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Hollywoodland Universal Pictures ; Focus Features and Miramax Films present a Back Lot Pictures production ; produced by Glenn Williamson ; written by Paul Bernbaum ; directed by Allen Coulter.

Contributor(s): Material type: FilmFilmPublisher number: 62028846 | Universal Studios Home EntertainmentLanguage: English, French Original language: English Subtitle language: English, French, Spanish Series: Focus Features spotlight seriesPublisher: [New York, NY] : Universal City, CA : Focus Features ; Distributed by Universal Studios Home Entertainment, 2007Edition: WidescreenDescription: 1 videodisc (127 min.) : sound, color ; 4 3/4 inContent type:
  • two-dimensional moving image
Media type:
  • video
Carrier type:
  • videodisc
ISBN:
  • 9786310781570 :
Subject(s): Genre/Form: Production credits:
  • Director of photography, Jonathan Freeman ; editor, Michael Berenbaum ; music by Marcelo Zarvos ; production designer, Leslie McDonald ; costume designer, Julie Weiss.
Cast: Adrien Brody (Louis Simo), Diane Lane (Toni Mannix), Ben Affleck (George Reeves), Bob Hoskins (Edgar Mannix), Lois Smith (Helen Bessolo), Robin Tunney (Leonore Lemmon), Jeffrey DeMunn (Art Weissman).Summary: On June 16, 1959, police detectives arrive at a Benedict Canyon home to find Superman dead, felled by a single gunshot to the head. LAPD calls it suicide, but Reeves' grieving mother, Helen Bessolo, isn't so sure. She hires private detective Louis Simo to validate her suspicions, centered on George's fiancée, aspiring starlet Leonore Lemmon. Simo turns up suspects 2 and 3: Toni Mannix, aging trophy wife to MGM honcho Eddie Mannix, a tough little man with long-standing mob ties. George had been Toni's consort for years, and their breakup seriously wounded her. George Reeves wanted Clark Gable's career and instead got television stardom, becoming the idol of millions of children. Was he murdered, or just a victim of the sensitivities and insecurities of an actor who was never talented enough to be taken seriously?
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Item type Current library Collection Shelving location Call number Status Date due Barcode Item holds
DVD Phillipsburg Free Public Library DVDs New Movies DVD HOL Available 36748002527093
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Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

The mysterious and unexpected death of an iconic Hollywood star may be just the tip of an iceberg of scandal in this showbiz drama based on a true story. George Reeves (played by Ben Affleck) was a journeyman actor who had played a small role in Gone With the Wind and appeared onscreen with the likes of James Cagney, Rita Hayworth, and Marlene Dietrich, but his career was not exactly booming when he was cast as comic-book hero Superman in a 1951 B-movie, Superman and the Mole Men. A year later, the producers of the movie launched a syndicated Superman television series with Reeves returning as "The Man of Steel." The show became a major hit, and Reeves was a star at last. However, on June 16, 1959, to the shock of many, Reeves was found dead of a gunshot wound. Police soon declared Reeves' death a suicide and closed the case, but his mother (Lois Smith) refused to believe her son took his own life, and hired Louis Simo (Adrien Brody), a private detective, to find out the truth about her son's passing. Simo found that many Hollywood insiders did not care to cooperate as he researched the Reeves case, but his digging uncovered plenty of evidence suggesting the actor did not take his own life, and he also revealed one of Reeves' deepest secrets -- while he was engaged to marry a pretty young starlet, Leonore Lemmon (Robin Tunney), Reeves was also carrying on an affair with the beautiful Toni Mannix (Diane Lane), the wife of Eddie Mannix (Bob Hoskins), a powerful and ill-tempered executive at MGM. While the producers of Hollywoodland based their story on factual accounts of the investigation into the death of George Reeves, they were denied permission to use the Superman logo and the familiar introduction to the Adventures of Superman television show by the respective copyright holders. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Originally produced as a motion picture in 2006.

Bonus features: Re-creating old Hollywood; Behind the headlines; Hollywood then and now; Deleted scenes; Feature commentary with director Allen Coulter.

Classroom use may be subject to licensing restrictions.

Director of photography, Jonathan Freeman ; editor, Michael Berenbaum ; music by Marcelo Zarvos ; production designer, Leslie McDonald ; costume designer, Julie Weiss.

Adrien Brody (Louis Simo), Diane Lane (Toni Mannix), Ben Affleck (George Reeves), Bob Hoskins (Edgar Mannix), Lois Smith (Helen Bessolo), Robin Tunney (Leonore Lemmon), Jeffrey DeMunn (Art Weissman).

On June 16, 1959, police detectives arrive at a Benedict Canyon home to find Superman dead, felled by a single gunshot to the head. LAPD calls it suicide, but Reeves' grieving mother, Helen Bessolo, isn't so sure. She hires private detective Louis Simo to validate her suspicions, centered on George's fiancée, aspiring starlet Leonore Lemmon. Simo turns up suspects 2 and 3: Toni Mannix, aging trophy wife to MGM honcho Eddie Mannix, a tough little man with long-standing mob ties. George had been Toni's consort for years, and their breakup seriously wounded her. George Reeves wanted Clark Gable's career and instead got television stardom, becoming the idol of millions of children. Was he murdered, or just a victim of the sensitivities and insecurities of an actor who was never talented enough to be taken seriously?

MPAA rating: R; for language, some violence and sexual content.

DVD; Region 1, NTSC; Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround; anamorphic widescreen, presentation aspect ratio 1.85:1.

In English or dubbed Français; optional subtitles in English SDH, Español, or Français. Closed-captioned.

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