The Today Fix

Google's story in a 2 min video

noreply@blogger.com (Lando Reyes) — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 08:12:00 PST

Google's development from day 1 is quite remarkable. This company could be a paradigm for virtual businesses in this century.

Merry Christmas!

noreply@blogger.com (Lando Reyes) — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 13:07:00 PST

From everyone on The Today Fix, merry christmas y'all!!

Video of a mad turkey attacking a woman

noreply@blogger.com (Lando Reyes) — Fri, 25 Nov 2011 07:07:00 PST

This is clear proof that not all turkeys go down easily....LOL!!

Real Steel Sound profile

noreply@blogger.com (Lando Reyes) — Fri, 11 Nov 2011 06:36:00 PST

SoundWorks Collection - The Sound of Real Steel from Michael Coleman on Vimeo.

This kind of stuff never seizes to amaze me....

(via Soundworks Collection).

First look at Mission Imposible: Ghost Protocol

noreply@blogger.com (Lando Reyes) — Mon, 04 Jul 2011 10:29:00 PDT

This is supposed to be Tom Cruise's last feature as Ethan Hunt in the Mission Impossible franchise and it sure looks promising. According to reports, Jeremy Renner, who also stars in this film, is set to take over the franchise after this flick.

The Sound of Transformers: Dark of the Moon

noreply@blogger.com (Lando Reyes) — Mon, 04 Jul 2011 09:18:00 PDT

SoundWorks Collection: The Sound of Transformers: Dark of the Moon from Michael Coleman on Vimeo.

Don't miss this really cool piece by the guys in Soundworks Collection on how they produced some of the audio effects for the number 1 movie in America. This is really awesome!

Brief from Hollywood

noreply@blogger.com (Lando Reyes) — Mon, 04 Jul 2011 09:03:00 PDT

-Kate Moss finally gets married.
-Jonathan Rhys Meyers Hospitalized in London.
-Salma Hayek's husband fathered another child with supermodel Linda Evangelista.
-Week in Review from E!

Transformers premiere and concert in Moscow

noreply@blogger.com (Lando Reyes) — Mon, 04 Jul 2011 08:46:00 PDT

Now that's what I call a premiere and that's how you do it in Moscow.

Transformers destroys its human competition

noreply@blogger.com (Lando Reyes) — Mon, 04 Jul 2011 08:20:00 PDT

The Transformers sequel without Megan Fox is making tens of millions less than the Tranformers sequel with her.Tom Hanks' and Julia Roberts' Larry Crowne hasn't even grossed tens of millions. But, as the Fourth of July weekend heats up, both films are in tad better shape than Selena Gomez's latest.

RELATED: Is Dark of the Moon one of the biggest letdowns of summer?

Transformers: Dark of the Moon, which ran 40 percent below Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen on opening day, is closing the gap, and is now only about 20 percent behind its predecessor.

The movie scored an estimated $33 million Friday, followed by a $34.6 million Saturday.

It is Shia LaBeouf's sixth straight live-action No. 1 movie, and it is killing in 3-D. Per Exhibitor Relations, 60 percent of Dark of the Moon's domestic take, and 70 percent of its internatonal box office is from 3-D theaters.

After just five days (five-and-a-half, if you count Tuesday's sneaks), the sequel is already the year's fifth-biggest domestic hit, with $162.1 million. Worldwide, it's at $372 million.

Larry Crowne, meanwhile, doesn't have any showy stats. So far this weekend, it's grossed less than holdovers Cars 2 and Bad Teacher, and, yes, Dark of the Moon. But all things considered, the $30 million middle-age comedy hasn't pulled up all that lame.

For one thing, it's schooling Gomez's teen/tween comedy, Monte Carlo, which fared worse than the young actress' (cheaper) Ramona and Beezus. For another thing, it's doing better than Hanks' and Roberts' last team-up, (the more expensive) Charlie Wilson's War.

Larry Crowne is scoring the most points among moviegoers who are immune to Michael Bay's charms. So, pretty much, your mom…and maybe Megan Fox?

