Going to the Dogs

Dogs Deserve Better reports Johnny Depp donated an autographed photo for their "Collars for Dollars" charity auction. The photo (pictured below) will be part of the auction which runs through July 3. The direct link to Johnny's photo auction is here.

Hitting the 'Road' with Kerouac?

AZCentral offers an interview with Jim Irsay, the collector who recently purchased the original scroll on which Beat writer Jack Kerouac wrote his classic book "On the Road". In it, he discusses the scroll, the author, and his plans to make sure this piece of his private collection is made available for public viewings.

One such plan, according to the article: "Actor Johnny Depp, a Kerouac fan, would like to take the scroll on tour, maybe with a rock band."

A Perfect '10'

Johnny Depp rates a perfect 10 according to Grinza, the International Journal of Wrinkles, where their experts take a look at him from a professional standpoint.

Louise Gerrard, fashion journalist, says Johnny just gets better with age and seems to have grown into his looks:

“Johnny never looks old, fashion wise, because he has such a fantastic quirky style. He dresses the way he wants and it’s always fresh and different and exclusive to him. Having this eccentric style as opposed to dressing in a conservative, run of the mill way makes him stand out in the crowd and makes it difficult to pigeon hole him into an age group.”

And Dr. Richard Halton, cosmetic surgeon, says it's clear Johnny has never had any kind of cosmetic assistance:

“Johnny has wonderful bone structure and he’s very skim which means the skin on his face isn’t sagging - a common sign of old age. His features are very strong and his eyes stand out. For his age Johnny’s skin is in good condition."

The combination, they've decided, creates a perfect 10: "The man is pure beauty through and through and no amount of aging can affect that!”

Wooden Pirate Draws Crowds

A life-sized wood carving of Captain Jack Sparrow drew the largest crowd at the Sand & Sawdust Festival in Washington State this past weekend, according to an article in The Daily World.

Master carver Brian Sharp's entry was created referencing various photos of Johnny Depp as Captain Jack taken from different angles. He wanted to "make sure he [got] everything from the buttons and belt buckle right to the famous fake pirate’s dreadlocks."

Just a 'Big Kid'

In an interview with C&G News, Marty Klebba (the pirate Marty from the Pirates of the Caribbean films) says Johnny Depp is just a big kid at heart:

“Johnny (Depp) is the biggest kid at heart. You’re one of the boys with him, and pranks are being pulled and (there’s) dirty talk and all of that other stuff. (It’s) just like hanging out with your buddies from high school."

Message Board Issues

I know we've been having problems with the new message board since last night, but I wanted everyone to know it's being worked out. It's having database issues at the moment, but the tech guys are working on it and promise it will be up and running soon.

I don't think they quite believed me when I said it would be high-traffic. I got the standard, "Oh, yeah, that's no problem..." line initially. Then when the issues started, it was, "Wow... a LOT of people are checking out Johnny Depp, aren't they?" LOL! Now they believe me.

Regardless, it is being sorted out and should be up and running at full speed soon. Thanks for your patience.

EDIT June 25: The site transfer is taking a little longer than expected and will begin in full force this afternoon. I should have it all sorted out by Tuesday. Thanks for your patience!

It's Moving Day!

Our old message board server has become bogged down to the point that we can barely use it anymore, so... we're moving! The new board will be hosted on the site itself, so hopefully I'll have more control over fixes, glitches, etc. than we did on a third-party site.

Here's the new link for the message board, if you're interested:

http://www.deppimpact.com/board/index.php

Enjoy!

The Legendary Johnny Depp

BusinessWire reports Johnny Depp took one of the top honors in the "American Movie Legends Survey" sponsored by Coors Brewing Company.

The survey included categories for most legendary movie, actors, characters, and duos, with "legends" considered those people or films that stand the test of time, are admired for decades and are celebrated by generations.

Johnny Depp took the top spot in the category of "Tomorrow's Legends".

Hats Off to Johnny

Hats off to Johnny Depp for taking the #1 spot for most fashionable celebrity hat-wearing males in 2007. (Slow news day... LOL) As reported by Metro.co.uk, the annual list is compiled by the Luton area's millinery and hat-making industry in the UK.

Johnny came in at #1 on the list, followed by Justin Timberlake, David Beckham, Boy George and Prince Harry.

