wins Mercury Music Prize -- 1 THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Scottish rockers Franz Ferdinand, whose debut album has been hailed by critics as a masterpiece of pop, won the prestigious v Mercury Music Prize. 'The Glasgow-basequartet were the fa--: shortlist to ' , ; vorites among the al-- , d take home the award for their ; h d 'rife' I jj;' self-title- bum. ?i - The $35,600 prize, now in its 13th year, ( . n " Associated Press ActorDarrell Hammond will host the 5th annual news and documentary Emmy Awards.': routinely skewers in his hilarious and incisive comedy ' sketches." The Academy's lifetime achievement award for news and documentary wfll be presented to Tom Brokaw, who's retiring as the anchor of "NBC Nightly News" later this year. Disney trademarks may be up for grabs in South AMca honors the best album of the year by a British or Irish band. It is judged on talent ' 'obtained a court order in Jury and innovation rather than commercial the associated press artacmng more tnan MO tradesales, and the winner can usually expect a CAFE Africa marks registered here to their . South TOWN, and sales in publicity. surge $1.6 million lawsuit in order to Disney Enterprises may ' Among the acts Franz Ferdinand beat for establish local jurisdiction. The shave to seU its trademarks in the prize, announced Tuesday, were two-- South Africa to , ana ne trademarks, which include immikc pay for dam-- r time nominee i sireeis, rapper ages such as Mickey Mouse ages if a poor famfly wins a Skinner; young soul sensation Joss Stone; lawsuit claiming it lost millions and Donald Duck, could be urban star Jamelia; and guitartess rock " '41 royalties from the hit song ' sold locaDy to pay Linda's t bandKeane. ; out new heirs if they wm then lawsuit, , by The shortJist was rounded ''IvTJbeFretortaHighto rockers The Zutons, jazz singer Amy ; Linda s three Surviving Winehouse, Northern Irish quartet Snow Tuesday aismissed an applica- " Scottish group Franz Ferdinand beat out I J other acts to win the Mercury Music Prize? to UtaigteersaiHl lOgraridehJk tioDbby Disney Enterprises Patrol dance outfit Basement Jaxx, pop ' ' , , ; . pevent its trademarks from , - lren, living in poverty m the group Belle & Sebastian, rapper Ty and . . i . ' , . ,f . being sold off if the family of V, Johannesburg township of , singer Robert Wyatt. . the late musician Solomon Lin-- 1 Soweto, have received only a winner, garage star Dizzee Rascal, other- - . leased one alDunjtwitha mere 11 tracks.' f The panel of judges, made up of music one-tim-e Mills. contest debated the shews But as and wise known seUcafltJieir jda, who wrote the original . iviewf" and they payment of $15,000, Dylan journalists, experts winner Franz Ferdinand, named after the heir to ers have lavished praise on their powerful song "Mbube" in 1939, wins its t according to their lawyers; right up until moments before the ' l ' 't suit. ' " i The sonz has been covered . . '"'.' the Austfotiungarian empire whose assas- - guitar riffs; making them tl was announced, sination parted World War I, have only re--' bearers for Britain's "art rock movement. . Lawyers for Linda's family , by at feast 150 artists. -- L ; . ' 'i ' 1 , . - - f - , , 1 ft |