CBS orders "Under The Dome" straight to series for summer 2013

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CBS is going into business with Stephen King and Steven Spielberg's Amblin Entertainment as part of its scripted push for summer 2013.

The network has ordered straight to series an adaptation of King's 2009 best-seller Under the Dome, scheduling the 13-episode effort for summer 2013, where it will join the recently revived second season of Poppy Montgomery starrer Unforgettable.

CBS Television Studios will produce the series in association with Spielberg's Amblin Television. Neal Baer (A Gifted Man, Law & Order: SVU), King, Justin Falvey, Darryl Frank, Stacey Snider and comic scribe Brian K. Vaughan (Y: The Last Man, Lost), who penned the television adaptation, will serve as executive producers. Director Niels Arden Oplev (The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, Unforgettable) will direct the first episode. Under the Dome was initially developed for CBS corporate sibling Showtime, with the project first announced in August 2011.

Based on the book about locals at a small New England town that is suddenly sealed off from the rest of the world by an enormous transparent dome, its residents must deal with surviving the post-apocalyptic conditions while searching for answers to what the barrier is, where it came from and when -- and if -- it will go away.

"This is a great novel coming to the television screen with outstanding auspices and in-season production values to create a summer programming event," CBS Entertainment president Nina Tassler said in announcing the news. "We’re excited to transport audiences Under the Dome and into the extraordinary world that Stephen King has imagined."

CBS and book publisher Simon & Schuster will cross-promote the television series and book in advance of the series' summer launch with the April re-release of the trade paperback and electronic editions of the effort. The network will also launch the series with a multiplatform window, with each installment available shortly after its original broadcast. CBS Television Distribution will handle domestic distribution, with CBS Studios International handling worldwide efforts.

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Banned Books Week 2012: Which books were most challenged

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The American Library Association (ALA) is celebrating 30 years of Banned Books Week, a movement started to support the freedom to read. Banned Books Week brings together the entire book community – librarians, booksellers, publishers, journalists, teachers, and readers of all types – in shared support of the freedom to seek and to express ideas, even those some consider unorthodox or unpopular.


Some of the most challenged books this year include some very well known authors and are currently lead by Lauren Myracle’s ttyl, ttfn, and l8r, g8r; Kim Dong Hwa’s The Color of Earth; and Suzanne Collins’s Hunger Games trilogy. The ALA says the 326 challenges reported last year represent only a fraction of all contested books.

People all over the country are celebrating the freedom of being able to read whatever they wish. Publishers, and bookstores along with the ALA are bringing awareness to this topic. The Banned Books Week (BBW) website is hosting a Virtual Read-Out where participants read aloud from banned books. Today’s featured guest is Stephen Chbosky, author of The Perks of Being a Wallflower. Across the country libraries are hosting events in celebration of these books and authors. Simon & Schuster has a webpage dedicated to all the books they’ve published that have been challenged. It also features quotes from frequently challenged authors like Judy Blume. Macmillan asked several of its authors, including Laurie Halse Anderson (Speak) and Marissa Meyer (Cinder), to bring banned books to their local libraries with personal notes that say “Read Banned Books!”

1. ttyl; ttfn; l8r, g8r (series), by Lauren Myracle

Reasons: offensive language; religious viewpoint; sexually explicit; unsuited to age group

2. The Color of Earth (series), by Kim Dong Hwa

Reasons: nudity; sex education; sexually explicit; unsuited to age group

3. The Hunger Games trilogy, by Suzanne Collins

Reasons: anti-ethnic; anti-family; insensitivity; offensive language; occult/satanic; violence

4. My Mom’s Having A Baby! A Kid’s Month-by-Month Guide to Pregnancy, by Dori Hillestad Butler

Reasons: nudity; sex education; sexually explicit; unsuited to age group

5. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, by Sherman Alexie

Reasons: offensive language; racism; religious viewpoint; sexually explicit; unsuited to age group

6. Alice (series), by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor

Reasons: nudity; offensive language; religious viewpoint

7. Brave New World, by Aldous Huxley

Reasons: insensitivity; nudity; racism; religious viewpoint; sexually explicit

8. What My Mother Doesn’t Know, by Sonya Sones

Reasons: nudity; offensive language; sexually explicit

9. Gossip Girl (series), by Cecily Von Ziegesar

Reasons: drugs; offensive language; sexually explicit

10. To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee

Reasons: offensive language; racism

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J.K. Rowling's New Novel Tackles Addiction

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The Harry Potter author's highly-anticipated novel for adults, The Casual Vacancy, depicts heroin addiction and a treatment clinic. 

