Celebrating 11 years on the Web

Guys Choice, Poker Tournament

Edward Norton, Brad Pitt,David Fincher were honored with Discretionary Guy Movie Hall of Fame award for Fight Club at Spike TV's "Guys Choice Awards"

EN couldn't make it to the Cannes Film Festival charity poker tournament because of Stone filming. He addressed the crowd via satellite. He was honored at the tournament. “The extraordinary engagement of Edward Norton is an excellent example of genuine celebrity support for charitable cause.” More info

EN will be one of the judges of the National Geographic "Green Effect" contest.

Milla Jovovich was cast as Edward Norton's wife in Stone.

EN teaming up with DeNiro again!!!

Production Weekly reports that EN and Robert DeNiro will star in Stone. Filming will start in May and will take place in Detroit and Pittsburgh. De Niro will play a parole officer who develops a friendship with a teaching assistant. The film is based on a play by Angus MacLachlan and will be directed by John Curran. EN costarred with DeNiro (and Brando) in The Score and was directed by Curran in The Painted Veil. Comingsoon.net and Detroit News. [Thanks to Shirleyann for the info!!!]

Obama doc

Both Variety and the Hollywood Reporter announced that Sony has acquired international and home entertainment rights to the Obama documentary on which EN is executive producer. No news as to when we're going to see it, but it will have a theatrical run (as well as play on HBO) and it does now have a name: ""By the People: The Election of Barack Obama." From Variety:

Film follows the former Illinois senator from the announcement of his candidacy to his historic election and inauguration. Told through exclusive footage of Obama and his staff, "By the People" is touted as an all-access pass to campaign life on the road to the White House.

"From the start, it was very important to us to share this film with as broad an international audience as possible, and we're really thrilled to be partnered with Sony in trying to achieve this," Norton said.

Larry King Live

Wednesday Night, EN is going to be on CNN's Larry King Live talking about Earth Hour. "Exclusive! Actor and activist Edward Norton! He's asking all of us to turn off the lights for one hour - and take a stand on global warming! Plus, Alanis Morissette! Larry King Live

Twitter, SoHo Rep, Under the Influence, Save the Senator, Earth Hour

I'm now using Twitter for EN updates.

According to NY Times, EN & Tim Blake Nelson will host Soho Rep’s Spring Gala on May 4. The evening will feature readings by John Turturro, Matt Dillon, Lili Taylor, Marian Seldes and the cast of Soho Rep’s recent production of “Blasted.” Soho Rep's website

According to TiVo, there will be a repeat of EN on Elvis Mitchell's Under the Influence on AMC early in the morning (4:15 Eastern).

EN hosted 9 premieres of his films at Baltimore's historic Senator Theatre. He also has fond memories of seeing Star Wars for the first time at the Senator. John Waters and Barry Levinson also held premieres there. Now the theater is headed for the auction block. Info on how to help save the Senator. or read more about the situation via the Baltimore Sun.

Capitol B reports that EN will be in DC for Earth Hour "to mark the occasion with World Wildlife Fund CEO Carter Roberts and 200 local VIPs. The invitation-only soirée will feature an organic vegetarian menu, a signature organic cocktail, and a performance by Carol Woods from the touring cast of Chicago, opening 31 March at National Theatre."

Earth Hour

Happy St. Patrick's Day! EN is the official U.S. Ambassador for Earth Hour 2009. "Earth Hour is a global initiative of WWF in which millions of people around the world will cast a vote in favor of action on climate change by turning off their lights for one hour on March 28, 2009 at 8:30 pm local time." I looked but did not find any mention of EN on the Earth Hour US official site. Instead I found out about it through a PR Newswire release.

LA Times update

Despite being excluded from the "Which actor is most overdue to win an Oscar?" poll on Tom O'Neil's The Gold Derby feature on the LA Times, he has gotten enough support for O'Neil to post that "Ed Norton has already earned a load of write-in votes." So if you haven't done so, why not give EN a boost by adding him to the Comment section.

