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HAIL CAESAR
 Jim Childs took center stage in his custom made toga and laurel wreath and discussed the history of the toga.  The toga is a simple garment, which can be draped over the shoulder, but was also an item that demanded honor and respect.  The color of the toga denoted a Roman citizen’s social status.  The most coveted toga colors were the green and red striped “Gucci” pattern.  Women were not allowed to wear togas.  The popularity of the toga faded when the armored mini-skirt/helmet fad swept the fashion world.
 Following the presentation, Jim gave out door prizes – movie T-shirts, hats, posters and laurel wreaths.
 Thanks for the show, Jim!  It was lots of fun!!   Hope you are feeling better!
 
LIFE OF BWIAN
 Once again, the movie vote was tied, but one vote was all it took to push LIFE OF BRIAN in the lead ahead of HISTORY OF THE WORLD, VOL 1.  This Monty Python film was about a lad named Brian who grew up the same as Jesus Christ did.  Of course, the Pythons, irreverent as ever, skewered Romans, prophets and space aliens.   Those who had seen the film several times laughed along with those who were viewing this cult classic for the first time.
 
NEWS OF OUR NEXT MEETING
 *** NOT THE LAST SATURDAY!!!  NOT THE LAST SATURDAY!!!***
 Our next meeting will be held on Saturday March 19th at 5:30 P.M. at the church hall behind the Perry Hall Presbyterian Church located at 8848 BelAir Road. Take Baltimore Beltway exit 32 north on Belair Road. Turn left onto Joppa Road. Immediately past the miniature golf course turn left into the parking lot. If you miss it there are ample turn-around opportunities. If you get stuck call 443-570-6455. That's Dave Willard’s cell phone. He'll talk you in.   

HAIL MURPHY!!
     While we’re hailing Caesar, how about one for John Ward, who’s served as food coordinator for the past 4 months and another hail for Barry Murphy who will be filling John’s shoes, taking names and kicking butt as the new food co-ordinator. 
Thanks for handling this thankless job for so long, John!  And thanks Barry for stepping up to help the club with this new responsibility!  Good Luck!!!

TSUNAMI RELIEF - UPDATE
The ICS is having a pledge drive from now until May to collect funds to donate to the Save The Children Tsunami relief charity.  There will be a cigar box at the March, April and May meetings where donations may be dropped.  We are accepting checks made out to “Save the Children” (put "Tsunami Relief" in the memo line).  Your cancelled check is your receipt if you want to include it as a 2005 charitable donation.   Save the Children told us that they will also try to send individual receipts to those who send checks.  We are also accepting cash in the cigar box and paypal over the net (to ICSFILM@HOTMAIL.COM).  Regina can provide a receipt for any cash or paypal donations, but we do not know if the IRS will accept an ICS receipt as proof of a charitable donation.   

If you’d like to donate, but cannot attend a meeting, please send checks payable to “Save the Children”/memo line “Tsunami Relief” to:
 Regina Vallerani 
 1 E Chase St Apt 405
 Baltimore, MD 21202
We will hold all donations until after the May meeting.  Then, we will bundle your individual checks and write a check from the ICS checking acct for cash/paypal donations and send them to Save the Children on behalf of ICS.  
Joe Plempel has generously agreed to match up to $1000 of funds donated by club members.  Thanks, Joe! 
 

BONE MARROW DONATIONS – ANOTHER REMINDER
      Sue Feder spoke to us about a new initiative for bone marrow donation sponsored by John Hopkins. You may have finally come to terms with your childhood fantasy - your dream of becoming a superhero may never come to pass.  But, that doesn't mean that you can't be a real-life hero.  A little discomfort on your part might mean someone gets to spend a lifetime with their family that otherwise would have been denied to them.

The Fifth Annual Type for Life Marrow Registration Drive 

Monday, March 8. The Johns Hopkins Hospital, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Broadway corridor 
Tuesday, March 9. School of Nursing, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Carpenter Room 
Wednesday, March 10. School of Public Health, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Anna Baetjer Room 
Thursday, March 11. School of Medicine, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., 113 Preclinical Teaching Building 
Friday, March 12. The Johns Hopkins Hospital, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Broadway Corridor 

Registration requires a driver's license and the addresses and phone numbers of two contacts not living with registrant. Those typed previously may update contact information at 410-955-6347. 
For more information, e-mail LeonC@jhu.edu, call 410-502-7716 or go to www.typeforlife.org. 

