Filed under: Movies

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Roger Ebert to produce new movie show

From The Chicago Sun-Times | Roger Ebert and his wife Chaz announced Friday that they will produce a weekly film-review program called “Roger Ebert Presents At the Movies,” which will be a half hour long. The program continues the 35-year-old run of a reviewing format first introduced by Gene Siskel and Ebert and later by Ebert and Richard Roeper.

Netflix to add more streamed movies

Netflix Inc. has reached an agreement to license first-run theatrical movies distributed by Nu Image/Millennium Films for online streaming during the “pay TV window,” when they’re usually available on premium TV channels.

Shares rose 3.11 percent, to $146.20, in late afternoon trading. The stock has more than doubled so far this year.  Get the full story »

Redbox rents 1 billionth movie

Fast-growing DVD rental provider Redbox said it reached a milestone this weekend with the rental of its 1 billionth movie — “Clash of the Titans,” at a kiosk in Tampa, Fla.

The rental milestone occurred six years after the first kiosk appeared in Denver. Get the full story »

iPod, Apple TV upgrades expected today

With the unveiling of a new set of Apple Inc. products — likely to include music-related devices, but also the possible major upgrade of a TV gadget — Steve Jobs and company are again poised to cause a stir in the tech world.

Apple watchers are predicting that Chief Executive Jobs, at a company event today in San Francisco, will announce updates to Apple’s lineup of ubiquitous iPod media players, and also changes to its iTunes store to make it more friendly to mobile devices. Get the full story »

Blockbuster preparing to file bankruptcy

A customer looks at films at a Blockbuster Video store in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Kevork Djansezian)

After dominating the home video rental business for more than a decade and struggling to survive in recent years against upstarts Netflix and Redbox, Blockbuster Inc. is preparing to file for bankruptcy next month, according to people who have been briefed on the matter.

Executives from Blockbuster and its senior debt holders last week held meetings with the six major movie studios to discuss their intention to enter a “pre-planned” bankruptcy in mid-September, said several people familiar with the situation who requested anonymity due to the sensitivity of ongoing talks. Get the full story »

Netflix releases long-awaited iPhone app

Netflix iPhone app. (Netflix photo)

Netflix unveiled its long-awaited app for the iPhone on Thursday, sending the company’s shares almost 2 percent higher.

The free app lets Netflix members stream TV episodes and movies to their Apple iPhone or iPod Touch for no additional cost. Get the full story »

Film paints Pritzkers as obstacle to recovery

Workers at the Union Tank Car plant. (Show Us The Tax Breaks)

A short film produced by the hotel workers’ union and screened Wednesday evening in Chicago holds up the city’s wealthy Pritzker family as poster children for corporate decision-making that they say has contributed to the downfall of the economy.

“Show Us the Tax Breaks” attacks the family, and Penny Pritzker in particular, for the decision to close East Chicago’s Union Tank Car plant in 2008. The plant was one of the largest employers in East Chicago, Ind., and when it closed, hundreds of workers were left unemployed. Get the full story »