In her first novel post-Harry Potter, author J.K. Rowling moves from wizards and Hogwarts to drug addiction. The New Yorker has provided the first mini-review of The Casual Vacancy, describing it as "a story of class warfare set amid semi-rural poverty, heroin addiction, and teen-age perplexity and sexuality." The tale is set in the comfortable middle-class town of "Pagford," England, which has a drug-treatment clinic that serves both the town and a neighboring area, The Fields—a neighborhood of public housing and poverty on the edge of a larger town nearby. Right-wing residents of the community seek to rid themselves of the obligation to help the struggling Fields. One of the central characters, the prostitute and drug addict Terri Weedon, is mother to a three-year-old child. The novel draws from Rowling's personal experiences of being surrounded by poverty; she says she now feels free to write "whatever the hell I like." "I am the freest author in the world," she says. "My bills are paid—we all know I can pay my bills—I was under contract to no one, and the feeling of having all of these characters in my head and knowing that no one else knew a damned thing about them was amazing… Pagford was mine, just mine, for five years. I wrote this novel as exactly what I wanted to write."

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Fifty Shades of Grey author E.L. James writing another erotic tale

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E.L. James, author of the best-selling trilogy Fifty Shades, said on Monday that she hasn’t ruled out writing a fourth book, but is focused on composing another erotic tale and also plans to write a paranormal romance.

The British author, who’s currently on a book tour in the United States, said she’s rewriting the first book she ever wrote because she just can’t seem to shake the plot line and characters from her mind.

“It’s still in my head. I want it out of my head. I want it gone,” said James, who wouldn’t reveal much about the story, other than it’s an “erotic tale” that is “more fun” than the trilogy.

“I also have another thing, which isn’t an erotic tale. It’s more of a paranormal romance, which I’d really like to do as well.”

For the uninitiated, James’ trilogy Fifty Shades of Grey, Fifty Shades Darker and Fifty Shades Freed follows the racy romance between Anastasia Steele and Christian Grey, a handsome multi-millionaire who introduces her to the erotic pleasures of BDSM (Bondage, Discipline, Domination/Submission, Sadism/Masochism).

James said that when she finished the third book, she felt she had completed the couple’s tale, saying “I left them in a really, really good place. But there seems to be lots of people clamouring for a fourth book in the trilogy,” said James, whose books have become a publishing sensation, so far selling 31 million copies worldwide.

When asked about a fourth book, she replied: “We’ll see.”

First, she said, she’d like to complete the other projects, saying, “There’s lots of voices clattering in my head.”

James made her comments at a media event in New York City where she promoted the release of Fifty Shades of Grey: The Classical Album, a 15-track compilation featuring classical pieces that inspired her while writing the book, and are referenced in the trilogy. The CD, which includes the “Flower Duet” from Lakmé, Pachelbel’s Canon in D and the aria from Bach’s Goldberg Variations, was released on Sept. 11.

James always listens to music while writing — in part because she writes in the living room and must drown out the sound of her two teenage sons watching television. But also because “music is so expressive (and) it can help set a scene,” she said, adding she has a lengthy playlist that she turns to for inspiration. When it comes to penning steamy sex scenes, she opts for “Sexy” by the Black Eyed Peas or Bruce Springsteen’s “I’m on Fire.” The partnership between EMI Classics and Random House is believed to be the first time that a CD’s release has been inspired by a book — typically, CD compilations are released in conjunction with a film.

A movie is in the works — Universal Pictures and Focus Films have purchased the rights to all three books — but EMI Classics has jumped on the bandwagon early. After all, the book’s reference to “Spem in alium,” a 16th-century motet for 40 voices by Thomas Tallis, is credited with its surge to the top of the classical charts this summer in the UK.

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Fifty Shades of Grey author E.L. James writing another erotic tale

via glooce

 

E.L. James, author of the best-selling trilogy Fifty Shades, said on Monday that she hasn’t ruled out writing a fourth book, but is focused on composing another erotic tale and also plans to write a paranormal romance.

The British author, who’s currently on a book tour in the United States, said she’s rewriting the first book she ever wrote because she just can’t seem to shake the plot line and characters from her mind.

“It’s still in my head. I want it out of my head. I want it gone,” said James, who wouldn’t reveal much about the story, other than it’s an “erotic tale” that is “more fun” than the trilogy.

“I also have another thing, which isn’t an erotic tale. It’s more of a paranormal romance, which I’d really like to do as well.”

For the uninitiated, James’ trilogy Fifty Shades of Grey, Fifty Shades Darker and Fifty Shades Freed follows the racy romance between Anastasia Steele and Christian Grey, a handsome multi-millionaire who introduces her to the erotic pleasures of BDSM (Bondage, Discipline, Domination/Submission, Sadism/Masochism).

James said that when she finished the third book, she felt she had completed the couple’s tale, saying “I left them in a really, really good place. But there seems to be lots of people clamouring for a fourth book in the trilogy,” said James, whose books have become a publishing sensation, so far selling 31 million copies worldwide.

When asked about a fourth book, she replied: “We’ll see.”

First, she said, she’d like to complete the other projects, saying, “There’s lots of voices clattering in my head.”

James made her comments at a media event in New York City where she promoted the release of Fifty Shades of Grey: The Classical Album, a 15-track compilation featuring classical pieces that inspired her while writing the book, and are referenced in the trilogy. The CD, which includes the “Flower Duet” from Lakmé, Pachelbel’s Canon in D and the aria from Bach’s Goldberg Variations, was released on Sept. 11.