HORRORFIND
   It looks like we're going to be participating in the Horrorfind convention from August 19-21. We'll need folks to staff the table. We will be passing out a list to see who’s interested in helping out and who can confirm to a time.  
 We will also be collecting movies to sell at Horrorfind.  No books or collectible figures or toys, please.  Those items are harder to sell and take up more space.  Again, movies only please. 
MONTH OF THREE WILL BRING QT
  Donna Burke, who last shared her life-long love for Christopher Lee with us, turns to director Quentin Tarantino for her March presentation and movie.  WARNING: whichever film we choose to watch is bound to be a hard ‘R’ rated film.  Please use discretion in bringing any impressionable youngsters or easily offended adults as guests to this meeting.  
2006 CALENDAR NEWS
 For 2006, we are trying a new approach with the Calendar theme – call it Pot Luck.  The months and front and back covers are for sale to members for a fee.  If you decide to purchase a month, you must provide a movie still by the August meeting (nothing objectionable please – some calendars are kept in places where young, impressionable children can see them).  You will get credit on the calendar for that month.  The Front Cover, and months March, June, September and December are $15 and are color months.  The back cover and remaining months are $10 each and will be printed in black and white.  Here is the current month status:
   JANUARY  Dave Willard
   FEBRUARY  John Ward
   MARCH  Steve Vaught
   APRIL   open
   MAY   open
   JUNE   Lisa Schilling
   JULY   open
   AUGUST  open
   SEPTEMBER  Andrew Kent
   OCTOBER  open
   NOVEMBER  Jim & Betsy Childs
   DECEMBER  Masked Auctioneer & Minimum Bid Kid
   BACK COVER Sue Feder
 2005 Calendars are still available for those who have reserved them.  See Regina at the next meeting to pick up yours.

CALENDARS FOR 2007:
    We caught a lucky break for 2007. The very talented artist, FRANK DIETZ, has allowed us to use his images for our 2007 calendar, gratis (as long as they don't wind up on e-Bay). If you'd like to see a sample of his amazing art go to http://www.sketchythings.com/
 
 

DUES NEWS
  It’s time to renew your dues.  The Cost is $25 per person or $40 per couple.  Family memberships are available at $25 for the initial family member and $15 each for the second to nth family member.
 Dues can be paid in one of the following 3 ways:
Cash or Check to Regina at a meeting
Mail a check to Regina at:  
REGINA VALLERANI
1 E CHASE ST APT 405
BALTIMORE, MD 21202
Via Paypal to ICSFILM@HOTMAIL.COM.  There is a Paypal link from the ICS Website (WWW.ICSFILM.NET).
 This is the list of people who have paid their dues.  If you have paid your dues, but are not on this list, please contact Regina at RVALLER107@HOTMAIL.COM to correct the omission.
Rick Arnold
Joe Auslander
Donna Burke
Jim Childs
Betsy Childs
Suzanne Cooper
Sam DiBlasi
Troy Farwell
Sue Feder
Heather Fleming
Kyra Fleming
Tim Fleming
Peggy Gervasio
Ralph Gervasio
Diane Gervasio
Dave Henderson
Andrew Kent
Kelly Klein
Mitch Klein
Mike Laird
Jean Matcovich
Barry Murphy
Robert Ostrosky
Skip Phillips
Joe Plempel
Norman Prentiss
Justin Proveaux
Tom Proveaux
Rick Rieve
Gary Roberson
Ruth Roberson
Dava Sentz
Lisa Schilling
Mike Schilling
Sue Ellen Sherblom
Blake Sherblom-Woodward
Taylor Sherblom-Woodward
Richard Smith
Courtney Spies
Jack Tydings
John Ward
John Ward (son)
John Weber
Tom Woodward
Regina Vallerani
Teeka Vallerani
Beth Vaught
Steve Vaught
Neil Wagenfer
Dave Willard
Charlie Wittig
 

SO YOU WANT MORE ICS?   BE A PART OF THE ICS MESSAGE BOARD!

