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Heath Ledger did not get drugs from Mary-Kate Olsen, according to her lawyer

August 4th, 2008 by Scott Marks

When asked if she knew where Heath Ledger got the drugs that killed him, Mary-Kate Olsen did her best Sgt. Schultz impression by claiming, “I know nothing!”

In a statement issued on Monday, the heroin-chic moppet’s lawyer Michael C. Miller said that his client, “already provided investigators with relevant information.” People Magazine also quotes Mr. Miller as saying, ”Despite tabloid speculation, Mary-Kate Olsen had nothing whatsoever to do with the drugs found in Heath Ledger’s home or his body, and she does not know where he obtained them.” 

The statement was issued following a report, confirmed by People, that Olsen, 22, requests immunity from prosecution before she’ll agree to cooperate with a federal investigation into her close friend’s death from an accidental overdose.

The statement continued, “Regarding the government’s investigation, at Ms. Olsen’s request, we have provided the government with relevant information including facts in the chronology of events surrounding Mr. Ledger’s death and the fact that Ms. Olsen does not know the source of the drugs Mr. Ledger consumed. We don’t know the source of the information being quoted in the media regarding the government’s inquiry, but these descriptions are incomplete and inaccurate.”

The former Fill House star is one half of…well, nothing and was last seen on screen French kissing Gandhi.

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“Joker” arrested for stealing Batman memorabilia from Michigan movie theater

July 28th, 2008 by Scott Marks

Heath Ledger died for your sins!

The Smoking Gun reports that a 20-year-old man dressed as the Joker was arrested earlier today by police in Three Rivers, Michigan for attempting to steal Dark Knight posters and memorabilia from a movie theater lobby.

When I used to steal posters from theater lobbies, I never once considered dressing up as a character from the movie. Imagine me dolled up as Mongo from Blazing Saddles or sporting a Travis Bickle mohawk from Taxi Driver.

Police were called to a disturbance just after midnight and discovered the theater staff restraining Spencer Taylor, who was decked out in his finest Joker regalia. Taylor was booked on felony larceny and malicious destruction of property. Wait till the boys in Three Rivers Penitentiary get a load of him!

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Review: THE DARK KNIGHT / Christopher Nolan (2008)

July 18th, 2008 by Scott Marks

The Dark Knight (2008)
Directed by: Jonathan Nolan & Christopher Nolan
Written by: Christopher Nolan &
Starring: Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, Aaron Eckhart, Gary Oldman, Michael Caine, Maggie Gyllenhall, Morgan Freeman and Eric Roberts
Running Time: 142 min.
Aspect Ratio:

Rating: ★★★☆☆

As summer thrill rides go, it’s certainly not boring and it’s a helluva lot smarter, better put together and infinitely more watchable than Speed Racer, Indiana Jones and Hancock combined. Yet after a two-and-a-half hour trip to Gotham City, Illinois, there are these quiet feelings of indifference that are hard to buck.

With the exception of some of The Joker’s (Heath Ledger) elastic outbursts, the film takes itself far too damn seriously. Christopher Nolan has no sense of humor. I’m not asking for another helping of Tim Burton’s bat guano, the always “Socko” Adam West or, dare I mention, Joel Schumacher’s gay Ice Capades, but lighten up, Chris! This is a comic book tale about a pent-up millionaire playboy who likes to spend his evenings dressed in a latex bat costume beating guys up. Add Robin and a couple of bat poles to slide down and they could call the third installment Rough Trade. Come to think of it, maybe Joel Schumacher did have the right idea.

There were a couple of red flags in the film’s opening bank robbery sequence. After a traditional “hit the deck” spray of bullets to announce his presence, The Joker wraps a patron’s hands around a grenade and pulls the pin. What’s to stop this hapless victim from throwing it back in the Joker’s direction the minute his back is turned? (We later find out that Gotham City is loaded with makeshift vigilantes.) The same goes for bank manager William Fitchner who has a gas cannister shoved in his mouth. The detonator pin is strung to the bumper of the getaway car, and instead of spitting the smoking cylinder across the room (and possibly saving his skin) he opts for a lecture on morality as the Joker hits the accelerator.

***SPOILERS AHEAD!!!***

Continue reading Review: THE DARK KNIGHT / Christopher Nolan (2008)

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Mini-Me Verne Troyer stars in sex tape

June 25th, 2008 by Scott Marks

TMZ.com has obtained footage from a sex tape starring everyone’s favorite dwarf Verne Troyer. Since former Howard Stern wack-packer Hank Nassif drank himself to oblivion, it appears as if Troyer is vying for the prestigious title of Verne, the Angry Drunken Dwarf.