Elsewhere, the broken Green Lantern broke $100 million domestically—a feat that took the equally expensive Dark of the Moon all of four full days to accomplish. More impressively, Bridesmaids topped $150 million, and surpassed the first Sex and the City movie.

A trio of summer hits aged out of the Top 10: The Hangover Part II, which goes out as the year's No. 1 movie (for now); Johnny Depp's Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, which topped $1 billion worldwide; and, X-Men: First Class, which, even while being the smallest-grossing X-Men sequel, is still in the neighborhood of its big brothers with about $325 million worldwide.

Stay tuned for tomorrow's Fourth of July weekend totals. For now, here's a look at Friday-Sunday's top-grossing films, per estimates compiled by Exhibitor Relations:

1.Transformers: Dark of the Moon, $97.4 million
2.Cars 2, $25.1 million
3.Bad Teacher, $14.1 million
4.Larry Crowne, $13 million
5.Monte Carlo, $7.6 million
6.Super 8, $7.5 million
7.Green Lantern, $6.3 million
8.Mr. Popper's Penguins, $5.1 million
9.Bridesmaids, $3.5 million
10.Midnight in Paris, $3.4 million

Source: eonline.com

Related:
-The 5 biggest movie letdowns of the summer.

Bautista tops 2011 MLB All-Star-Game votes

noreply@blogger.com (Lando Reyes) — Mon, 04 Jul 2011 07:47:00 PDT

Rosters were unveiled for the July 12 All-Star Game at Phoenix's Chase Field on Sunday, and two things were made clear: The balloting process is bigger and more popular than ever, and the turnover from one year to the next can be quite significant as Bautista sets mark of a new record number of ballots cast.

Plenty of stalwarts will be making up the American League and National League starting lineups in the 82nd annual Midsummer Classic, including Alex Rodriguez (14th All-Star nod), Derek Jeter (12), David Ortiz (seven), Brian McCann (six straight), Lance Berkman (six), Adrian Gonzalez, Josh Hamilton and Ryan Braun (four straight each).

But of the 17 starters announced via the TBS MLB All-Star Selection Show presented by Taco Bell, only four -- Jeter, Braun, Hamilton and Robinson Cano -- started the 2010 version. Seven -- Gonzalez, McCann, Curtis Granderson, Alex Avila, Matt Kemp, Rickie Weeks and Jose Bautista -- are starting for the first time, and last year's voting leaders -- Albert Pujols and Joe Mauer -- are absent.

The All-Star Game will be televised nationally by FOX Sports, in Canada by Rogers Sportsnet and Sportsnet HD and Le Reseau des Sports, and around the world by MLB International, with pregame ceremonies beginning at 8 p.m. ESPN Radio will provide exclusive national radio coverage. MLB Network, MLB.com and Sirius XM also will provide comprehensive All-Star Game coverage.

For the clearest glimpse of the sudden emergence of star power, look no further than the new record-holder for All-Star votes.

At this time last year, we were still getting our heads around the sudden production of a late-blooming Bautista. Now, after following up a 54-homer 2010 campaign with a dynamic first half of '11 -- one that has him leading the Majors with 26 homers and a 1.150 OPS -- the Blue Jays slugger has outdone himself.

In a year that saw professional sports' most extensive All-Star Game balloting system establish a new record with 32.5 million ballots, Bautista led with 7,454,753 votes. That beats out the previous high-water mark of 6,069,688, which was set by Ken Griffey Jr. in 1994.

"I can't even describe how good that feels," Bautista said of being an All-Star for the second straight year.

"It has been a fun year so far, and it's going to be another honor to represent the team and two countries -- the Dominican [Republic] and Canada."

This year's voting numbers weren't unprecedented merely because of Bautista, though.

Three other AL starters -- Cano, Ortiz and Granderson -- joined him in surpassing Griffey's former record total. Braun -- who injured his leg on Saturday and is currently day to day -- established a new NL record with 5,928,004 votes.