   What a wonderful club we have, meeting people that are interested in some of the same things you are – movies, TV shows and then willing to talk about them ad nauseaum!
   Well, it doesn’t have to be just once a month either! 
   Come to the ICS message board and join up, then you can stop in, read and comment on the threads or create your own – the ICS message boards can be a fun daily addiction.
   The Message board is a great way to talk about movies you have just seen or tv shows that are on or DVD’s you have picked up and want to share with others and just can’t wait until the meeting to expound about. 
   It is divided into sections for TV & Movie talk, DVD talk and then just General discussion where we can bring up anything. We have a lot of laughs and want to encourage our members to join up- the more the merrier!
   Charlie was even nice enough to write up some instructions on ‘how to join up’ for anyone slightly befuddled.  It is pretty easy and once you are a member there you can log in at any time and read the message board and share your views. 

ICS Forum Registration Instructions

1. Go to our website, www.icsfilm.net and then up at the top, click on ICS forum box. This takes you right to the forum page. On the ICS Forum page, look for the link in the upper right under the picture that says: Register Your Free Account (Required). Click it.

2. Choose Global Account if you want to use other Ezboard forums.   Choose Local Account if you just plan to use the ICS Forum.  You will probably have a better chance to pick the user name you want using the Local Account option.

3. Type in the desired user name, password, and retype the password.  Pick a “secret question” which will help if you forget your password.  Fill out the rest of the profile information then submit the application.

4. If you get a page that has “Free Sponsors” with check boxes, click the “No thanks” link on the bottom right side of the page. You will be registered.

5. Check your email for a validation message that reads something like this:
Your ezboard User Account is ready!
To validate your free ezboard.com account, please click 
on the URL below. You will also receive a second email 
with your User Name and Password once you are validated.
6. Follow the instructions for the validation link and you will be registered.  You’ll also get another email with information like your user name and password.  Just remember, that if you have a GLOBAL account, you only have to type in the user name.  If you have a LOCAL account, you have to type in the user name followed by @theicsmessageboard
Example: elmerfudd@theicsmessageboard.

If you need help, email Charlie Wittig at charliewittig@verizon.net
tv news tv news tv news the glass teat tv news tv news tv news
  
MCMAHON’S RETURN IS CHARMED
Julian McMahon, who will reprise the role of Cole in an upcoming episode of The WB's CHARMED, told SCI FI Wire that his reappearance bookends his involvement with the show. "I loved working on the show," McMahon (Fantastic Four) said. "And I love playing that character. And the show and the show runners and that character really kind of gave me a lot as far as an actor is concerned. And I feel like where I'm at now is really attributed to what they allowed me to do on CHARMED. ... And so for me going [back] is a no-brainer." 
   McMahon returns as Cole Turner, the half-human/half-demon ex-husband of Phoebe Halliwell (Alyssa Milano). Though Cole died in an earlier episode, his spirit will meet Piper's (Holly Marie Combs) in the cosmic space between life and death, where he will help reunite her with Leo (Brian Krause. 
   Since leaving CHARMED, McMahon has gained fame as one of the stars of F/X's NIP/TUCK and will soon appear as the villainous Dr. Doom in the upcoming FANTASTIC FOUR  movie. 
   But there is a certain symmetry to his guest appearance on the show where he first got noticed, he said. "It's their 150th episode," he said. "I was killed in the 100th, and I come back in the 150th. I'll go back for the 200th if they have one. And if I was asked. But, you know, it was just ... a great character to play. It was great fun going back and [filling] those shoes again. It really was." The 150th episode, "The Seven Year Witch," is slated to air in April. 

4400 GEARS UP FOR YEAR 2
   USA Network's highly rated SF series THE 4400 will begin production on its second season soon and returns to the cable network in June. The show, about 4,400 people presumed missing or dead who return to Earth looking exactly as they did when they disappeared, is scheduled to premiere June 5. 
   When it comes back, THE 4400 will pick up six months after the events of the first season, with Homeland Security agent Tom Baldwin (Joel Gretsch) having been reinstated to his job and continuing to investigate the returnees with partner Diana Skouris (Jacqueline McKenzie). 
   Other cast members returning for the show's second season include Patrick Flueger (Shawn Farrell), Mahershalalhashbaz Ali (Richard Tyler), Laura Allen (Lily Moore), Chad Faust (Kyle) and Conchita Campbell (Maia). 