LA Times

On the LA Times website, there is a post on Tom O'Neil's The Gold Derby with the following topic: "Which actor is most overdue to win an Oscar?" It goes through some of the choices and includes a poll. But before you rush on over to vote for EN, he's not included. And it's not a simple oversight, he's knowingly excluded. "Some chaps like Bill Murray and Edward Norton aren't listed because, well, they have PR problems within the industry and winning would be difficult for them, though not impossible." Feel free to leave Mr O'Neil a comment about your choice. The Gold Derby

Screening

Last night EN attended a screening of I Love You, Man hosted by The Cinema Society and Details at Tribeca Grand Screening Room in NYC.

I normally don't report what EN does in his free time, but there's not a whole lot going on right now. His next scheduled appearance is a black tie gala celebration. EN and Queen Noor will receive Global Environmental Citizen Awards from Harvard Medical School's Center for Health and the Global Environment.Tickets start at $1,000. On Tuesday, Primal Fear: Hard Evidence edition will be coming out on href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B001NY4X46/unofficialedward">DVD and Blu-Ray.

Primal Fear

Entertainment Tonight has an interview clip of EN talking about getting an audition for Primal Fear {Thanks to Robin for the info!!!} . A new edition of the film will be coming out on DVD and Blu-Ray on March 10th. It has several new features: a commentary by director Greg Hoblit, writer Ann Biderman, executive producers Gary Luchessi and Hawk Koch, casting director Deborah Aquila and three new featurettes (Primal Fear: The Final Verdict, Primal Fear: Star Witness, Psychology of Guilt) along with the theatrical trailer. The ET interview clip probably came from one of the featurettes because it has "Courtesy Paramount Home Entertaiment". Buy the Primal Fear: Hard Evidence DVD or the Blu-Ray edition from Amazon.com

Campi ya Kanzi

The Conde Nast Daily Traveler has an article about some savings on safaris at Campi ya Kanzi in Kenya. It mentions that EN is a frequent visitor. EN has helped raise money for the Maasai Wilderness Conservation Trust through the Cartier Love campaign and other fundraisers.

Forbes Star Currency list, Watchmen

EN ranks 60th on Forbes Star Currency list. The list looks at the bankability of an actor based on rankings by entertainment industry members. EN's Star Currency Page Hollywood's Most Valuable Actors [Thanks to Robin for the info!!!]

A story on the upcoming film Watchmen revealed that EN was once considered for the role of Rorschach. CNN: 'Watchmen' finally ticks toward big-screen release

Inauguration and Inaugural Balls

Last night, EN attended the Creative Coalition 2009 Inaugural Ball. There is a photo up on WENN. EN also attended the HuffPost Inaugural Ball and signed autographs outside the ball. There are photos up on HipCelebrity The Baltimore Sun has an article on people's stories from the Inauguration, including celebrity sightings. According to some unnamed woman, EN was in her section and it was a standing section not a seated one.

The reason why I'm not posting even a thumbnail of the DC photos is because of the way they're taken. These aren't the smiling red carpet photos, these are stalkarazzi photos. TMZ.com posted a short video of EN. The claim it makes him look bad. But it really shows the kind of crap he has to put up with from these kind of photographers. He's polite at first but they don't let up.

It's really a shame that this is the only coverage that he's getting. He was an early supporter of the campaign, contributed a lot of money, and is an executive producer of a untitled documentary on President Obama that has been bought by HBO and is supposed to air sometime in the spring.

I would love to hear him talk about his reaction to the inaugural speech. His description of how he felt about hearing Obama's speech at the 2004 Democratic Convention captures the way I and many other people felt when they first heard President Obama speak.

"We were all so struck by Barack’s speech and talked about how exciting it was to see someone from our generation, not our parents’, make his presence felt in such an inspiring way," Norton told Daily Variety. "It was akin to the way I remembered my dad describing how he felt when Kennedy gave his inauguration speech. "At the time, he was the new senator from Illinois. None of us had voted for him or contributed to his campaigns. None of us was saying, ‘I want to back this guy for president.’ It was more this generational experience, of seeing someone we felt represented us in a very unique and fresh way, and the desire to explore what would happen to the first person our age who staked a claim to national leadership."