"P" Album Reissued

AllMusic.com has information and audio clips from the "P" album which was recently reissued, the first time since its initial release in 1995. "P" is the alternative rock group which included Johnny Depp and Gibby Haynes (of the Butthole Surfers).

Depp Lends Voice to Anime

Anime News Network reports Johnny Depp will provide a guest voice on the children's animated program Doraemon later this month.

Johnny Depp, the international star of the Pirates of the Caribbean movies, will voice a guest role on the Doraemon children's animated television series this month. He will appear as the "Pirate Captain Johnny" character on "Doraemon One-Hour! Pirates Special!! The Great Decisive Battle of the Pirates: A South Seas Love Story," which will air on TV Asahi on Friday, June 29 at 7:00 p.m.

The role, which will be similar to the Pirates of the Caribbean movie trilogy's Jack Sparrow, is the first Doraemon role played by a Hollywood star. The special has the robot cat Doraemon and his friends time-traveling to the Caribbean Sea at the end of the 16th century. Series regular Shizuka-chan will fall in love with a handsome pirate named Kenneth, who knows a certain Captain Johnny. TV Asahi is keeping the exact scene with Depp's cameo a secret.

The cameo came about when Doraemon chief director Kozo Kusuba, a fan of Pirates of the Caribbean ever since the first movie, made Depp an offer for a "dream collaboration." According to the studio Toei Animation, Depp reportedly agreed "because it's Doraemon," a series broadcasted in dozens of countries worldwide. Depp currently lives part of the year in France, where the anime has been dubbed for broadcast and the manga is readily available in bookstores.

The wikipedia entry for Doraemon includes information on the show and a listing of networks that air the series around the world.

Forbes Celebrity 100 List

Forbes has ranked Johnny Depp at #6 on their 2007 Celebrity 100, the annual list of 100 most powerful and best-paid celebrities. This is a major change from last year, when he came in at #27.

Thanks to his share in the box office gross of Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest, actor Johnny Depp made $92 million in the last 12 months, more than most any other actor has ever earned for a film role. (Mel Gibson made $184 million in 2004 from The Passion of the Christ, but as the producer and director.)

POTC3 Hits $750 Million

BoxOfficeMojo is reporting Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End reached a worldwide gross of $750,687,300 as of Tuesday, which includes a record opening day in China. ChinaDaily was reporting the film hitting the $500 million mark, but they apparently hadn't included the U.S. totals. (Thanks, Patricia!)

Congratulations, Pirates cast and crew!

Beautiful Lady, Beautiful Voice

Vanessa Paradis is releasing a new single called "Divine Idylle" from an upcoming album of the same name. The single can be previewed on the vanessaparadis.fr site. Here is also a glimpse of a promo shot for the album.

Johnny's 'Weird' Career

Media Blvd. offers a walk through Johnny Depp's film career in an article called Weird as a Career Choice. It doesn't offer a lot of new information, but it's a nice recap, and the author of the article sums it up quite nicely:

At one point I said I’d watch any film starring Johnny Depp; Nick of Time cured me of that. But now that he can do whatever he wants, I may go back to that philosophy again. If Johnny Depp wants to be in a film, it’s almost sure to be interesting.

Depp 'Ticks the Boxes'

NOW Magazine offers an interview with Melanie C, former Spice Girl turned solo artist, in which she talks about a variety of celebrity men. Her take on Johnny Depp is one of admiration:

"Johnny Depp's pretty unbeatable, isn't he? There's no one better in Hollywood. He's totally gorgeous – a fantastic actor who picks brilliant roles and always goes for the more interesting parts. I can't think of a film he's made that I don't love. He ticks all the boxes, really."

Brando Documentary on DVD

Businesswire reports Warner Home Video will release the TCM documentary Brando as a 2-disc DVD set on October 9.

This critically-acclaimed film pieces together decades of Brando’s performances with rare, never-before-seen footage and a series of original, in-depth interviews with family members, childhood friends and a host of his Hollywood peers and co-stars, including Johnny Depp, Robert Duvall, Jane Fonda, Dennis Hopper, Edward Norton, Al Pacino, Sean Penn, Martin Scorsese, John Travolta and Jon Voight. The result is a captivating look at one of the most legendary talents of the 20th century. Variety’s Brian Lowry called the documentary, "an engrossing, painstakingly thorough portrait of the actor’s tumultuous life… a general paean to acting, with Brando as a defining practitioner of that craft."