SCIENCE MADE DRAGONS REAL
   Charlie Foley, creator of the upcoming Animal Planet documentary DRAGONS: A FANTASY MADE REAL, said that the program applies scientific fact to suggest how the mythological beasts might have lived throughout history. "This is something that the special definitely tries to honor, rather than just being [a] pure flight of fancy," Foley said. "Everything that we imagine in each of the dragons is inspired by something that is real biology or real behavior or real natural history." 
   Foley said the biggest obstacle was understanding how dragons might have survived the Cretaceous Tertiary extinction, or "KT event," that wiped out almost all life on Earth 65 million years ago. "In the KT event, the big animals that actually made it out alive were the ones that were marine or aquatic or otherwise escaped through the sea," Foley said. "So we're telling the story of dragons who were contemporaries of the dinosaurs. That's really the only way that they would have made it out, and so nature kind of led us along the way all the way." 
   Foley said that the producers of the show approached the animals from a biological, rather than fictional, perspective. "Even though we're telling one of humankind's oldest stories, the way that we are doing it is that we are imagining them as real animals, and our guide throughout the process has been real natural history. 
   “Kevin [Mohs] and I have worked at Animal Planet for a while and have worked on natural history documentaries before that, so we have a lot of interest [in] that area of the natural world, and we brought in scientific advisors as well who helped us come to a vision of what these animals would be like, how they would have to have behaved, and then, really, actually it gave a real identity to each of the animals, because we knew we had to honor that nature that we wanted to incorporate into it." 
 
TREK FANS CLAIM BIG PLEDGE
Fans of UPN's soon-to-be-canceled STAR TREK: ENTERPRISE formally announced that three anonymous contributors have pledged $3 million to a fund to finance a proposed fifth season of the show. The TrekUnited.com Web site reported that the promised contribution will come from "investors" in "the commercial space flight industry." 
   The fan group also published a statement from the prospective donors, which read in part: "We ... would like to testify that at least one out of two of all the actual entrepreneurs involved in this industry has been inspired by STAR TREK, and we are not only good at watching TV sci-fi , we are also good at writing checks. Big checks. " 
   TrekUnited said that money raised will be used for "anything that will guarantee a fifth season of STAR TREK: ENTERPRISE." Fans have previously estimated that it would cost about $36 million to outright finance a fifth season of the show. 
 
GALACTICA RETURNS THIS SUMMER
SCI FI Channel announced that the second season of its hit original series BATTLESTAR GALACTICA will premiere this summer, with 20 new episodes. The channel added that the entire ensemble cast will return for season two, including Edward James Olmos, Mary McDonnell, Katee Sackhoff, Jamie Bamber, James Callis, Tricia Helfer and Grace Park. Also resuming their roles are executive producer and writer Ronald D. Moore and executive producer David Eick. 
   GALACTICA will resume production in Vancouver, B.C., in March and will again anchor the channel's SCI FI Friday block of prime-time original series. 
   The series, which premiered on Jan. 14, has been averaging over 3 million viewers per episode and has quickly become SCI FI's highest-rated original series and has received unprecedented critical acclaim. GALACTICA airs Fridays at 10 p.m. ET, part of the channel's successful SCI FI Friday lineup, which also includes STARGATE SG-1 ATLANTIS.  GALACTICA ends its first season with a finale episode on April 1. 
movienews movienews  Silver Screen  movienews movienews

Babylon 5 Movie Has Dead Ended
 In December, there were reports that Steven Beck was going to direct a big screen adaptation of the popular sci-fi TV series Babylon 5 starting in April. The movie, titled The Memory of Shadows, was intended for theatrical release and was written by series creator J. Michael Straczynski. Now, Straczynski has revealed that the project won't be happening. Here’s a portion of his statement on the matter:
 “In the end, however, the deal could [not] be put together, and it did not look as if that was going to change at any point in the foreseeable future. So the option has reverted, and to all intents and purposes, the project has dead ended. Nor do I think this particular incarnation will arise again at any point in the future, though prognostication has always been a tricky art, especially if you have to do it without the benefit of hindsight.”

