Q & A: Surprising Stars and How to Stop Category Fraud

Thanks to Pedro for suggesting we revive the "Ask Nathaniel - Q & A s". So many questions came in when I feared getting none. Let's start with Pedro since this was his idea.

Q: Of all people involved in moviemaking that you have interviewed or known, who surprised you the most and why? - Pedro

A: I wouldn't say I "know" very many people in the industry. Usually interviews are short and even if you meet the person multiple times it can be years inbetween conversations. So I'm not sure how to answer this one. As for "surprises" I will say that Jessica Chastain shocked me with a steel trap memory. I've met her three times and the third she went into detail about something we discussed the second time which was two years earlier. Mentally I was like "HOW?!?" as she talks to hundreds of journalists all year long...

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Showbiz History: Greta Garbo, R Crumb, Bill Murray, Cameron Diaz

6 random things that happened on this day in showbiz history

1797 Mary Shelley born. She lived in infamy during her time as a disgraced woman who ran off with an already married man but she'll live forever due to her epistolary novel "Frankenstein: Or, The Modern Prometheus," which has had countless editions since its first publication when she was only 20 years old. The book has inspired countless other works of art and the classic Frankenstein monster itself has shown up in over 50 films. Did any of you watch the Mary Shelley biopic starring Elle Fanning earlier this year? Murtada interviewed the director right here. 

← 1935 Greta Garbo is Anna Karenina, new in movie theaters. Garbo will win the NYFCC prize, the first of two Best Actress wins in a three year span. Surprisingly, that's not all that rare of a trick...

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Be More Link

Lots of stories to catch up on...

Screen
• Boy Culture on Faye Dunaway's Gucci ad
• The Guardian -Margot Robbie has joined Fox News sexual abuse scandal movie which already features Nicole Kidman as Gretchen Carlson and Charlize Theron as Megyn Kelly. Talk about star power in one film
• /Film -The more Tom Cruise runs in his movies, the better they perform at the box office. No, really
• THR -Mary Carlisle, who had been the oldest living screen star, has died at age 104.

More after the jump including Fan Bingbing rumors, Greta Garbo, Linda Hamilton's return, and Julia Roberts as an audience member...

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100 Years Ago Today... Mata Hari's Execution

by Nathaniel R

Sorry to begin your day with something so grim but it's actressy. Today marks the centennial of the execution of exotic dancer Mata Hari by firing squad for espionage during "The Great War" (aka World War I)... 

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The Sex Appeal of Garbo, Valentino and a 150-Year-Old Novelist

By either bizarre coincidence or brilliant intuition, Greta Garbo and Rudolph Valentino began their careers in nearly the same way. Both achieved overnight success with adaptations of one Spanish novelist, a writer who has almost entirely faded from popular consciousness since then. At the time, though, he was more famous than either actor.

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