EN in DC

WENN has posted two pics of EN in DC the night before the inauguration.

CNN.com posted a story about middle schoolers from Georgia who participated in some of the inaugural events. It mentions that they saw EN at a luncheon.

Global Environmental Citizen Awards, Pride and Glory DVD

EN and Queen Noor will receive Global Environmental Citizen Awards from Harvard Medical School's Center for Health and the Global Environment.Tickets for the black tie gala celebration start at $1,000. "All proceeds from the event support the Center's efforts to understand and educate others about the human health connections to the environment." [Thanks to Robin for the info!!!]

Pride and Glory will be released Tuesday Jan 27 on DVD. There are three different versions. A single disc version, a two disc Special Edition, and a Blu-ray version. Both the Special Edition and the Blu Ray have the "comprehensive" documentary "Source of Pride: The Making of 'Pride and Glory'. There are no other special features. BluRay.com describes the documentary in their review:

a 67-minute documentary that digs into the early stages of the project, the development of the script, and almost every aspect of the production. Shot using a candid, fly-on-the-wall style and presented in standard definition, Source of Pride offers dozens of interviews, extensive glimpses behind the scenes, and a particular focus on the amount of work that went into making the film feel authentic and realistic. It's arguably more engaging than the film itself and I was thoroughly entertained by every minute. Whether you love or hate Pride and Glory, I would strongly suggest giving this elaborate documentary a spin.

Purple Ball, Good Steward Award

EN is supposed to be one of the guests at Tuesday's Inaugural Purple Ball Arizona Republic: Hollywood delegation answers inaugural roll call [Thanks to Robin for the info!!!]

EN is also exepcted at Monday's gala by the International Conservation Caucus Foundation where EN will be receiving the good steward award for "his personal conservation efforts." NY Times: Torn Between Green Galas? At Least They’re a Walk Apart

National Board of Review

The National Board of Review award ceremony was held last night at Cipriani in New York. The LA Times had and artice on it and reported the following:

Actor Edward Norton presented his "Fight Club" (1999) director David Fincher with the NBR's best director award for "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button." He delivered an applause line -- "I exhort you to see his latest film on the big screen -- it's a masterpiece of big screen filmmaking" -- after which he paused, was somewhat awkwardly not greeted with any applause, and moved on.

Rounders Blu-ray

The HD Room reports that Rounders will be released on Blu-ray on April 14.

Rethinking the Oscars

Entertainment Weekly's Jan 16 issue (William Petersen cover) has an article entitled "And the Oscar Should Have Gone To..." EW asked agents, producers, directors, actors and other film professionals as well as vistors to the EW.com website to vote on who they felt deserved the Oscar for the major categories for specific years (5, 10, 15, 20 and 25 years ago). The reason that they give for the survey was "to see which films and performances really have endured, divorced from the heat of the race and the price of the Oscar campaigns." In 1998, Robert Benigni won the Oscar for actor in a leading role for his performance in Life is Beautiful. In the recall vote, EN received the vote of the industry professionals as well as the EW.com visitors:

29%- Edward Norton
American History X

23%- Robert Benigni
Life is Beautiful.

22%- Tom Hanks
Saving Private Ryan

20%- Ian McKellen
Gods and Monsters

6%- Nick Nolte
Affliction

EW.com Winner: Edward Norton

Keri Russell on EN

The National Ledger has an interview with Leaves of Grass co-star Keri Russell and she talks about working with EN:

Get ready for a very funny Edward Norton in the upcoming "Leaves of Grass" feature, to hear costar Keri Russell tell it: "I had a hard time not cracking up in some scenes. I couldn't control myself." "Leaves of Grass" is the comedy from Tim Blake Nelson that has Norton playing twins -- one an Ivy League classics professor, the other a career criminal with a fondness for pot.

Speaking of Norton, Keri notes, "You expect him to be good, smart and cerebral, but he's also so much fun in this. Mostly I did scenes with the professor guy, but I did witness both of them. The other guy is so likeable, crazy and wacky -- this white trash, backwoods guy who sings songs. He's so great."