The combined vote total topped the previous high from '09 by about 9 million.

This year, the first that will have the designated hitter deployed in an NL park, fans selected 17 starting position players, while the other 49 were chosen via a combination of the Player Ballot, the two All-Star Game managers and MLB.

Then, skippers Ron Washington (AL) and Bruce Bochy (NL) -- in conjunction with MLB -- each picked five omitted players to make up the All-Star Game Final Vote Sponsored by Sprint, which fans will be able to vote on from now until 4 p.m. ET on Thursday.

Final Vote aside, six Yankees, four members of the Braves, Giants, Phillies, Rangers, Red Sox and Tigers, and 24 first-timers are headed to Arizona.

The visiting AL roster will look like this:

• Catcher: Alex Avila (Tigers)

• First base: Adrian Gonzalez (Red Sox)

• Second base: Robinson Cano (Yankees)

• Third base: Alex Rodriguez (Yankees)

• Shortstop: Derek Jeter (Yankees)

• Outfield: Jose Bautista (Blue Jays), Curtis Granderson (Yankees) and Josh Hamilton (Rangers)

• DH: David Ortiz (Red Sox)

The AL pitching staff consists of: starters Josh Beckett (Red Sox), Gio Gonzalez (Athletics), Felix Hernandez (Mariners), David Price (Rays), James Shields (Rays), Justin Verlander (Tigers), Jered Weaver (Angels) and C.J. Wilson (Rangers); and relievers Aaron Crow (Royals), Brandon League (Mariners), Chris Perez (Indians), Mariano Rivera (Yankees) and Jose Valverde (Tigers).

And the backup position players are: catchers Russell Martin (Yankees) and Matt Wieters (Orioles); infielders Adrian Beltre (Rangers), Asdrubal Cabrera (Indians), Miguel Cabrera (Tigers) and Howard Kendrick (Angels); outfielders Michael Cuddyer (Twins), Jacoby Ellsbury (Red Sox), Matt Joyce (Rays) and Carlos Quentin (White Sox); and DH Michael Young (Rangers).

The NL shakes out this way:

• Catcher: Brian McCann (Braves)

• First base: Prince Fielder (Brewers)

• Second base: Rickie Weeks (Brewers)

• Third base: Placido Polanco (Phillies)

• Shortstop: Jose Reyes (Mets)

• Outfield: Ryan Braun (Brewers), Matt Kemp (Dodgers) and Lance Berkman (Cardinals)

The NL pitching staff consists of: starters Matt Cain (Giants), Roy Halladay (Phillies), Cole Hamels (Phillies), Jair Jurrjens (Braves), Clayton Kershaw (Dodgers), Cliff Lee (Phillies), Tim Lincecum (Giants) and Ryan Vogelsong (Giants); and relievers Heath Bell (Padres), Tyler Clippard (Nationals), Joel Hanrahan (Pirates), Jonny Venters (Braves) and Brian Wilson (Giants).

The NL's bench will include: catcher Yadier Molina (Cardinals); infielders Starlin Castro (Cubs), Chipper Jones (Braves), Brandon Phillips (Reds), Gaby Sanchez (Marlins), Troy Tulowitzki (Rockies) and Joey Votto (Reds); and outfielders Carlos Beltran (Mets), Jay Bruce (Reds), Matt Holliday (Cardinals), Hunter Pence (Astros) and Justin Upton (D-backs).

"I think obviously you hope the fans enjoy you, but having your peers vote you in is something that is rewarding," Holliday said of being selected via the Player Ballot. "Having the respect of your peers is something that's important to me."

Holliday was one of several who were involved in tight races for starting spots.

Another was Reyes, who trailed Tulowitzki by 244,832 on Monday, then wound up beating him by nearly 800,000 when voting finished at 11:59 p.m. on Thursday.

Heading into Sunday's action, he led the Majors in batting average (.354), hits (124) and triples (15), and ranked second in stolen bases (30) while being a sparkplug for a resurgent Mets team. Now the question is whether the hamstring tightness that forced Reyes out of Saturday's contest will hinder his All-Star Game availability.

