Rock 'n' roll pearls from Oyster drummer

It absolutely was all rock 'n' roll without any bull Monday evening within the preem of Magnolia's "Roadie" within the Angelika. The film follows a roadie who returns where you can Queens after being fired with the Blue Oyster Cult. According to Albert Bouchard, original drummer for your Cult, the pic is accurate. He ongoing to regale partygoers within the Parkside Lounge with real tales of sacrilege and scatology within the road. Within the afterparty, site visitors were also treated with a musical performance with the film's director and authors, Michael and Gerald Cuesta, and original tunes by Jill Hennessy, who stars inside the pic with Bobby Cannavale and Ron Eldard. :- Alexa Harrison Contact Variety Staff at news@variety.com

AFTRA, Networks Reach New Three Year Deal

THR.com photo editor Chris Godley was shot by a gunman in Hollywood on Friday morning, but was only grazed by a bullet and not seriously injured in an incident that was captured on video by witnessesand widely circulated on the Internet.our editor recommendsGunman Opens Fire Near Hollywood's ArcLight Theater (Video) A gunman randomly opened fire at the intersection of Sunset Boulevard and Vine Street in Los Angeles on Friday morning at about 10:15 a.m. The man was shot and killed by police, who may have been working on a nearby film set. The shooter reportedly fired nine to 12 shots and after running out of bullets, he allegedly pulled out a knife while shouting, "Kill me" and "I want to be killed," the Associated Press has reported. The identity of the gunman has been withheld by authorities. The shooting occurred while Godley, 27, a Hollywood Reporterstaffer since October 2010, was driving into work from his North Hollywood home.Godley's right leg was grazed by a bullet in the incident. Godley said that while he waited at a red light at the intersection of Sunset and Vine, he noticed two men who were ducking behind objects, but he didn't make much of it because they appeared to be joking around. As he entered the intersection -- driving south on Vine -- the gunman fired a shot into a red Honda Civic, shattering a window. At first, Godley thought he was stumbling upon a movie crew that was filming in the area and had neglected to cordon off the intersection. However, Godley said it quickly became apparent that the situation was dire. VIDEO: Gunman Opens Fire Near Hollywood's ArcLight Theater "I processed the information very quickly. I hit my gas pedal and sped through the intersection as fast as I could," Godley said Friday evening. "I knew he was going to take a shot at me. He took a shot and it went through my driver side door, grazed my leg, bounced off of my iPad and went into my passenger side door. It did not come out the other side of the door, so the bullet is in my door." "If he had aimed a little bit better I could just be gone right now. I am still processing all of that. I think it has yet to really set in. -- THR.com photo editor Chris Godley Footage of the incident shows Godley's black 2003 Toyota Tacoma speeding through the intersection as the gunman, clad in jeans and a white undershirt, fires a shot only a few feet from the driver-side window of the pickup truck. Godley said he did not get a good look at the shooter. Another man, driving a Mercedes-Benz, was shot in the jaw and was transported to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. "If he had aimed a little bit better I could just be gone right now," said Godley. "I am still processing all of that. I think it has yet to really set in." After making it past the shooter, Godley continued down Vine to De Longpre Avenue, where he turned right and parked his car. After checking to make sure he wasn't seriously injured, Godley dialed 911. He later returned to the scene, where he spent several hours being interviewed by investigators from the Los Angeles Police Department, who retained his car for examination. Later, at a nearby police station, he was examined by paramedics. Godley said that he remains puzzled by the men who appeared to be having fun as they ducked away from the gunman's attack. "That seemed odd to me at the time and it seems odd to me now." He has not watched footage of the incident. "I think I am going to watch it but not tonight," Godley said. Resting at home on Friday night, Godley said he is still processing the incident. "I'm still pretty numb to the situation right now," he said. "I had a little bit of an awakening in the shower when I really looked at my leg and really kind of processed how close the bullet came to doing a lot more damage than it did." Watch the video below: View more videos at: http://nbclosangeles.com. Email: Daniel.Miller@THR.com Twitter: @DanielNMiller PHOTO GALLERY: View Gallery Lights, Camera, Accident! 20 Hollywood Stunts Gone Wrong Related Topics

