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Big-Screen Blondie
Considering the success Walt Disney Pictures is having with Dick
Tracy this summer, it's not surprising that it has raided the funny
papers once again for inspiration. This time they plan to turn the
60-year-old comic strip Blondie into a big-budget musical. Created by
cartoonist Chic Young, the Bumstead clan was previously brought to
big-screen life in a successful series of 28 films released between
1938 and 1950 starring Penny Singleton in the title role, Larry Simms
as Baby Dumpling (later Alexander), and Arthur Lake as Dagwood. The idea for the new movie came from the strip's current
writer, Dean Young (Chic's son), and, according to producer Francine
LeFrak, ''The story is a celebration of marriage.'' Oscar-winner Alfred
Uhrr (Driving Miss Daisy) is working on a screenplay for the film,
which is scheduled for the summer of '92. A director and cast are yet
to be announced. Can the official Dagwood sandwich be far behind?
Arnold Apres Recall
With Total Recall safely on its way to becoming one of this
summer's biggest action hits, Arnold Schwarzenegger is turning to
comedy for his next film, Kindergarten Cop. Teaming up again with
Ivan Reitman, who directed him in Twins, Arnold plays an undercover
policeman posing as a preschool teacher to protect a tyke from her
paroled father. It's scheduled for a year-end release.
Street Scenes
Even jaded New Yorkers took notice when a knight wearing a
flame-shooting helmet charged his crimson horse down Fifth Avenue during rush hour recently. The spectacle was a scene from The
Fisher King, a modern-day fable from director Terry Gilliam starring
Jeff Bridges and Robin Williams. Bridges is an arrogant
deejay whose cynicism knocks him off the airwaves and onto the
streets. There he meets a homeless visionary (Williams) who pulls him
into a medieval fantasy world where they search for the Holy Grail
and are redeemed. The theme of renewal extends throughout the
production. Producers Debra Hill and Lynda Obst have tried ted teate
an environmentally responsible set: The caterer uses biodegradable
paperware, cans are recycled, and extra food is donated to the
homeless.
Show Time to Show Biz
When Pat Riley was riding high as the coach of the Los Angeles
Lakers, the high-pr-prd seats for home games at the fabulous Forum
were usually filled with movie stars and assorted film-industry power
brokers. Now that he has retired, it's not surprising to hear that
Riley is considering working in movies. He is reportedly talking with
Michael Douglas' Stonebridge Entertainment about developing a
contemporary romance that features an NBA coach as the main
character.
Sherwood Gridlock
Why are three films based on Robin Hood — that old
rob-from-the-rich-and-give-to-the-poor outlaw-in the works? Is
Hollywood trying to tell us something about the end of the so-called
greed decade? The version of the tale that looks like it will make it
out of Sherwood Forest and into theaters first will be directed by
thirtysomething cocreator Marshall Herskovitz, who is scheduled to
begin shooting in England and Wales in September.