One player who will likely be held out because of injury is Pujols.

A wrist injury has "The Machine" on the disabled list and will likely keep him out at least through the All-Star break (though indications are that he's recovering more quickly than expected). That has set the stage for Fielder, who used a monstrous first half to edge out Votto and start his second All-Star Game.

As recently as Monday, Fielder and Votto were separated by just 70,727 votes, but the injured Pujols sported a lead of more than 450,000 over both of them. Had the idle Pujols maintained it, the Player Ballot would've decided the first-base starter. But Fielder passed Pujols over the final week of balloting, garnering 4,864,523 votes -- 610,218 more than Votto and 693,429 more than the third-place Pujols.

NL ALL-STAR STARTERS
Pos. Player Team
C Brian McCann Braves
1B Prince Fielder Brewers
2B Rickie Weeks Brewers
3B Placido Polanco Phillies
SS Jose Reyes Mets
OF Ryan Braun Brewers
OF Lance Berkman Cardinals
OF Matt Kemp Dodgers

"Those two other guys are All-Stars and MVPs, so for me to be able to start this Game is just an honor," said Fielder, who had 21 homers, a .299 batting average and an NL-leading 69 RBIs heading into Sunday. "I'm very appreciative."

Avila trailed Martin throughout the balloting process and was within 450,000 votes as of Tuesday. Then, at last, Tigers fans rewarded the 24-year-old Avila, who came into Sunday leading AL catchers in batting average (.299) and RBIs (46).

A couple of other close races resided in the Senior Circuit, where Weeks -- batting .276 with 14 homers and 33 RBIs -- edged out Phillips at second base; and Kemp -- having an MVP-type season with a .327 batting average, 22 homers, 64 RBIs and 22 stolen bases -- sneaked past Holliday.

But no race was tighter than the one for the third outfield spot in the AL.

That one came down to Hamilton and Ellsbury. Hamilton held the slightest of leads -- 121,325 votes -- on Tuesday; he wound up winning by a mere 36,727 to capture his fourth All-Star Game start. Ellsbury sported a .300 batting average, .361 on-base percentage, 25 stolen bases and nine homers entering Sunday's action, while Hamilton was hitting .301 with 10 homers and 40 RBIs despite missing time on the DL.

"He's the reigning MVP," Washington said. "He's talented. Yes, he missed the first month of the season's games, but he's back rolling. He's certainly playing like an MVP."

While a lot is different about this year's All-Star Game rosters, the left side of the Yankees' infield is a sign of stability.

Thanks to a .304 batting average, 13 homers and 52 RBIs, A-Rod is an All-Star Game starter for the 11th time and is tied with Ivan Rodriguez for the active lead in overall appearances.

And despite a down year that has him batting .260 with two homers, Jeter is an All-Star Game starter for the sixth straight year. By the time this year's version rolls around, Jeter, who is currently rehabbing a calf strain in the Minor Leagues, should be healthy enough to play, and he could do so as the 28th member of the 3,000-hit club.

A few things must still be decided, such as who will start on the mound. That decision lies in the hands of the skippers. But under MLB rules, no pitcher who starts next Sunday will be eligible to pitch in the Midsummer Classic.

And then there's the Final Vote, which will come down to Alex Gordon of the Royals, Adam Jones of the Orioles, Paul Konerko of the White Sox, Victor Martinez of the Tigers and Ben Zobrist of the Rays in the AL; and Andre Ethier of the Dodgers, Todd Helton of the Rockies, Ian Kennedy of the D-backs, Michael Morse of the Nationals and Shane Victorino of the Phillies in the NL.

Final Vote winners will be announced on MLB.com shortly after Thursday's 4 p.m. ET deadline.

