James Spader Joins NBC’s “The Office” As The New CEO

NBC has confirmed the rumors that James Spader is joining the cast of “The Office.” Here is the official press release:

Multiple Emmy Award winner James Spader (“Boston Legal,” “The Practice”) will be joining the regular cast of NBC’s “The Office” (Thursdays, 9-9:30 p.m. ET) as CEO Robert California of Sabre, the parent company of Dunder Mifflin.

“James will reprise his role as Robert California, this uber-salesman that has a power to convince and manipulate, like a high-class weirdo Jedi warrior,” said Paul Lieberstein, one of the series’ executive producers and a series regular. “He’ll have been hired over the summer as the new manager, but within hours, got himself promoted. Within days, he took over the company. James has an energy that is completely his own, and ‘The Office’ has no tools for dealing with this guy. We’re thrilled he’s joining our cast.”

Pam Beesly Halpert (Jenna Fischer) is the former office receptionist now office administrator. Pam’s office romance with sales rep Jim Halpert (John Krasinski) quickly evolved into marriage followed by the birth of their daughter Cecilia. Jim shares his working space with Dwight Schrute (Rainn Wilson) the arrogant assistant to the regional manager whose responsibilities have expanded as the new owner of the office building. Ryan Howard (B.J. Novak) is the young, smart, former temp, whose fall from grace as a Dunder Mifflin executive quickly landed him back at the bottom of the food chain in Scranton. Andy Bernard (Ed Helms) is the preppy salesman and die-hard Cornell alumni whose endless and unique musical talents keep the office entertained. A surprising relationship has also formed between Andy and the ambitious distribution coordinator Darryl Philbin (Craig Robinson), who moved his office from the warehouse to the main floor alongside Michael and his staff.

Also starring are Leslie David Baker, Brian Baumgartner, Kate Flannery, Mindy Kaling, Angela Kinsey, Paul Lieberstein, Oscar Nuñez, Phyllis Smith, Creed Bratton, Ellie Kemper and Zach Woods.

There is still no word on who will take over Steve Carell’s role as the Scranton Manager on a full-time basis.

Facebook Unveils Video Chatting

Today Facebook launched a video calling service based on Microsoft Corp.-owned Skype technology. Part of Facebook Chat, the new service will support traditional person-to-person calls as well as multi-person group chats.

“A few months ago, we started working with Skype to bring video calling to Facebook,” said Phillip Su, a Facebook engineer working on the video calling team, in a post to Facebook’s official blog. “We built it right into chat, so all your conversations start from the same place.”

The new service, which is accessible HERE, will be rolled out in 70 different languages to all of Facebook’s approximately 750 million users over the next few weeks. Users can initiate a video call simply by selecting the ‘video call’ button at the top of any Facebook Chat window.

Facebook Chat’s interface underwent a redesign to accommodate video calling. It now includes a sidebar listing each users most common chatting partners that automatically appears if the user’s Web browser window is wide enough.

“Now it’s easier to find your friends and start a conversation,” said Mr. Su.

When Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook chief executive, said last week his company had “something awesome” to unveil this week, technology news site TechCrunch was first to report that something would be a Skype-powered video calling service the following day. That report was confirmed by Facebook with todays announcement.

Shepard Fairey’s “They Live” Poster – Second Colorway Onsale Info

Shepard Fairey will release his own colorway of the “They Live” poster at a random time tomorrow (Thursday, July 7th). It’s an 18″ x 24″ screenprint with an edition of 450, and will cost $50. Visit ObeyGiant.com.

Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest 2011

Professional food consumer Joey Chestnut claimed the hot dog eating crown for the fifth straight year after stuffing his face with 62 franks at the annual Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest. Meanwhile, over at the newly christened Women’s Table, power-eater Sonya “The Black Widow” Thomas took home the inaugural pink Pepto Bismol belt by shoving 40 hot dogs down her gullet in 10 minutes.

Takeru Kobayashi went rogue set the new (unofficial) world record for hot dog eating yesterday, besting official champion Joey Chestnut’s 62 dogs with a powerful 69. Kobayashi has been banned from the Nathan’s hot dog eating contest at Coney Island as a result of an ongoing dispute with Major League Eating. Watch his video HERE.

Magician Mathieu Bich Fools Penn & Teller

On the Jonathan Ross-hosted magic competition show Penn & Teller: Fool Us, magicians are challenged to successfully fool world-renowned illusionists Penn and Teller for a chance to open for the duo at their long-running magic show in Vegas. Magician Mathieu Bich successfully fools Penn & Teller with his signature “Spreadwave” card trick.