James always listens to music while writing — in part because she writes in the living room and must drown out the sound of her two teenage sons watching television. But also because “music is so expressive (and) it can help set a scene,” she said, adding she has a lengthy playlist that she turns to for inspiration. When it comes to penning steamy sex scenes, she opts for “Sexy” by the Black Eyed Peas or Bruce Springsteen’s “I’m on Fire.” The partnership between EMI Classics and Random House is believed to be the first time that a CD’s release has been inspired by a book — typically, CD compilations are released in conjunction with a film.

A movie is in the works — Universal Pictures and Focus Films have purchased the rights to all three books — but EMI Classics has jumped on the bandwagon early. After all, the book’s reference to “Spem in alium,” a 16th-century motet for 40 voices by Thomas Tallis, is credited with its surge to the top of the classical charts this summer in the UK.

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Book movies: 7 novels that should be adapted

Via Glooce

Take one look at this fall's most highly anticipated movies, and you'll find a ton of exciting book adaptations: Leo Tolstoy's "Anna Karenina," Yann Martel's "Life of Pi," Victor Hugo's "Les Misérables," David Mitchell's "Cloud Atlas," and of course, J.R.R. Tolkien's "The Hobbit."

In fact, it seems that MOST of the exciting debuts past and present were adapted from well-respected or inventive novels. If you peruse The Guardian or Modern Library's lists of the best novels of all time, you'll notice that the majority have been transformed into big-screen hits (or big-screen flops, like Kurt Vonnegut's "Slaughterhouse-Five," in spite of critical and authorial acclaim).

Still, there are a few literary big-hitters that have yet to make their way to film. Franzen's "The Corrections" is a prime example - although the National Book Award-winning novel was optioned by Scott Rudin, HBO announced in May of this year that they wouldn't turn the pilot until a full series.

There are other big-wig books that are currently in the process of being adapted, such as Salman Rushdie's "MIdnight's Children" and Michael Chabon's "The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay," but Franzen's flop should remind you that it's not rare for projects to remain indefinitely in production purgatory.

Here are seven books that we'd like to see adapted into movies: 



"The Brief, Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao" by Junot Diaz
We might be biased because it's our book club pick, but we think this novel, with its romance, cultural insights and humor, would lend itself well to the screen.

Jorge Garcia (of "Lost" fame) would be the perfect Oscar Wao, and Penelope Cruz, with a little aging makeup, could play Oscar's knockout, hot-headed mother.



"Room" by Emma Donoghue
Donoghue's Booker-nominated story is about a woman who has been abducted, and her five-year-old son, who has never left the confines of the room in which they are forced to live.

A movie adaptation could either take the psychologically thriller route, or it could delve into the magical realism component of the story - Jack's imagination and ability to form positive connections with items in the room are what keep his spirit alive.

Asa Butterfield, the boy who brought "Hugo" to life, could play Jack, and Christoph Waltz could play the sinister abductor, Old Nick. 



"Bluebeard" by Kurt Vonnegut
"Slaughterhouse-Five" was adapted in 1972, but it was a box-office flop. Guillermo del Toro was rumored to be working on a remake in 2011, but his hands are tied at the moment.

We suggest an adaptation of one of Vonnegut's lesser-known works instead, such as "Bluebeard," the story of an aging Armenian artist who struggles with survivor's syndrome, romance, and his rivalry with a Jackson Pollock-like painter.

A chipper journalist makes camp in his home, pressuring him to write his memoirs, which are full of observations that could make for a pleasant, slower-paced film starring Javier Bardem.



"The Catcher in the Rye" by J.D. Salinger
Although every actor and director under the sun has been dying to partake in a "Catcher in the Rye" adaptation, Salinger was notoriously opposed to the idea. However, there is hope. In a 1957 letter, he wrote:

"Firstly, it is possible that one day the rights will be sold. Since there's an ever-looming possibility that I won't die rich, I toy very seriously with the idea of leaving the unsold rights to my wife and daughter as a kind of insurance policy. It pleasures me no end, though, I might quickly add, to know that I won't have to see the results of the transaction."

We'd love to see Andrew Garfield or Nicholas Hoult ("A Single Man," "X-Men: First Class") try to tackle Holden. 



"One Hundred Years of Solitude" by Gabriel García Márquez
Although this saga about the Buendía family would make an epic and magical film, García Márquez has never approved of offers to buy the rights to his work. Gael Garcia Bernal would make for an excellent lead as the eager and imaginative José Arcadio Buendía.



"Things Fall Apart" by Chinua Achebe
This dramatic tale about the downfall of an African society due to British colonialism, and, subsequently, one of its hyper-macho leaders, Okonkwo, would make for a tragic yet enjoyable movie.



"City of Glass" by Paul Auster
Auster's stories about a detective fiction writer who becomes a private investigator would make for a mind-bending and humorous flick. Robert Downey Jr. or James Callis could play the witty, neurotic Daniel Quinn. 


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