Mobile voting in the U.S. is exclusive to Sprint, Nextel and Boost subscribers. To receive the 2011 All-Star Game Final Vote Sponsored by Sprint mobile ballot, text the word "VOTE" to 1122. To vote for a specific player, simply text message your choice to 1122. For example, text "A3" to vote for AL Player No. 3, or "N3" to vote for NL Player No. 3. Message and data rates may apply. Mobile voting in Canada is open to all carriers; fans should text their choices to 88555.

Also, fans will once again be able to participate in the official voting for the Ted Williams Most Valuable Player presented by Chevy during the All-Star Game, via the 2011 All-Star Game MVP Vote Sponsored by Sprint on MLB.com.

That day, the NL will be looking to build on last year's victory -- their first in 14 years -- while the AL will look to prove they're still this era's more dominant Circuit.

They'll play for bragging rights, for home-field advantage in the World Series and -- perhaps most of all -- for the enjoyment of the fans.

"It's fun," Ortiz said about the All-Star Game experience. "It's something that the fans really enjoy. Those few days, you really get worn out, but it's worth it because the fans put a lot of enthusiasm into it. Pretty much everybody is hanging out with their family, and you get to know some of the guys that you'd like to know how they are, besides being good baseball players. It's a good time."

Source: mlb.com

First look at Footloose

noreply@blogger.com (Lando Reyes) — Sun, 26 Jun 2011 21:47:00 PDT

This is the first look at the remake of the 80's hit made famous by Kevin Bacon. After castings and re-castings they finally got a steady lead to finish this one. From what you see in this trailer, what can you tell us about this movie?

First look at Puss in Boots

noreply@blogger.com (Lando Reyes) — Sun, 26 Jun 2011 21:42:00 PDT

The incredebly charismatic character from the Shrek franchise, voiced-over by spanish actor Antonio Banderas, now has his own branch outside of the Shrek world. From what we can see in this clip, the flick should be really entertaining.

First look at Killer Elite

noreply@blogger.com (Lando Reyes) — Sun, 26 Jun 2011 19:04:00 PDT

This action flick which casts Jason Statham, Clive Owen and Robert DeNiro looks very promising.

New trailer: Captain America

noreply@blogger.com (Lando Reyes) — Sun, 26 Jun 2011 18:46:00 PDT

This is the latest trailer for the highly anticipated Marvel flick, Captain America. The movie looks really awesome....

Brief from Hollywood

noreply@blogger.com (Lando Reyes) — Sun, 26 Jun 2011 17:52:00 PDT

-Daniel Craig and Rachel Weisz tie the knot.
-Christopher Merloni joins the cast of new Superman flick (could he be the next Lex Luthor?).
-Gabourey Sidibe tells it like it is to Chelsea Handler (white girls gone mad over big black guys edition).

Cars 2 premieres at the top of the box office

noreply@blogger.com (Lando Reyes) — Sun, 26 Jun 2011 17:41:00 PDT

The surprise of the box-office weekend wasn't that Cars 2's bad reviews didn't matter, and that the kid magnet of a movie made big money. No, the shocker was what Cameron Diaz's Bad Teacher did.In 2-D theaters, it gave Cars 2 a serious run for No. 1. Here's how things broke down:

RELATED: So, how bad were Cars 2's bad reviews?

The $200 million, G-rated Cars 2 made roughly $41 million from domestic 2-D ticket sales, per Friday-Sunday estimates.

The $20 million, R-rated Bad Teacher, meanwhile, which only screened in 2-D, came away with $31 million.

Not bad for a non-sequel, not-based-on-anything movie that wasn't animated by Pixar.

Overall, Cars 2 ruled. It grossed $68 million domestically, including 3-D business, and $110.9 million worldwide.

The CGI family flick, which generated the first universally bad reviews for a Pixar effort (but earned an A-minus grade from opening-weekend audiences), ended up out-opening all but four of the studio's previous acclaimed releases.

As for Bad Teacher, it outdid projections, and came away with the second-biggest comedy opening of the year behind The Hangover Part II.

It could be further pointed out that Bad Teacher, which wasn't exactly embraced by critics itself, got better reviews than Cars 2, but what didn't?

