OTD: Ella Fitzgerald, Al Pacino, "Ziegfeld Girl," and what's new on Blu-Ray and DVD

On this day in history (4/25) as it relates to showbiz. Consider this suggestions as to things to celebrate or ponder to liven up your day. Have a great one!

1917 Today is the centennial of the great singer Ella Fitzgerald, born in Virginia one hundred years ago on this very day. She was often referred to as "the First Lady of Song" but her film career amounted to cameos like the one in St Louis Blues (1958) where she sings a song beautifully and that's it. 

She only appeared onscreen in four movies, the first of which was Ride 'Em Cowboy (1942) but as one of the 20th Century's most celebrated voices, you can hear her music in 100s of films and TV shows... 

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Shine Bright, Shine Far: The "Life-Size" Sequel We Never Knew We Needed

By Spencer Coile 

Let's journey back to 2000: Tyra Banks and Lindsay Lohan lit up the screen in the Disney Channel Original Film, Life-Size. Banks played Eve, the infamous (not to mention, ficitonal) doll who comes to life to help Casey (Lindsay Lohan) cope with the loss of her mother. In true Disney fashion, the film included zany outfits, the occasional musical number, and of course--picked up a cult following of die-hard tween fans. But for those who thought the story ended 17 years ago, think again. Freeform, the sister studio to Disney Channel, has greenlit Life-Size 2, which is expected to make its television debut in December of 2018 as a part of the studio's "25 Days of Christmas" month. 

Although the film will bring back Banks to play Eve and will supposedly be a modern-day Christmas tale, very little is known about this upcoming project. Namely, if Lindsay Lohan will return. Odds are unlikely, but die-hard fans can dream about this reunion in the meantime. Still, I cannot contain my excitement, and I hope I'm not alone. What say you, Life-Size fans? Do we need a sequel? Or for those who haven't seen the first film, are you left with a general feeling of "huh?" 

On this day: Butch Cassidy, Catherine de Medici, the '63 Oscars, and more

On this day in history as it relates to showbiz

1519 Catherine de Medici, Queen consort, born. She's been played in movies and TV by Kerry Fox, Megan Follows, Françoise Rosay, Maria Palmer, and many more but none so brilliantly as Virna Lisi in her Cannes winning performance in the sensational French epic Queen Margot (1994)

1570 Guy Fawkes born in England. V for Vendetta's "V" wears his face as a mask.

1743 Founding Father Thomas Jefferson born in Virginia. He's been played in movies and TV by actors like Nick Nolte, Jerry O'Connell, Stephen Dillane, Sam Waterston, Ken Howard, and many more...

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Animated Feature, the April Foolish Oscar Predictions

If only Laika had waited until 2017 to release Kubo and the Two Strings -they might finally have won that elusive Oscar that almost always goes to Disney or Disney/Pixar.

Owen Wilson poses with a life size McQueen for "Cars 3"

As previously discussed this year's animated slate doesn't look too promising in terms of American studio features, and there's also a complete absence of stop motion features *sniffle* from abroad as far as we can tell. What's worse, the Academy's just-announced a rule change for voting on the animated features that might well make the category less penetrable for brilliant work from across the ocean. But we'll have to wait and see if our worst fears materialize.

First Oscar Predictions for 2017's Best Animated Feature

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Review: Disney's recreation of "Beauty and the Beast"

This review was previously published in Nathaniel's column at Towleroad

Tale as old as time
True as it can be

You wouldn’t think that ‘tales as old as time’ would need so much retelling but they do. Certain properties never go away or are open to constant reinterpretation like the Shakespeare oeuvre or, well, fairy tales. A cursory bit of research reveals that there have been at least a dozen feature films or TV series from various countries based on Beauty and the Beast tale.

If you have never existed before today, here’s what you need to know: A cruel prince is cursed and transformed into a beast. If the Beast doesn’t learn to love and be loved in return by the time the last petal on a magic rose falls, the curse will become permanent. Enter a beautiful girl who could be the one to break the spell...

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