Give Entertainment Weekly credit - while the mainstream media hardly mentioned the passing of Roy Scheider, the magazine's website has several excellent tribute to the star of Jaws, The French Connection and All That Jazz. There is a brief but very candid interview with William Friedkin, who directed Scheider in his Oscar-nominated performance in The French Connection as well as in the big budget, ill-fated 1977 adventure film Sorcerer. Friedkin reveals that he very much wanted Steve McQueen for the starring role in that film but refused McQueen's demand that a female role be written for Ali MacGraw. Friedkin hired Scheider to star, but the two had a contentious relationship on the set of the very demanding production. What emerged is one of the truly under-rated adventure films, but the difficulties in bringing it to the screen resulted in hard feelings between director and star. Friedkin also reveals he wanted Scheider to play the Father Karras role in The Exorcist but author William Peter Blatty threw cold water on the decision and Jason Miller was ultimately cast.

To read the interview click here

To read writer Gary Susman's appreciation of Scheider click here

Bogdanovich: tying one on (literally!)

Writer Amanda Christine Miller has a light-hearted and amusing interview with famed director Peter Bogdanovich on The Huffington Post site. Bogdanovich speaks at length about his signature "logo" - the stylish neck scarves that are an omnipresent part of his wardobe. He also reflects on the legendary film figures his came to know and expresses the most admiration for John Ford and Howard Hawks, though he concedes Ford's grumpiness made him an unpleasant person to be around. As for his own icon of fashion, Bogdanovich chooses Cary Grant and tells an amusing ancedote that reveals that Grant's Brooks Brothers suits were straight off the rack. To read the interview click here

Eastwood in the 1968 thriller Coogan's Bluff

Throughout the decades, Clint Eastwood has gone against the grain of other top actors by not overtly inserting himself into the political forum, aside from his one term as mayor of Carmel. However, in a recent interview with Neil Cavtuo of Fox News, Eastwood is surprisingly candid about his political beliefs. He says he's traditionally backed Republican candidates, but believes the party has strayed very far from its roots. He doesn't endorse any specific candidate for president, not does he put down any particular one. However, he mentions on several occasions that he has great admiration for John McCain. It's the most revealing side of Eastwood's poltical beliefs we've seen. To read click here

Caine with his trademark glasses circa 1965.

It's hard to believe Sir Michael Caine is 74 years old, but he's still got the irreverant attitude that made him a star in 1964's Zulu. In an interview with the Sydney Morning Herald, Caine reflects on his life and career and makes some typical witticisms. He dismisses his knighthood as virtually meaningless outside Britain, tells amusing anecdotes about his 40 year friendship with Roger Moore and Sean Connery and explains why he got out of the restaurant business thusly: "I sold them all 10 years ago. I found that chefs were more annoying than bloody movie stars. They're so temperamental. You can't say anything to them. And I picked all the nutcases, I did. So I got out. Someone offered me a fortune and I left." To read the interview click here

In a recent interview with Premiere's website, Woody Allen tells writer Ryan Stewart that it is unlikely his fans will ever see special editions of his films - especially the older ones. In a shockingly callous manner, Allen says that he routinely throws out any left over footage, a practice he follows even on his more recent movies. He also disdains talking about or analyzing his films and therefore dismisses the premise of cooperating on special DVD editions. Allen, who is known regard the interview process with as much enthusiasm as root canal surgery, tells Stewart he is speaking to him as a courtesy to the people who financed his recently-released movie Cassandra's Dream - which is like telling your prom date you asked her out because her father begged you to. Nevertheless, Allen does give straight-forward, no-nonsense answers to Stewart's intelligent questions and we get some insights intot he persona of one of the film industry's most quirky creative minds. To read click here

The stories are legion about how alumni from producer Roger Corman's low budget movies of the 1960s and 1970s helped launch many an actor and director to prominence. However, you can add a highly successful producer to the mix, as well. Gale Anne Hurd, producer of such blockbuster hits as The Terminator, Armageddon and Aliens, got her first break in show business learning the ropes on Corman's 1980 low budget sci fi "epic" Battle Beyond the Stars, a loose remake of The Magnificent Seven that starred an alumnus of that film, Robert Vaughn. It was on this movie that Hurd met her future partner and husband-to-be, James Cameron, who created the miniature spaceships for the film. In a revealing interview with The Desert Sun's website, Hurd recalls how she grew up amidst show business royalty and how she befriended Red Skelton as a child. She also talks about her ugly realization of the impact of anti-Semitism and how the prejudices she suffered only inspired her to become more successful. To read click here