XBox Live expands TV tie-ins

The recent update to XBox Live has added Microsofts Bing search service and an upgrade to Kinect, the consoles voice- and gesture-control device. When the latest version of XBox Live is unveiled Sunday, the free update will serve as a reminder of both how far the Microsoft service has come and how much further it still has to go.The online entertainment storefront for the XBox 360 gaming console has been offering TV and movies for five years, giving Microsoft a long head start into what has become one of the most competitive environments in media: so-called "over-the-top" devices delivering videos as a potential alternative to incumbents like cable and satellite.XBox Live may be making its greatest strides yet between the addition of Microsoft's Bing search service and upgrade of Kinect, the voice and gesture-control device that renders the console's own controller irrelevant to entertainment consumption. Moreover, XBox Live is making a sixfold increase in blue-chip content partners that will include Comcast and interactive versions of channels the nation's largest cable operator doesn't have. But the fact Microsoft has made a deal with Comcast to begin with is a telling indication that matching the offerings of MSOs isn't easy. The U.S. portion of the 35 million XBox Live subs worldwide are watching over an hour of video per day in addition to the gaming they consume on the service for $60 per month. Regardless, the buzz on cord-cutting solutions tends to get dominated by entries from tech giants like Google TV and Apple TV or smaller specialized players like Roku and Boxee.Yet XBox 360 and Sony's Playstation 3 have proven that consoles ceased to be strictly for gaming years ago. A study issued last month by Strategy Analytics found that 65 percent of Xbox 360 owners under the age of 25 watch more movies and TV shows through the console than on computers.More than a few of the strategies shaking up the multichannel landscape today got their start on XBox Live. Two years before TV Everywhere reared its head, it was offering authenticated cable access abroad to MSOs like France's Canal Plus. XBox 360 was also the first device to provide an app capable of connecting TVs with Netflix, which remains the console's most popular video attraction. XBox Live was the first service that enabled renting high-definition movies on the Internet."A million tech years ago, that was innovative," said Ross Honey, GM of entertainment and advertising at XBox Live. "Today your toaster can do that."The biggest innovation to the new update is its range of navigation options. Kinect, a sensor that listens to voice commands, has been better integrated into XBox Live and tied to Bing. In addition, Windows wireless devices can run an app that turn the phone into a remote control.All that functionality may be necessary given the sheer increase in content coming to XBox Live viewers will dig through. Many of the 48 programming partners coming in the U.S. and overseas were first announced in October, including HBO Go, BBC iPlayer, Bravo, Syfy, TMZ and "Today" show. New additions to that roster include MLB.tv and Vudu.At first blush, the lineup seems a giant step toward realizing the speculation that Microsoft was looking to be a "virtual MSO," packaging the same channels that cablers and satcasters provide. But none of the networks in the current XBox Live lineup are a replication of the live 24/7 channels offered by MSOs; they are either broadband products like HBO Go or meager VOD samplings such as what Bravo provides.Two key ways Microsoft looks to close the quality gap with the MSOs this go-round is by offering subscribers to both Comcast and Verizon-owned FiOs TV authenticated access over XBox, which essentially turns the console into a set-top box. But even in those instances, subs aren't getting the full experience they get from their cable or telco providers. FiOs TV users can only watch a pre-selected bouquet of 26 channels that include HBO, MTV and CNN but not the complete lineup. And Comcast doesn't offer access to its live channels at all, opting instead to provide access to its broadband VOD platform Xfinity.The second key way Microsoft is striving to differentiate itself from MSOs is its gradual build-up of channels with special features. Last year, it launched the effort with an ESPN-branded channel that turned college football telecasts into interactive extravaganzas for viewers to interact socially and play games with friends using XBox. UFC will get a similar treatment with the new update, rolling up content from its pay-per-view events, UFC.com and exclusive material.But even there MSOs stay a step ahead given the UFC offering won't include all MMA league's fights that will be featured on a range of News Corp.-owned linear channels including Fox and FX.There are still other fronts where Microsoft can look to make advances in programming, but aren't getting significant improvements in this update. The Zune marketplace, an iTunes-like storefront for ordering movies and TV shows a la carte, returns with little enhancement. And Microsoft hasn't experimented with its own original programming for XBox in several years, though Honey indicated the company hasn't ruled that out for the future. Previous efforts included an exclusive licensing of the webisode sensation "The Guild" and an interactive adaptation of the Endemol unscripted format "1 vs. 100."Looking back years from now on the over-the-top race, all the content growth coming to XBox Live with this update will likely be overshadowed by improvements made to Kinect. It may be the most crucial feature given the hype has already begun that Apple will introduce its own Internet-connected TV set next year complete with Siri, the voice-recognition feature currently wowing buyers of the iPhone 4S. Contact Andrew Wallenstein at andrew.wallenstein@variety.com

AT&T: FCC Report Critical Of T-Mobile Deal Is One-Sided And Cherry-Picks Facts

Yourarelysee a company that does as much business with federal regulators as AT&T doesattack them as ferociously as the phone giant did today. AT&T is livid over a staff study that concluded its$39B wireless phone acquisition of T-Mobile would be anti-competitive and result in lost jobs. The report, released yesterday,”is so obviously one-sided that any fair-minded person reading it is left with the clear impression that it is an advocacy piece, and not a considered analysis,” AT&T Senior Executive Vice President of External & Legislative Affairs Jim Cicconi said in a blog post. He adds that the report “cherry-picks facts to support its views, and ignores facts that dont,” and “treats its own speculationsas if they were fact.” Calling the staff effort”not the fair and objective analysis to which any party is entitled,”Cicconi also blasted the FCC for releasing the document.AT&T withdrew its merger application at the agency after the FCC moved to block it,although the phone company hasn’t formally abandoned the effort to acquire T-Mobile. By making the report public, he says,the FCC showed that “this was intended more for advocacy and to impact public perceptions. And neither is a proper basis for action by a regulatory agency.” Consumer groups, which opposed the AT&T deal, rushed to the FCC’s defense. Media Access Project Policy Director Andrew Jay Schwartzman called the report “thoroughly documented.” He adds that AT&T”takes advantage of the fact that some of the most damaging findings in the report are from confidential documents which AT&T has refused to make public.” And Consumers Union Policy Counsel ParulDesai says AT&Ts claims that it was treated unfairly “are simply unfounded and an attempt to distract from the truth that this merger means higher prices and fewer choices for consumers.