The Altruism

Billionaire Wilbur Ross downplays downgrade threat - Yahoo! News

DUBLIN (Reuters) - A downgrade of sovereign debt would not necessarily have a big impact on financial markets, billionaire investor Wilbur Ross said.

Entrenched differences were hampering a compromise between Republicans and Democrats on Saturday to head off a ruinous debt default, less than 100 hours before the government says it will run out of money to pay all its bills.

A late deal could raise the prospect the United States will lose its top-notch triple-A credit rating, which analysts say would rattle financial markets and raise borrowing costs for Americans.

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"Entourage" creator says movie of hit show will happen - Yahoo! News

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - It seems only fitting that Vince Chase and his buddies may soon be seen on movie theater screens after ending their successful run on television,

"Entourage" creator Doug Ellin said on Thursday he sees a feature film spinoff from the popular HBO series, which is now in its eighth and final season.

"We are going to do a movie. It's a question of when and how quick. Hopefully we will sit down and come up with an idea," Ellin told reporters at the bi-annual Television Critics Association meetings.

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Fox Searchlight moves up "The Descendants" to November 23 - Yahoo! News

LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - Fox Searchlight will bring Alexander Payne's "The Descendants" to theaters a month earlier than expected -- on November 23.

It'll be a limited release.

The movie, originally slated for a December 16 debut, stars George Clooney, Judy Greer, Beau Bridges, Matthew Lillard and Robert Forster.

The film revolves around an indifferent husband and father of two girls, who is forced to re-examine his past when his wife suffers a boating accident off Waikiki.

Payne, Nat Faxon and Jim Rash wrote the movie. Payne, Jim Taylor and Jim Burke produced.

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Latest streaming challenger to Netflix: Walmart - Yahoo! News

NEW YORK (TheWrap.com) - Walmart customers will now be able to not just buy physical discs from Walmart.com but stream movies and TV episodes as well.

The retailer is integrating streaming service VUDU, which it acquired last year, into its website, it announced on Tuesday.

VUDU offers 20,000 titles for rent or purchase. However, its users are charged for each DVD and do not have the option of buying a subscription service, differentiating it from competitors like Netflix or Amazon Prime.

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Michael Jackson family members plan tribute concert - Yahoo! News

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Several members of Michael Jackson's family unveiled plans on Monday for a tribute concert to the late King of Pop, but performers were unnamed leading to a less-than-thrilling announcement for the "Thriller" singer.

The tribute show, supported by Jackson family matriarch Katherine Jackson, will be held on October 8 in Cardiff, Wales at the Millennium Stadium, which holds about 75,000 people. It will be broadcast live via satellite on pay-per-view television and into movie theaters around the world, some of which will screen it in 3D, said promoter Global Live Events.

Katherine Jackson told reporters at the unveiling in Los Angeles that she is proud of the event and the caliber of singers performing. No names were announced on Monday.

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Animated "Oz" brings Patrick Stewart to Comic-Con - Yahoo! News

SAN DIEGO (TheWrap) - Patrick Stewart has boldly gone where he had not gone before: to the Comic-Con convention.

The man who played Capt. Jean-Luc Picard on "Star Trek: The Next Generation" finally made his way to the annual geek-fest on Saturday to participate in a panel on the upcoming animated musical "Dorothy of Oz," but of course the first question to address was: How could he have not attended the convention, where he's pretty much revered as a god, in the past?

"First of all, can I just point out that I'm a Broadway girl too?" Stewart quipped, referring to his "Dorothy" co-star, "Wicked" veteran Megan Hilty, who was also on the panel.

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"Spider-Man" villain Ifans arrested at Comic-Con - Yahoo! News

SAN DIEGO (Reuters) - British actor Rhys Ifans, who portrays the villain Lizard in the upcoming Hollywood movie "The Amazing Spider-Man," was arrested and cited for battery at the pop culture gathering Comic-Con on Friday evening.

"He was abusive, belligerent and aggressive, and shoved a female security guard," San Diego police spokeswoman Lt. Andra Brown said in a statement on Saturday.

Brown told Reuters a member of Ifans' "entourage" did not have proper identification to enter Comic-Con, a gathering of science-fiction fans and comic book lovers. for a promotional event to tout the upcoming "Spider-Man" movie.

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Lehman trustee appeals $1.1 billion win for Barclays - Yahoo! News

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The bankruptcy trustee for Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc's brokerage arm is appealing a February decision awarding Barclays PLC about $1.1 billion associated with Barclays' purchase of Lehman's North American unit at the height of the financial crisis.

Trustee James Giddens said in a court filing on Friday he would appeal to Manhattan federal court the ruling reached by Judge James Peck, the U.S. Bankruptcy Court judge presiding over Lehman's Chapter 11 case.

The move comes a week after Barclays appealed other aspects of the same case, much of which went in the trustee's favor.

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Screen Media acquires Joshua Leonard's "The Lie" - Yahoo! News

LOS ANGELES (TheWrap) - Screen Media has acquired U.S. distribution rights to "The Lie," a dark comedy directed by, written by and starring Joshua Leonard, the company announced Thursday.

The movie is based on a T.C. Boyle short story that originally was published in the "New Yorker." In the story, a man tells a fib in order to get out of work. That lie ultimately changes the course of his life.

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Director James McTeigue gets a "Message from the King" - Yahoo! News

LOS ANGELES (TheWrap) - James McTeigue has signed on to direct the thriller "Message from the King" for FilmNation, the company announced Wednesday.

The movie follows Jacob King, "an enigmatic outsider who comes to Los Angeles to investigate the sudden and mysterious disappearance of his sister," according to a FilmNation press release.

Oliver Butcher and Stephen Cornwell ("Unknown") wrote the script. Ryder is producing with Rhodri Thomas of The Ink Factory and Ash Shah.

McTeigue, who directed "V for Vendetta," just wrapped "The Raven," which FilmNation and Intrepid Pictures produced and which Relativity Media will release on March 9.

The Australian director and producer Aaron Ryder -- FilmNation's head of production -- will be at Comic-Con July 22 supporting "The Raven."

Production on "Message" is scheduled to begin in late fall.

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