Mike Werb on Tekken & Face/Off 2
 Screenwriter Mike Werb recently confirmed that footballer Brian White is in talks for a lead role in the big screen adaptation of video game Tekken.
 "You can't go too far off the map when you're working with a film that’s source material is a computer game. The idea here is to make a realistic movie out of an unrealistic stencil," says Werb. "You get guys like White, and whoever else, and suddenly you've got people that look like they belong in the world...What we hope to do with Tekken is to entertain both those who have played the game, and those that haven't - there's got to be more than effects and skirmishes on screen to hold an audience".
 Werb has also had talks with director John Woo about writing a follow-up to 1997's hit action-thriller Face/Off, which starred John Travolta and Nicolas Cage. "Initially, it was just a similar idea, then we decided we might as well make it a sequel, not a direct sequel, but a sequel all the same. Imagine two females in the Nic and John roles and we're bound for a good time". Werb said he's already suggested Angelina Jolie, as "There's no going past her".
 Werb added that he has written a treatment for a new version of Double Dragon as well.

Russell & Kretschmann Head to Butterfly
 Former Felicity star Keri Russell will star in Butterfly, a Grimm Love Story, an independent horror feature based on the “Internet cannibal movement.” Russell will play an American student who is in Germany researching the life of a cannibal killer (played by Thomas Kretschmann) for her graduate thesis. She becomes obsessed with him and plunges into a deeply alienated lifestyle. 
 The film will be shot in Germany with production beginning in March. It will be directed by Martin Weisz, who is best known for shooting music videos for Korn and Sean Combs.

Paramount Pictures Turns Invincible
 Paramount Pictures has bought film rights to Robert Kirkman's teen-superhero comic Invincible and set up the potential franchise starter with Paramount-based Lorenzo Di Bonaventura and Circle of Confusion.
 Kirkman will write the film's story, based on the bestselling Image Comics series about the coming of age of teen Mark Grayson, son of the world's most powerful superhero. The story will focus on the father/son dynamic during the time that the son, who appears to be a normal teen, begins to exhibit his father's powers.
 Di Bonaventura is a producer on Warner Bros.' Constantine and Universal's Doom, due out this summer. Circle of Confusion is producing Magic Kingdom for Sale and Jinx at Universal and Awful End at Warner Bros.

Stefen Fangmeier Directing Eragon 
 Visual effects supervisor Stefen Fangmeier will make his directorial debut this summer on Eragon, based on the Christopher Paolini-penned bestselling fantasy novel about a youth whose discovery of a dragon egg leads him to become a knight and battle an evil king. The medieval-set tale revolves around a farm boy who learns he is the last of a breed of benevolent Dragon Riders, whose magical powers derived from their bond with the beasts.
 Peter Buchman (Jurassic Park III) adapted the Fox 2000 feature. Fangmeier, who most recently supervised the effects of Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events, will shoot on location in Europe in July.

Hampton Makes a Strange Deal
 New Line Cinema has set Christopher Hampton (Dangerous Liaisons) to adapt Susanna Clarke's novel Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell. The story concerns a magician and his apprentice who use their powers in the war against Napoleon but are eventually pitted against each other. The project is one of several epic-sized fantasy book adaptations being mobilized by a studio looking to reload after The Lord of the Rings.
 New Line is further ahead on The Golden Compass, the first installment of the Philip Pullman fantasy trilogy His Dark Materials. A director will be named soon to replace Chris Weitz, who wrote the last draft of the script. New Line will get a first draft adaptation of the Cornelia Funke novel Inkheart from screenwriter David Lindsay-Abaire in May.

Sossamon and Pink Enter the Catacombs 
 Twisted Pictures, the genre division of Evolution Entertainment, and Lions Gate Films, the motion picture acquisition, production and distribution arm of Lions Gate Entertainment, announced that Catacombs will be the first picture in their new nine-picture financing and distribution deal together. Starring Shannyn Sossamon (A Knight's Tale) and Alecia Moore aka “Pink“, the film is co-written and co-directed by David Elliot and Tomm Coker and will begin principal photography in Bucharest, Romania on March 7th. 
 Catacombs is the story of a young woman on her first visit out of the country. While in Paris, she is taken to an underground party in the Catacombs, a labyrinth of over 200 miles of 14th Century limestone tunnels under the Left Bank of the city, lined with the remains of 7 million people. When she is separated from her friends and becomes convinced that someone or something is chasing her, her vacation becomes a terrifying nightmare.
 "The stories we are attracted to tend to deal with universal fears -- being trapped, being lost, claustrophobia, etc.," said Twisted's Burg, Koules and Hoffman. "Coker and Elliot's Catacombs script deals with them all, and is set in a location that is truly one of the most terrifying on earth."
 Making his feature film directorial and writing debut with Catacombs, Tomm Coker previously wrote and directed the short A Day Between. In addition, Coker is a prolific illustrator in the comic book and graphic novel world, having drawn such characters as Wolverine from the X-Men series and Batman. He also co-created the comic-book series Blood and Water.