Photo from the filming of "Divine Rapture", a project from 1995 that was unfortunately abandoned after two weeks of production when financing for the movie fell through.

Donleavy Grows Anxious

The DailyMail reports J.P. Donleavy is "growing anxious" to see Johnny Depp make a film version of his novel, "The Ginger Man". But he fears he may never see it happen due to his own advanced age and Johnny's other commitments:

Two months into his 82nd year, the eccentric Irish-American writer J.P. Donleavy is growing anxious that his Hollywood friend Johnny Depp fulfils his pledge to turn his masterpiece, The Ginger Man, into a film.

Depp promised Donleavy that he would produce and star in a silver screen version of his scabrous account of the exploits of student Sebastian Dangerfield. But the author fears the Pirates Of The Caribbean star has too many commitments.

From his farm in Ireland, he tells me: “I would dearly love to see his version of The Ginger Man before I am no longer here.

"But when I saw Mr Depp in New York recently I made the mistake of telling him the plot of my next book, which is called The Dog On The 17th Floor.

“He loved it and I’m afraid he might make a movie out of it before The Ginger Man. If so, it will — alas — be my own fault.

Gypsy Caravan

According to New York magazine, Johnny Depp makes a cameo appearance in Gypsy Caravan (When the Road Bends), a documentary about gypsy bands which includes his long-time favorite, Taraf de Haidouks.

"A cameo in which Johnny Depp praises the Romanian string band Taraf de Haïdouks lends a welcome dollop of cred to the proceedings, which can drag for those not familiar with (or interested in) the music represented."

A comment from Johnny is also quoted on the film's official web site:

"It would be great if by experiencing the Romani people and their music, people can learn more about them and understand that - what you've believed about these people has been a lie your entire life."

On This Day in 1963...

John F. Kennedy names Winston Churchill an honorary U.S. citizen.

The movie Cleopatra opens in New York.

The Equal Pay Act is enacted in the U.S.

Johnny Depp is born!

Happy birthday, Johnny! Hope it's a great one!

Official Sweeney Todd Site

The official site for Sweeney Todd is now online. There's nothing really on it yet, but it's a good sign we'll be seeing promotional material for the film very soon. Thanks to Guy for the tip!

http://www.sweeneytoddmovie.com/

Teague Sparrow Stills

Here are a few movie stills of Keith Richards as Teague Sparrow from Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End. (Thanks, Kimberly!)

CLICK TO ENLARGE

Depp Defines Manliness

FortWayne.com cites Johnny Depp as the standard of qualities considered 'manly' in today's society.

Johnny Depp, king of the wrist décor, may well be a barometer for what it means to be manly anymore. He’s happy to bend the gender role freely, but what’s more important – swish or swagger?

It's an interesting article about the ever-changing roles of males and females in society and the struggle of young men trying to find their identity. In the end, though, it all comes back to Johnny:

Maybe Depp is teaching us that it’s not swish or swagger; it’s both.

Vote for Johnny

Here are a couple web sites that include Johnny Depp as a nominee in an online poll or survey. Let's get in there and help him win!

Hello Magazine:
Monthly vote for "Most Attractive Man". Voting ends June 29.

The Movie Times:
Actor rankings. I'm not sure when voting ends for this one.

R.I.P. Ian Adam

The Stephen Sondheim Society reports Ian Adam, the voice teacher who had just recently coached Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter for their roles in Sweeney Todd, passed away May 10th, 2007. Adam, a well-respected teacher and coach in British theatre circles for more than 30 years, died of pneumonia. He was 64 years old.

New Zealand 'Pirates' Giveaway

Stuff.co.nz is running a contest for a Pirates Prize Pack, which includes a double pass to Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End at the cinema and a Pirates notebook. (It doesn't say specifically, but I'm assuming the contest is for New Zealand residents only.) The deadline for entries is 10 a.m. on June 29.

Good luck!

Possible 'Sweeney' Screening

The official site for Comic-Con 2007 in San Diego has Sweeney Todd on its preliminary list of films to be presented at this year's convention to be held July 26-29 at the San Diego Convention Center.

PLEASE NOTE: As stated on the Comic-Con site, this information is preliminary and subject to change. It's possible they might secure clips or exclusive footage instead of the entire movie, if anything at all.