The video, undoubtedly shot on macro-cassette, depicts Troyer and his former live-in girlfriend at the couple’s apartment. Even funnier than watching Verne stick his tongue in her mouth is the copy of The Power Actor on the floor beside the bed. Who read it to him?

Mike Myers and company exploited the little lug in both Austin Powers pictures, but the high point of his career came on VH1’s The Surreal Life when a drunken Verne couldn’t control himself and peed in a corner. That’s why television was invented!

The tape saw the light of day after a third party brought it to dealer Kevin Blatt, the genius who brokered the deal for the Paris Hilton video. According to TMZ, he is entertaining a $100k offer from SugarDVD to distribute the hotness.

To see an proportionately tiny clip from the video, click here.

Story updated here.

Not into dwarf sex tapes? For a softer, more introspective Verne, check out his mini-tribute to Heath Ledger.

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Joker Heath Ledger overshadows Batman in “The Dark Knight” publicity material

April 14th, 2008 by Scott Marks

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Turning a corner at the AMC Fashion Valley in search of my boîte à chaussures du jour, I was stopped in my tracks by this grotesquerie. My PR sonar normally hones in on the lower right hand corner of a movie poster in search of a director’s credit. This time, it took a moment or two to unhook my gaze from the bloody lipstick smeared across a plastic transparency reminiscent of Marion Crane’s final ablution.

This is one creepy image made even more so when it became apparent that it was Heath Ledger posing as The Joker for this summer’s latest wrinkle in the bat cape, The Dark Knight. Nearly three months after the 29-year-old actor was found dead in his Manhattan apartment and three months before the July 22 opening of his last film, Warner Bros. has released a slew of promotional posters the majority of which feature disquieting images of the late star.

The film also features Michael Caine, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Aaron Eckhart, Morgan Freeman and, uh, oh yeah, Christian Bale reprising his role as the caped crusader, yet according to the trailer and publicity material, Ledger’s the show!

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There was even talk among greedy studio execs of using outtakes from Ledger’s Academy Award nominated performance for a prequel to be entitled Jokeback.

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Realted stories:
Do you look like Heath Ledger? If so, Hollywood is calling!
Rabbi Mel Gibson advised Heath Ledger to pass on “Brokeback Mountain” role
Starring Heath Ledger: Three Films To Remember Him By
Joker 2 Joker: Jack Nicholson “warned” Heath Ledger
Heath Ledger obituary

Photos:
Candy (2006)

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Do you look like Heath Ledger? If so, Hollywood is calling!

February 29th, 2008 by Scott Marks

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Heath Ledger in The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus

Poor Terry Gilliam can never seem to catch a break. Remember all the difficulties he had during the filming of Brazil (1985)? Gilliam tangled with studio producers over how the picture should end; the director wanted it to be downbeat while the producers insisted on the usual Hollywood sap. The studio won out and a 94 minute cut was released to theaters. Gilliam threatened to disown the film which was eventually rereleased at its proper running time of 142 min. Gilliam became so stressed that he temporarily lost the use of his legs for several weeks.

In 1999, he began work on The Man Who Killed Don Quixote with Johnny Depp, Vanessa Paradis and Jean Rochefort. The shooting halted after only a couple of days when Jean Rochefort suffered a herniated disc (that prevented him from riding a horse) and a flood leveled the set. The only thing left over from the doomed production is a $15 million insurance claim. Both Depp and Gilliam are unable to revive the project because the insurance company owns the rights to the script.

Even if he wins he loses. The director was J.K. Rowling first choice for Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (2001), but Warner Brothers studios refused to even consider him opting instead for the “more family friendly ” Chris Columbus.

Gilliam reportedly tinkered for months with The Brother Grimm while Miramax repeatedly shuffled opening dates. According to imdb.com, “In June 2004, a stalemate occurred between Bob Weinstein and Terry Gillam over the final cut of the film. Terry Gilliam decided to place the film on hold for six months.” He went on to do Tideland, which he and Harvey Weinstein also quarreled over, and came back to finish this feature in January 2005.

In January of 2007, Gilliam announced that his next feature would be The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus. One year later production ground to a halt when the film’s lead, Heath Ledger, died from an accidental overdose. According to Variety, Ledger’s participation was what got the film financed in the first place.

Ain’t It Cool News reports that instead of finishing the film with a CG Ledger, Jude Law, Colin Farrell and Johnny Depp have been recruited to replace the late actor. Cinematical quotes a studio insider reportedly saying: “There is a point in the film when Heath falls through a magic mirror. He could change into another character after that and that is where Johnny would come in.”

Gilliam still needs someone to double all of the actor’s blue screen work and a request for Ledger lookalikes has been sent out to actors’ agents.

It reads: “Please only suggest actors who look like Heath Ledger and are between five foot 11 inches and six foot three inches.”

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