Nicolas Cage's Next is The Wicker Man 
 Nicolas Cage's next picture will be director Neil LaBute's remake of 1973 thriller The Wicker Man, with Millennium Films, Equity Pictures and Emmett/Furla Films producing. LaBute adapted the screenplay, in which a sheriff investigates the disappearance of a young girl on a remote island off the coast of Maine. His hopes of unraveling the girl's disappearance become increasingly uncertain when he discovers evidence of pagan rituals.
 The movie will begin production July 15 in Vancouver. Cage is currently shooting comic book adaptation Ghost Rider in Melbourne.

Stephen Rea Aboard V For Vendetta 
 Stephen Rea (Interview With the Vampire, The Crying Game) has joined Natalie Portman and James Purefoy in the action thriller V For Vendetta, which has launched production in Berlin, Germany. Produced by Joel Silver, Andy Wachowski and Larry Wachowski, V For Vendetta is directed by James McTeigue, who served as the First Assistant Director on the Wachowski brothers' Matrix trilogy. 
 Set against the futuristic landscape of totalitarian Britain, V For Vendetta tells the story of a mild-mannered young woman named Evey (Portman) who is rescued from a life-and-death situation by a masked vigilante (Purefoy) known only as "V." Incomparably charismatic and ferociously skilled in the art of combat and deception, V ignites a revolution when he detonates two London landmarks and takes over the government-controlled airwaves, urging his fellow citizens to rise up against tyranny and oppression. As Evey uncovers the truth about V's mysterious background, she also discovers the truth about herself -- and emerges as his unlikely ally in the culmination of his plot to bring freedom and justice back to a society fraught with cruelty and corruption. 
 The screenplay by Andy Wachowski and Larry Wachowski is based on the acclaimed graphic novel V For Vendetta by Alan Moore (Watchmen, From Hell) and illustrator David Lloyd. Originally published by DC Comics as a ten-part series in 1988, V For Vendetta has been praised for its vision, potency and eloquence. Moore is widely considered to be one of the finest comic writers of all time, and has been credited with single-handedly expanding the potential of the comic book medium with his work. 
 A UK-German co-production between Warner Bros. Productions Ltd. and Funfte Babelsberg Film GmbH, V For Vendetta will be filmed on location in Berlin and London. V For Vendetta is supported by the local subsidy fund Medienboard Berlin-Brandenburg. V For Vendetta will be released on November 4, 2005, by Warner Bros. Pictures. 

Brad Anderson in Talks for The Crazies
 Scott Kosar, screenwriter of Paramount's The Crazies, says that the studio is in talks with Brad Anderson to direct the remake of George Romero's horror-thriller. Anderson and Kosar last teamed-up for The Machinist, which starred Christian Bale.
 "I don't know if it's going to happen just yet, but they're talking about it," said Kosar, "My producers really loved The Machinist and Brad is super-talented, and they think we have good creative energy together, which we do."
 The film will update the storyline of the 1972 original, in which inhabitants of a small Pennsylvania town are beset by death and insanity after a plane crash lets loose a secret biological weapon into the water supply. Kosar's credits include New Line's The Texas Chainsaw Massacre and MGM/Dimension's upcoming remake of The Amityville Horror.
 

RESULTS OF THE ICS OSCAR POOL 

And now, without further ado, the 2005 ICS Oscars Pool Outcome – a drum roll please…

5. Dave Hendo (8 picks)

4. (Tie) Barry Murphy
Regina (9 picks)

3. (Tie) Mike Schilling
Sue Feder
Dave Willard (12 picks)

2. Mitch (14 picks)

And the winner...

1. John Ward(15 picks)

It was a nail-biter right down to the last two awards. 