Comic-Con is currently talking to the major Hollywood studios and the following films are under consideration for presentations at this year's event. It's important to note that this part of Comic-Con programming is worked on up to the last possible minute, so expect changes and plenty of surprises.

Please note this is only a preliminary list and definitely subject to change.

Alien vs. Predator 2: No Peace On Earth
American Gangster
Babylon AD
Balls of Fury
Beowulf
The Bourne Ultimatum
Coraline
Fred Claus
Get Smart
The Golden Compass
Hellboy 2: The Golden Army
I Am Legend
The Incredible Hulk
Indiana Jones 4
Invasion
Iron Man
National Treasure 2
Resident Evil: Extinction
Speed Racer
The Strangers
Stardust
Star Trek XI
Sunshine
Sweeney Todd
30 Days of Night
Trick 'r Treat
Wanted
Where The Wild Things Are
White Out

As always, Comic-Con's attendees will be treated to panels and, in some cases, sneak peeks at exclusive footage from these films months before they debut on neighborhood theater screens.

There is apparently speculation that Johnny Depp will appear at the convention, but that has definitely NOT been confirmed by Comic-Con so far. His name does not appear on the official guest list, so I'd take those rumors with a grain of salt for now. Personally... I just don't see it. LOL

MTV Photos & Videos

I've added a gallery for the MTV Movie Awards to the Events page at the main site. I've also added videos for the two acceptance speeches (Best Performance and Best Movie) to the Video page (top two videos on the left side).

Enjoy!

Johnny Wins at MTV Awards

Johnny Depp appeared at the MTV Movie Awards tonight to accept his "Best Performance" award for Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest. He also came back on stage with Jerry Bruckheimer to accept the film's award for "Best Movie".

Congratulations, Johnny!

A few more pics thanks to Longtime Deppfan. (Click to enlarge these):

MTV Movie Awards Tonight

Just a reminder that the MTV Movie Awards will air LIVE tonight at 8 p.m. Eastern on the MTV network. Nominations include:

• Best Movie - Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest
• Best Villain - Bill Nighy (Davy Jones) in Dead Man's Chest
• Best Performance - Johnny Depp in Dead Man's Chest
• Best Performance - Keira Knightley in Dead Man's Chest

Battle for Bragging Rights

According to the LA Times, Sony and Disney are in disagreement over which studio's film actually holds the record for opening weekend box office receipts.

While Pirates raked in $404 million in its worldwide opening over a 6-day period compared to $382 million for Spider-Man 3, Sony argues that Disney has included figures from early previews that should not be included in the totals. Disney, of course, denies any misrepresentation and claims that even without the early preview totals, the Pirates still trounced Spidey.

Honestly, though -- with gross receipts for both movies approaching half a billion dollars each within days of their release (not to mention the millions more in store from the upcoming DVD releases), does it really matter? Seems to me there's plenty of bragging to go around.

Rumors on Spy Tale

Reports have been circulating for several months that Johnny Depp's production company, Infinitum Nihil, has secured the rights to "Sasha's Story: The Life and Death of a Russian Spy", a book in the works by Alan Cowell about Alexander Litvinenko, the Russian spy who died of poisoning last year. The project would be in competition with a film from director Michael Mann based on "Death of a Dissident", a book co-written Litvinenko's widow, Marina.

Recently, rumors surfaced that the two projects would be combined and that Johnny Depp would star in the Mann version of the film. But according to a report from IGN, this rumor is unfounded:

IGN contacted Depp's production company, Infinitum Nihil, which advised us that the Guardian report is inaccurate. We were told that Depp will not star in the Mann version and, although he is not attached to star in anything yet, if he were to make a Litvinenko movie then it would be Sasha's Story. So that settles that.

Knightley Finds Depp Masterful

TLT News offers a snippet of an Empire Magazine article with Keira Knightley in which she discusses the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise and her current work on a film called Atonement:

“This is such a relief. Not that I don’t enjoy all that Pirates stuff, but it’s not about my character – it’s about Johnny’s character. It’s not focusing on emotional turmoil. It’s been great just to get my brain engaged.”

She also talks briefly about the appeal of working with Johnny Depp:

“I love to watch Johnny work, as it’s masterful. It’s like taking an acting master class."