U2 Brings Blind Fan Onstage To Perform ‘All I Want Is You’

Most every show on U2′s 360 world tour has ended with “Moment Of Surrender,” but before walking offstage last night in Nashville Bono saw a blind fan upfront holding up a sign saying he wanted to play a song for his wife. “What do you want to play?” Bono said to him. “Get a guitar for this dude. Gents, we have a surprise guest.” The man said he was really nervous, but once handed Bono’s acoustic guitar he began playing “All I Want Is You.” It started with just Bono on vocals, but soon enough the entire band joined in for a moment the man is unlikely to ever forget. When it was all done, Bono even gave him the guitar.

Stephen King’s 2011 Summer Reading List

Stephen King, the prolific author and avid reader shares the books that he’ll be leafing through this summer. Below are King’s suggestions, broken down by month. Check out the full article from the Best of Summer issue of Entertainment Weekly HERE.

June:

Buried Prey by John Sandford

Robopocalypse by Daniel H. Wilson

The Five by Robert McCammon

The Fifth Witness by Michael Connelly

July:

The Sentry by Robert Crais

The Silent Land by Graham Joyce

The Cypress House by Michael Kortya

Dog On It by Spencer Quinn

August:

The Accident by Linwood Barclay

Case Histories by Kate Atkinson

A Test of Wills by Charles Todd

The Terror of Living by Urban Waite

25 Cartoon Characters Whose Real Names You Never Knew

We know them and we love them, but what are their actual names? I can now sleep easier knowing that my favorite childhood cereal spokesperson’s full name is Captain Horatio Magellan Crunch.

Comic-Con Episode IV: A Fans Hope Book by Morgan Spurlock

Get an insider’s look at the biggest pop culture and fan convention in the USA! This 196 page hardcover published by DK Books offers an in-depth look at the experience of Comic-ConOscar-nominated filmmaker Morgan Spurlock teams up with Joss Whedon and comic book legend Stan Lee to provide an insider look at the unique experience that is the San Diego Comic-Con. An annual four-day event that originally showcased comic books and science fiction, the convention has expanded over the years to include film, horror, anime, manga, animation and video games. The largest event of its kind in the world, Comic-Con is the quintessential center of pop culture today. From what Comic-Con is, what goes on, and how it became what it is today, this illustrated companion to the film offers an unprecedented look at this annual event. Comic-Con Episode IV: A Fans Hope ($25) includes interviews with Frank Miller, Matt Groening,Kenneth Branagh, Ellen Page and Seth Rogan. The book will be released on July 4, 2011.

Batman: Arkham City 12 Minute Gameplay Trailer

Take the next 12 minutes out of your day to feast your eyes and ears on gameplay from Batman: Arkham City, including a brief tease of the newly-playable Catwoman.

Developer Rocksteady Games returns players to its dark vision of Gotham, where the Arkham Asylum for the Criminally Insane has been replaced with a walled-off expanse of city streets and abandoned buildings, ruled only by deadly mad anarchy. From a familiar third-person perspective, players resume the single-player role of Batman, to embark upon missions of infiltration, assault, recovery, and rescue. Gruesomely outnumbered, Batman’s survival still relies largely on stealthy ninja tactics, but the open, outdoor environments of the urban warzone occasionally call for cape-aided hang-gliding and grappling-hook acrobatics, as well. Although the territory of the new Arkham City is nearly five times larger than the old asylum grounds, Batman’s path is sometimes limited by outbursts of gang warfare, usually best avoided. The game also regularly presents puzzles for Batman to solve, in the gadget-enhanced “Detective Mode.” The combat system has been refined, allowing Batman to counter attacks from multiple opponents at once, and to access his gadgets in the middle of a fight.

Set only a year after the events of Arkham Asylum, the game’s story begins with Quincy Sharp, the former warden who is now mayor of Gotham City. His plan — to shut down the asylum, move the inmates to a walled in section of city slums, and hire private security to guard the new borders — has created a zone of pure lawlessness in the heart of Gotham. It is a city within a city, where inmates are free to roam the streets, stealing and killing as they wish, so long as they do not attempt to escape. Control of this urban wasteland is now contested by two rival gangs: one led by the Joker, with the help of Harley Quinn, the other led by Two Face, who has called for the public execution of Catwoman — much to the delight of the other bloodthirsty residents. Side-stories involve more of Arkham’s most famously devious and demented recidivists, including Mr. Freeze, the Penguin, Poison Ivy, and the Riddler. Kevin Conroy again voices Batman, with Mark Hamill as the Joker.

