Movie
Wiseman, who played villain in 1962 ‘Dr. No,’ dies
by admin on Oct.21, 2009, under Actors, Dead, Movie, Movies, Technology
Joseph Wiseman, an actor who played the sinister scientist and title character of Dr. No in the first James Bond feature film, has died. He was 91.
Wiseman, who had been in declining health, died Monday at his home in Manhattan, his daughter, Martha Graham Wiseman, told The New York Times and Los Angeles Times.
A screen and stage actor, Wiseman’s film credits include “Detective Story” (1951) and “The Unforgiven” (1960). He also had guest roles on television shows “Law & Order,” “The Streets of San Francisco,” “The Twilight Zone” and “The Untouchables,” according to The New York Times.
He is likely best known, however, for his villainous role in “Dr. No,” the first in a long string of James Bond movies. The 1962 film introduced Sean Connery as James Bond and also starred Ursula Andress.
Wiseman was born in Montreal on May 15, 1918. He moved to the United States with his family when he was a boy.
According to the Los Angeles Times, Wiseman started acting when he was a teenager, getting his start in summer stock.
In 1938, he was given a small part in his first Broadway play, Robert E. Sherwood’s “Abe Lincoln in Illinois.”
Wiseman’s other Broadway credits include “Joan of Lorraine” (1946), “Antony and Cleopatra” (1947), “Detective Story” (1949); and most recently in the stage adaptation of Abby Mann’s film “Judgment at Nuremberg” (2001). Hard money training

ESPN video case shows holes in hotel security
by admin on Oct.07, 2009, under Hotel Industry, Movie, Technology
The hotel industry is reexamining guest privacy safeguards in light of the case of an ESPN reporter who was videotaped nude through the peephole of her hotel room door, allegedly by a man who reserved an adjacent room.
“This is a wakeup call for the hotel industry,” said Peter Greenberg, author of “Hotel Secrets from the Travel Detective” and CBS travel editor.
Court papers say Michael D. Barrett requested and received a hotel room adjacent to ESPN reporter Erin Andrews at the Nashville Marriott at Vanderbilt University. Barrett then allegedly jimmied the peephole of Andrews’ hotel door, shot the videos and uploaded them to the Internet.
Until now, requests for adjacent rooms have been handled inconsistently throughout the hotel industry. If you ask for a room next to another guest, some hotels will call the other guest for consent, but many will simply go ahead and book it without confirming with the other party.
“There is no consistent policy within individual brands or across the industry,” said John Burns, president of Hospitality Technology Consulting in Scottsdale, Ariz. “It is in the hotel industry’s cultural DNA to attempt to satisfy guests’ ‘adjacent room’ or ‘connecting room’ requests.”
Such requests are not uncommon from extended families, tour participants and individuals traveling together for work or conventions. “It would not be unusual for a guest who affirmatively seems to know that another guest is registered to ask to be placed adjacent or near another guest and for that request to be honored,” said Bjorn Hansen, a professor at New York University’s Tisch Center for Hospitality, Tourism and Sports Management.
But Burns said “given the recent focus on this issue, I expect that policies related to handling this request are under consideration both at the property and brand level.” Hard money training

Travolta, mourning son’s death, bypasses publicity for film
by admin on Jun.09, 2009, under Actors, Dead, Movie
John Travolta, still in mourning over the death of his teenage son earlier this year, issued a rare public statement urging fans to see his latest movie, “The Taking of Pelham 123,” which he filmed last year.
“I promise, you won’t be disappointed,” said Travolta, who plays a deranged ex-inmate who takes hostages on a New York subway.
Travolta did not join co-star Denzel Washington in the promotional tour for the movie — which hits theaters Friday — because he said his family needed “additional time to reconcile our loss.”
His son Jett, 16, was found unconscious on January 2 while on vacation with his family in the Bahamas. The teen was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead on arrival, local police said.
Washington, who plays a subway train dispatcher forced to face down Travolta’s character, said he talked to the actor about three weeks ago.