John Ward can chalk his second straight Oscars pool win up to four simple words: Clint Eastwood -- Best Director!! 
Out of eight participants, he was the only Eastwood backer against 7 Scorsese fans. So here's a tip, folks: Never bet against the Director's Guild winner!! 

And weren’t we all happy that there were no hobbits involved this year... 
 

IMAGINATIVE CINEMA COMING SOON
MUST SEE MOVIES FOR ICS MEMBERS LIKEYOU!
 
MARCH 11th      ROBOTS
Cast: Ewan McGregor, Halle Berry, Robin Williams, Mel Brooks.
Premise: Set on a world populated entirely by robots, this is the story of a young genius, Rodney (Ewan McGregor), who wants to make robots capable of making the world a better place, but he finds his dream challenged by a corporate tyrant and a master inventor, Big Weld (Mel Brooks), while also being seduced by a sexy corporate robot, Cappy (Halle Berry). 

MARCH 18th     THE RING 
Cast: Naomi Watts (Rachel Keller), Simon Baker (Max Rourke), David Dorfman 
(Aidan Keller), Sissy Spacek 
Premise: Investigative reporter Rachel Keller (Watts) and her son 
Aidon (Dorfman) move away from the big city life of Seattle to the small 
town of Asheville, Oregon. Soon enough, however, Rachel discovers a case in 
which those pesky tapes seem to be up to their seven-days-later-you-will-die 
shenanigans, even as developments arise which threaten her relationship with 
her son. Returning to Seattle to investigate the case of Samara Morgan (the 
ghost girl from the first movie), Rachel begins to uncover secrets behind 
the entire phenomenon.

APRIL 1st     SIN CITY  
Cast: Josh Hartnett (Employee), Marley Shelton (Customer), Mickey Rourke 
(Marv), Jamie King (Wendy/Goldie), Bruce Willis (John Hartigan), Jessica 
Alba (Nancy), Elijah Wood (Kevin)
Premise: Sin City is a violent city where the police department is as 
corrupt as the streets are deadly. In this movie, we follow three stories, 
the central of which is Marv, a tough-as-nails and nearly impossible to kill 
street fighter who goes on a rampage of vengeance when a beautiful woman, 
Goldie (King), he sleeps with for only one night is killed while lying in 
bed with him. Based on a comic/graphic novel.

APRIL 8th     THE CAVE    
Cast: Morris Chestnut (Buchanan), Eddie Cibrian (Tyler), Kieran Darcy-Smith 
(Vince Strode), Cole Hauser (Jack),  Brian Steele (Creature)
Premise: A rescue team is sent down into the world's largest cave system to 
try to find the spelunkers who first explored its depths. But when the 
group's escape route is cut off, they are hunted by the monstrous creatures 
that live down below

DVD DVD WHAT IS NEW AND OUT AND ABOUT DVD DVD

SUPERMAN, SUPERHERO
   They got Jerry Ordway to draw the covers of the Superman: The Man of Steel trade paperbacks featuring the John Byrne-led Superman revamp era stories (Byrne was doing both Superman and Action, while Ordway was working with writer Marv Wolfman on Adventures). It's great to have these stories finally being collected in chronological order incorporating all 3 titles, as it really was the high-water mark of Superman's post-Crisis run. Volume 3 (DC Comics, $19.95 SRP – Titan Books, £12.99 SRP) is currently on the shelves, featuring Superman #'s 4-6, Adventures #'s 247-249, and Action #'s 587-589. For a more recent stab at the Man of Steel, Byrne teamed up with his X-Men collaborator Chris Claremont (yes, pigs flew and an eclipse darkened the sky) for a multi-issue arc in the Justice League of America (#'s 94-99) that served as the launching point for Byrne's relaunch of the Doom Patrol, and is collected in the JLA: The Tenth Circle TPB (DC Comics, $12.95). 

SCTV AT ITS BEST
   It was during the 3rd cycle of SCTV's Network 90 NBC shows that Martin Short joined the cast. In addition, it was also the swan song for Rick Moranis and Dave Thomas, who would be moving on to better and better things, taking their massive character list (plus Bob & Doug MacKenzie) with them. Those cycle 3 shows are featured, appropriately enough, in SCTV Network 90: Volume 3 (Shout! Factory, Not Rated, DVD-$89.95 SRP). The 9 episodes featured in the 5-disc set also contain the first appearance of the polka-riffic Shmenge Brothers, Bob & Doug's "Great White North Palace" special, and Hall & Oates in "Chariots of Eggs." Bonus materials include a pair of audio commentaries, the Museum of Television & Radio panel discussion with the cast, a John Candy photo retrospective, and a discussion with the writers.