Batman: Arkham City for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii U, and Microsoft Windows is scheduled to be released on October 18, 2011.

New Image From Pixar’s Brave

Following the teaser trailer and poster, Disney•Pixar has released this new image from Brave, opening in 3D and 2D theaters on June 22, 2012.

Brave is set in the mystical Scottish Highlands, where Merida (Kelly Macdonald) is the princess of a kingdom ruled by King Fergus (Billy Connolly) and Queen Elinor (Emma Thompson). An unruly daughter and an accomplished archer, Merida one day defies a sacred custom of the land and inadvertently brings turmoil to the kingdom. In an attempt to set things right, Merida seeks out an eccentric old Wise Woman (Julie Walters) and is granted an ill-fated wish. Also figuring into Merida’s quest — and serving as comic relief — are the kingdom’s three lords: the enormous Lord MacGuffin (Kevin McKidd), the surly Lord Macintosh (Craig Ferguson), and the disagreeable Lord Dingwall (Robbie Coltrane).

The MAD Fold-In Collection

The first thing I would do when I picked up an issue of MAD Magazine was turn to the back, fold the last page and chuckle at Al Jaffee’s clever fold-ins. Since 1964 these illustrations have become an icon of American humor. Generations have grown up with Jaffee’s inspired skewerings of our foibles and cultural conundrums. Issue after issue, each Fold-in requires the reader to simply fold the page so that arrow A meets arrow B to reveal the hidden gag image, a simple idea that masks both undeniable artistic ingenuity and comic timing. In this deluxe four-volume set, each of the 410 fold-ins is reproduced at its original size, with a digital representation of the corresponding “folded” image on the following page (so collectors won’t have to “fold” their book to get the jokes). Featuring insightful essays by such luminaries as Pixar’s Pete Docter and humorist Jules Feiffer, The MAD Fold-In Collection is the definitive gift for the millions of fans who’ve grown up with MAD for nearly 60 years. The MAD Fold-In Collection ($125) will be available on September 7, 2011.

Augmented Reality Cinema

If you are a film buff, then this app is for you! Augmented Reality Cinema is currently being developed. The application will overlay movie clips that are filmed on the very spot you are standing utilizing your smart phone’s GPS.

Nine Monster Movies That Inspired Tim Burton

Tim Burton’s  gleefully macabre aesthetic is currently on display at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art — the exhibition that bears the filmmaker’s name and runs through Halloween brings together more than 700 drawings, paintings, photographs, film and video works, storyboards, puppets, concept art, costumes and other movie memorabilia. During a recent interview with the Los Angeles Times, the Burbank-born director talked about the influence classic monster movies have had on his life’s work, and picking up on that theme, the museum this weekend will launch a Saturday Monster Matinee series spotlighting nine films that are close to Burton’s heart. HERE is a look at the lineup.

Harry Potter: 23 Astounding Props

Take a close-up look at the objects that brought the Potter saga to life — and sometimes came to life themselves. Check them out HERE.

Whatever Happened to Pudding Pops? The Lost Toys, Tastes & Trends of the ’70s & ’80s

Whatever Happened to Pudding Pops? The Lost Toys, Tastes & Trends of the ’70s & ’80s written by Gael Fashingbauer Cooper and Brian Bellmont, takes you back in time to the tastes, the smells, and the sounds of childhood, when the Mystery Date board game didn’t seem sexist, and exploding Pop Rocks were the epitome of candy science.

But what happened to the toys, tastes and trends of our youth? Some vanished totally, like Freakies cereal. Some stayed around, but faded from the spotlight, like Sea-Monkeys or Shrinky Dinks. Some were yanked from the market, revised and reintroduced…but you’ll have to read the book to find out which ones.

So flip up the collar of that polo shirt and revisit with us the glory and the shame of those goofy decades only a native could love.

Whatever Happened to Pudding Pops? The Lost Toys, Tastes & Trends of the ’70s & ’80s ($12.95, Perigee Books) is now available in stores and online.

Neil Gaiman’s American Gods Is Coming To HBO

HBO recently announced that American Gods, their new series based on the novel of the same name by Neil Gaiman will have a total of 60-70 one hour episodes divided into six seasons.

Gaiman’s own Twitter feed shared that more material will be written by him, “And for those asking, No, 6 years of AMERICAN GODS on TV doesn’t mean just the 1st book. It means I need to write the 2nd now, for a start.”

The series is planned to be big-budgeted and effects-heavy. “There are some crazy things in there.” said Gary Goetzman, a partner in the production company, Playtone Productions, “We’ll probably be doing more effects in American Gods than has ever been done on a television series,” said Goetzman.