Elsewhere, in their second weekends, Jim Carrey's Mr. Popper's Penguins showed way better legs than Ryan Reynolds' Green Lantern, although the latter still earned more money.

Kung Fu Panda 2 lost its edge, and its theaters, no doubt, to Cars 2, and dropped from the Top 10 after a disappointing four-weekend stay. All told, the sequel, which critics loved, by the way, has banked $153 million domestically. During the same point in its run, the original Kung Fu Panda had grossed $193 million.

Another Top 10 evictee, Judy Moody and the Not Bummer Summer, cemented its status as a minor bomb. After three weekends, the $20 million tween comedy has grossed just $13.4 million domestically.

In limited release, the new Conan O'Brien documentary, Conan O'Brien Can't Stop, put up cable-esque numbers, and not very good ones at that: the film averaged $3,750 at each of its 28 screens. Chris Weitz's immigrant drama, A Better Life, showed more muscle, averaging $15,000 at its four locations.

Here's a complete look at the top-grossing films, per Friday-Sunday estimates as compiled by Exhibitor Relations:

1.Cars 2, $68 million
2.Bad Teacher, $31 million
3.Green Lantern, $18.4 million
4.Super 8, $12.1 million
5.Mr. Popper's Penguins, $10.3 million
6.X-Men: First Class, $6.6 million
7.The Hangover Part II, $5.9 million
8.Bridesmaids, $5.4 million
9.Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, $4.7 million
10.Midnight in Paris, $4.5 million

Source: eonline.com

Sports this week

noreply@blogger.com (Lando Reyes) — Sun, 26 Jun 2011 17:24:00 PDT

-USF lineman lifts Cadillac and saves trapped man.
-African basketball player may be in trouble after admiting he lied about his age.
-Doc Halladay gets victory #10.

Odd news of the week

noreply@blogger.com (Lando Reyes) — Sun, 26 Jun 2011 17:04:00 PDT

-Ron Artest changes his name to Metta World Peace (I think this just proves that his crazier than Rodman).
-Djokovic wants his pet poodle to join him at Wimbledon (come on man! What kind of a man's man has a poodle for a pet?)
-Jennifer Aniston gets a tattoo in memory of her late dog (it's surprising how even this kind of nonsense gets to be "news").

What if life was like in social media?

noreply@blogger.com (Lando Reyes) — Fri, 10 Jun 2011 13:16:00 PDT

This curious video touches the notion of what would life be if everything was like on social media. Interesting take on this one...

This week in Hollywood

noreply@blogger.com (Lando Reyes) — Fri, 10 Jun 2011 13:11:00 PDT

The latest on celebrity entertainment with OMG! is back!

Odd news of the week

noreply@blogger.com (Lando Reyes) — Fri, 10 Jun 2011 12:44:00 PDT

A blue lobster and a "terrible" alligator attack headline this week's odd news. Interesting piece by the guys in Yahoo!

The Internet era is now

noreply@blogger.com (Lando Reyes) — Fri, 10 Jun 2011 10:52:00 PDT

An interesting story by CNN's Felicia Taylor reporting the growth of the Internet and how the Web has impacted the development of new business models across America. As the "Big Apple" celebrates New York Internet Week, many companies showcase what they have accomplished through the Internet and social media.

Whatever happened to Chunk?

noreply@blogger.com (Lando Reyes) — Fri, 22 Apr 2011 20:52:00 PDT

Ever wonder whatever happened to that kid that played Chunk in The Goonies? Well, the guys in Yahoo News did a little digging and actually found out what Jeff Cohen has been up to for the past 26 years.

First look at Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2

noreply@blogger.com (Lando Reyes) — Fri, 18 Mar 2011 21:20:00 PDT

The film's producers claim that this will the very best one of the entire franchise.

First look at Larry Crowne

noreply@blogger.com (Lando Reyes) — Fri, 18 Mar 2011 20:59:00 PDT

This is the newest film project for two of the most charismatic actors in Hollywood, Tom Hanks and Julia Roberts. It seems like it's going to be decent motion picture...