THE LOCH NESS OF SCOTLAND
Incident at Loch Ness (Fox, Rated PG-13, DVD-$27.95 SRP) is a documentary about director Werner Herzog's quest to make a film about the mystery – or lack thereof – of the infamous Loch Ness Monster. Or maybe it's a documentary about producer Zak Penn's destruction of that film. Or maybe it's really a documentary about how Herzog and Penn found something out in the Loch. Or maybe it's none of those things. That's the fun little riddle of Incident, a nesting doll of a flick that can be enjoyed on many levels – some that aren't even evident at first. The disc features an audio commentary with Herzog and Penn, deleted scenes, outtakes, featurettes, testimonials, clips, photos, and more.
 

LOST IN SPACE
   A certain "something" was lost when the various TV series that had begun their run in the 1960's made their transition to color. The Andy Griffith Show, Gilligan's Island, Bewitched… There's just some kind of intangible quality missing. Another show that went through that transition is Lost in Space, and you can see the differences for yourself in the previously available black & white first season and the two volumes comprising Season 2's transition to overwhelming color. The ride is almost over with the first volume of the shows third and final season (Fox, Not Rated, DVD-$39.95 SRP), which contains the first 15 episodes, as well as a video clip retrospective featuring reminiscences from the cast.
 

DOCTOR WHOOOOOOOOO
   The countdown to the relaunch of Doctor Who marches on, but you can keep yourself busy catching up on some of the good Doctor's past adventures – The Visitation, from the Peter Davison years, and The Green Death, from Jon Pertwee's tenure (BBC, Not Rated, DVD-$24.95 SRP each). Both releases are packed to the gills in bonus features, as we've come to expect from these Doctor Who discs, including commentaries, documentaries, interviews, and much more.
 
 
 
 

farewellsfarewellsfarewells Good bye farewellsfarewellsfarewells

Jack L. Chalker, who wrote more than 60 science-fiction and fantasy novels has died at age 60. 
He was born December 17, 1944 in Baltimore, Maryland. He grew up in Baltimore and received a Bachelor of Science degree from Towson State College and graduate degrees from Johns Hopkins University.
 His career began in his early teens with a literary magazine, Mirage that he produced on a mimeograph machine and assembled with friends on the dining-room table of his family's home. 
He was nominated at 14 for the Hugo Award for his work on this magazine, and later founded The Mirage Press Ltd.
Some of Chalker’s work includes A Jungle of Stars, The Web of Chozen, A War of Shadows,
The Four Lords of The Diamond, and such series as The Dancing God, Flux and Anchor, Changewind, The Rings of The Master, G.O.D., Inc and The Well of Souls.
“He was one of the greats in our field,” said Catherine Asaro, president of Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America Inc. “He always had something provocative to say”. 
 

Daniel O'Herlihy, the Irish-born actor whose six-decade career included an Oscar nomination for his starring role in Luis Bunuel's 1952 film The Adventures of Robinson Crusoe, has died. British director Carol Reed spotted him in a small role at the Abbey Theater and cast him in the 1947 political thriller Odd Man Out, starring James Mason.
After moving to Hollywood, O'Herlihy worked with Orson Welles and the Mercury Theatre Company. He appeared in such other films as macbeth, soldiers three, at swords point, invasion usa, the black shield of falworth, imitation of life, fail safe, the carey treatment and macarthur. He was in genre favorites halloween iii, The last starfighter, robocop I & ii and the dead. He also took roles in numerous American stage productions and television. He was 85.

Sandra Dee, the blond all-American girl next door whose star turns as Gidget and Tammy made her a teen idol in the 1960s, has died at age 62. She met Bobby Darin in 1960 when they were both cast in Come September. They were married in 1960 and divorced in 1967, Darin died in 1973. She appeared in such other films as the reluctant debutante, imitation of life, gidget, a summer place, tammy tell me true, if a man answers, take her she’s mine, that funny feeling and ICS favorite the dunwich horror.