Will Ferrell may be busiest actor in Hollywood

Like him or not, you can't deny the simple truth that Will Ferrell is one of the busiest actors in Hollywood.
His latest film, "Land of the Lost," is the 25th movie role he's had since 2000. This includes feature films, such as "Step Brothers" and "Semi-Pro," voice-only roles such as "Curious George," and uncredited performances such as in "Wedding Crashers."
Ferrell, 42, just keeps churning out comedies. Not bad for a guy who was considered by many to be a disappointment when he joined the cast of "Saturday Night Live" in 1995 after a stint with the Groundlings comedy group in Los Angeles. He beat out Steve Carell to get that plum assignment.
Fast forward 14 years and Ferrell is now considered to be among the finest to come out of the "SNL" finishing school for comedians. And he's among the most popular film comedians in America.
Not all of his movies succeed. "Bewitched," based on the television series of the 1960s, is one that missed. But that doesn't stop him, and that's the mark of a pro.
Like many who have preceded him in Hollywood, Ferrell uses a lot of the same people in his movies. His stock company includes David Koechner and Andy Richter.
Here are six movies available on video and DVD that show off Ferrell's talents.

"Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby" (2006) -- Ferrell's portrayal of a disgraced NASCAR driver seeking redemption is hilarious. Other stars include Dolton's own Jane Lynch, Chicago's own John C. Reilly, Gary Cole, Amy Adams and Sacha Baron Cohen.
"Old School" (2003) -- Ferrell considers this his breakout movie and who can disagree. This comedy about three guys (Vince Vaughn and Luke Wilson being the other two) who start a college fraternity is laugh out loud funny. Other stars include Jeremy Piven, Ellen Pompeo, Juliette Lewis and Leah Remini.
"Blades of Glory" (2007) -- Ferrell teams up with Jon "Napoleon Dynamite" Heder in this comedy about two banned figure skaters who find a loophole that allows them to compete as a doubles team. Other stars include Will Arnett, "SNL" colleague Amy Poehler and Jenna Fischer.
"Elf" (2003) -- Ferrell stars as a super-sized North Pole elf who goes to New York to connect with his real family in this Christmas comedy. Other stars include James Caan as his real father, Bob Newhart, Ed Asner as Santa, Zooey Deschanel and Mary Steenburgen.
"Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy" (2004) -- Ferrell stars as an oblivious television anchorman in 1970s San Diego whose life takes a turn when Christina Applegate joins him as co-anchor. Other stars include Paul Rudd, Seth Rogan, Steve Carell and David Koechner. Watch for the battle of the news teams with cameos by Vince Vaughn, Ben Stiller, Tim Robbins and Luke Wilson as rival anchormen.
"Kicking & Screaming" (2005) -- Ferrell is a family man who gets the chance to coach his son's soccer team. That pits him against his win-at-all-costs father (Robert Duvall), a coaching legend. But Ferrell does have Mike Ditka (as himself) on his side. Other stars include Kate Walsh and Musetta Vander.

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David Carradine found dead in Bangkok

Actor David Carradine, best known to baby boomers as Caine from "Kung Fu" and to younger audiences as Bill from Quentin Tarantino's "Kill Bill" movies, was found dead Wednesday in a Bangkok hotel room. He had apparently hanged himself.
Carradine, 72, was the oldest son of noted actor John Carradine and patriarch to a Hollywood dynasty. He was half-brother to actors Keith Carradine, Robert Carradine and Michael Bowen. Two of his children are actors, daughters Calista Carradine and Kansas Carradine. He also had two acting nieces, Ever Carradine (daughter of Robert) and Martha Plimpton (daughter of Keith).
Carradine moved easily between television and movies. His role as Caine in television's "Kung Fu" from 1972 to 1975 made him a star. He then starred as his character's grandson in "Kung Fu: The Legend Continues" from 1993 to 1997.
He also starred in movies ranging from Martin Scorsese's first hit "Boxcar Bertha" in 1972 to Tarantino's "Kill Bill" films in 2003 and 2004.
He was an action star of sorts in the 1970s, starring in several low budget films such as "Cannonball" and "Deathsport."

Over the years he worked with a number of great directors including Scorsese, Tarantino, Hal Ashby and Ingmar Bergman.
Besides acting for more than 40 years, Carradine was a producer, director, writer and editor. He also was a musician and had composed music for at least one film and had and contributed songs to movie soundtracks. He was also an accomplished artist.
Here are six of his best performances that are available on video or DVD.

