72
Event to aid hunt for family
People who have lost touch with relatives because of adoption or divorce can search for family members through the International Soundex Reunion Registry from 2 to 4 p.m. Oct. 24 at Harris United Methodist Church. The free event is open to adoptees 18 or older; birth parents; parents of adopted children and others separated through divorce. For more information, call 591-3834 or check www.adoptioncirclehawaii.com.
PEOPLE
MTV partners with Stan Lee on digital comic
LOS ANGELES » MTV is helping to bring Stan Lee’s newest superhero to life.
The network is joining forces with Lee’s POW Entertainment to create a new digital comic series called "The Seekers."
"It involves superheroes, it involves a very high-concept plot, it’s a story such as you never have seen before, and it spans the centuries," Lee said in a telephone interview from New York Comic Con. He hopes "The Seekers" will grow into a TV series or film.
First, though, it has to be written and illustrated. MTV will hold a contest to find an undiscovered writer and artist to work on the new comic series. The winners will work with Lee and POW to develop the concept and create multiple issues.
The 87-year-old comics legend says he’s excited to work in a digital arena.
"It’s thrilling because it’s a whole new discipline," he said. "But it’s a funny thing: Whether it’s electronic, whether it’s digital, whether it’s on paper, whether it’s on a television screen, it’s the story that counts. You don’t let the fact that there’s a different area of exhibition change the fact that you need a great story filled with action and surprises and suspense."
"The Seekers" will be available for free on the new MTV Geek website that launched last week. The site will offer comics, horror, sci-fi and gaming news.
Dafoe proud of work playing Green Goblin
BUSAN, South Korea » Some serious character actors may be embarrassed about playing a comic book character, but Willem Dafoe says he’s proud of his role as the villain Green Goblin in the "Spider-Man" movies.
The 55-year-old Dafoe was asked several times about his performances in Hollywood’s "Spider-Man" franchise late Friday at a news conference at South Korea’s Pusan International Film Festival — instead of his more critically acclaimed roles in dramas like "Platoon" and "Mississippi Burning."
One reporter even apologized for the line of questioning.
"That’s part of my story. Don’t be sorry. I’m very proud of that movie," Dafoe responded.
The Appleton, Wis., native was in Pusan to promote the film noir "A Woman," which was directed by his wife, Italian filmmaker Giada Colagrande. He plays a novelist who is devastated by the death of his wife but also caught up in a new romance.
Dafoe, however, said he has become more adventurous in choosing new parts because he is now an established actor who can afford to take creative risks.
"I feel like I can be a little more reckless," he said.
"I very much am attracted to strong directors, passionate directors, people who are on fire to express their cinema. I am less interested in exercises in style," he said. "I require more adventure and stimulation."
Caine asked doctor to help speed dad’s death
LONDON » Actor Michael Caine claimed he hastened his terminally ill father’s death by asking a doctor to give a fatal overdose.
In a transcript of an radio interview widely published in British media before being broadcast yesterday, Caine said he could not bear to see his father in pain.
Caine, 77, told Classic FM the doctor initially refused but told the actor to return to the hospital at midnight.
"I came back at midnight and my father died at five past 12. So he’d done it." Caine said.
Caine’s father, Maurice Micklewhite, died at the age of 56 in 1955 after suffering from liver cancer.
Caine’s publicist did not immediately return an e-mail seeking comment.
Actress Richards writing memoir about struggles
NEW YORK » Denise Richards is writing a book for those who find life a little complicated.
Gallery Books announced Friday the actress and former model is working on an inspirational memoir about "her personal struggles." The memoir, currently untitled, is scheduled for release in July and Gallery says it will "touch on universal themes of love and loss, as well as marriage, divorce and motherhood."
The 39-year-old had two children with Charlie Sheen, whom she divorced in 2006 amid allegations that Sheen was using drugs and had threatened her with violence.
Gallery is an imprint of Simon & Schuster.