"The Long Riders" (1980) -- A Western with a twist. All of the sets of brothers in the movie are played by real-life acting siblings. David, Keith and Robert Carradine are the Younger brothers, while Stacy and James Keach are Jesse and Frank James. Stars include Randy and Dennis Quaid, Christopher and Nicholas Guest and Pamela Reed.
"Boxcar Bertha" (1972) -- Martin Scorsese directs Carradine and then girlfriend Barbara Hershey in this film about a union organizer and his prostitute girlfriend during the Depression. Other stars include Barry Primus, Bernie Casey and John Carradine.
"Bound for Glory" (1976) -- Carradine stars as folk singer Woody Guthrie during his travels during the Depression. Other stars include Melina Dillon, Ronny Cox and Gail Strickland.
"Kill Bill" (2003 and 2004) -- Carradine is Bill in these Tarantino films about a woman (Uma Thurman) seeking revenge on the people who almost killed her and stole her baby. Other stars include Lucy Liu, Daryl Hannah and Michael Madsen.
"Death Race 2000" (1975) -- Carradine stars as Frankenstein, a driver in a futurisic American road race where teams earn points by running over pedestrians in this cult classic. Other stars include Sylvester Stallone and Mary Woronov.
"Kung Fu" (1972 to 1975) -- All three seasons of the show about a young Chinese man wandering the American West are available. He later portrayed this character's grandson in "Kung Fu: The Legend Continues."

For more information on David Carradine's film career or to leave a message for his family visit http://www.david-carradine.com/

Hollywood robots either kill you or make you laugh

Filmmakers have loved robots almost from the beginning of movie making. The early German sci-fi classic "Metropolis" featured robots back in 1927.
This summer, two of Hollywood's top robot franchises are back.
Already showing in theaters is "Terminator: Salvation," the fourth installment in the "Terminator" series that began 25 years ago with Arnold Schwarzenegger trying to bump off Linda Hamilton. This time Christian Bale is mankind's savior John Connor trying to destroy a robot army dedicated to wiping out humanity.
Up later this month is "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen," the sequel to 2007's hit film about alien robots waging war on Earth. Shia LaBeouf is back as mankind's best hope and Megan Fox as his pretty but tough girlfriend. So, too, are the autobots (good alien robots) and decepticons (bad robots).
Movies about killer robots are not new in Hollywood. Cylons have been killing people since the 1970s television series "Battlestar Galactica." Eve is a beautiful killing machine in "Eve of Destruction" and Gene Simmons unleashes a swarm of killer robots in "Runaway."
Friendly robots have also been around for decades. "Tobor the Great" saves a young boy from bad guys, while a race of worker robots helps a group of friends save their apartment building in "batteries not included."
Some robots are sneaky, though. Bishop turns out to be a robot with his own agenda in the original "Alien" movie. And who knew that the henchmen were robots in "Halloween 3: Season of the Witch."
Many movie robots are in it for the laughs, such as the robot that escapes from the Army in "Short Circuit."
Some robots are just like people, such as Data in the "Star Trek: The Next Generation" series and films.
Some robots used to be people, such as the murderous creation Harvey Keitel turns into in "Saturn 3," and anyone unlucky enough to be assimilated by the Borg.
Occasionally, a robot will blow a fuse and then become dangerous. That's what happens with HAL in "2001: A Space Odyssey" and "I, Robot."
Here are six films available on video and DVD that feature robots down through the years.
"Kronos" (1957) -- A gigantic electricity-sucking robot lands in the ocean off Mexico and after knocking the crap out of the Mexican air force starts heading for Southern California in this vintage sci-fi thriller that scared me royally for most of my youth. Stars include Jeff Morrow, Barbara Lawrence and Morris Ankrum.
"Bicentennial Man" (1999) -- Robin Williams stars in this film based on Isaac Asimov's story about a robot's quest to become human, which takes about 200 years and brings him into contact with lots of people who would just as soon disassemble him. Other stars include Embeth Davidtz, Sam Neill and Oliver Platt.
"The Stepford Wives" (1975) -- Katharine Ross thinks something is odd about the town of Stepford, Conn., and soon finds out the secret the townspeople are keeping. Other stars include Paula Prentiss, Peter Masterson and Tina Louise.
"Westworld" (1973) -- Robots at a high-tech theme park suddenly malfunction and start killing off the staff and guests in this sci-fi thriller. One of the guests then finds himself being stalked by an animatronic gunslinger from the resort's Wild West park. Stars include Yul Brenner, Richard Benjamin and James Brolin.
"THX 1138" (1971) -- This film takes place a couple of hundred years after man has retreated underground to survive a nuclear disaster and has turned control of practically everything in the underground city over to robots. Stars include Robert Duvall, Donald Pleasence and Maggie Meomie.
"Artificial Intelligence: A.I." (2001) -- In the near future, a robotic boy (Haley Joel Osment) is adopted by a family and then abandoned. The boy then embarks on a quest to find the blue fairy that will turn him into a real boy in this film that was started by Stanley Kubrick and finished by Steven Spielberg. Other stars include Frances O'Connor, William Hurt and Jude Law.