CULVER CITY, Calif., May 15, 2013 /PRNewswire/ – Sony Pictures Entertainment has won the exclusive worldwide distribution rights to the eagerly anticipated Angry Birds animated film, making it one of the most high-profile deals of the year. The 3D film is being developed, produced, and financed by Rovio Entertainment and will be released worldwide by Sony Pictures on July 1, 2016. Several major studios pursued the global film rights in recent weeks, with Sony Pictures Entertainment emerging as the winner.

Michael Lynton , Chairman & CEO of Sony Pictures Entertainment, Amy Pascal , Co-chairman of Sony Pictures Entertainment, and Mikael Hed , CEO of Rovio Entertainment jointly announced their partnership today. John Cohen and David Maisel – producer of Despicable Me and executive producer of Iron Man, respectively – are both on board for the new Angry Birds feature film. Cohen will serve as producer and Maisel is executive producer.

The titular birds and their green pig nemeses got their start on iOS devices back in 2009. But soon the simple yet challenging gameplay and fun cartoon characters had made the game hugely popular and it soon moved to other devices. At this point, there are a myriad of sequels and spin offs on just about any platform you can imagine, and the Birds themed merchandise is flying off the shelf. I guess it was only a matter of time before a movie deal was inked.

Still, the timeline seems a little poorly thought out. Angry Birds might very well remain mega popular into 2016, but it’s a lot to bank on. A film (no matter how terrible -kids will watch anything) this year would be a guaranteed slam dunk at the box office.

[Via: Polygon]

I’m a huge fan of Vine, and I was pleased as punch to discover this series of Vine videos in my reader feed this morning, thanks to Buzzfeed. Vine user Ryan McHenry is the genius behind the “Ryan Gosling won’t eat his cereal” Vines, which depict the Drive star refusing to eat some tasty corn flakes. Maybe he’s more of an oatmeal guy?

The result is one of the most amazing things I’ve ever seen, and definitely takes Vine to the next level. Needless to say, I’m biting my nails in anticipation of the Android release.

And without further adieu, here’s Ryan Gosling refusing to eat his breakfast!

[Via: Buzzfeed , @RyanWMcHenry]

Colbert had asked Google Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt for Glass in his interview with him on April 23rd, but was flatly denied. Schmidt let Colbert know that Glass was only currently available for “qualified developers”. So Stephen Colbert took matters into his own hands, or… well, onto his own face. His version of glass might not have a lot of the functionality of Google’s new wearable tech, but it doesn’t look any less ridiculous. My favorite part is when he removes his “Google Glasses” to use the calculator. “Google Glasses, what’s 4 plus 4?”

Since the “Explorer” editions of Google Glass started showing up in the wild, there has been a lot of joking around the devices. The fact that Glass is so strange looking is no small factor in the satire and Colbert’s silly contraption works as a gag precisely because it captures that goofiness. This is the latest in a series of pop cultural lampooning of Google Glass and the folks who love it. Leave it to Steven Colbert to take a joke that’s already getting tired and make it more hilarious than ever. If only it was this easy to make your own Google Glass!

Bonus: Another late night host, Conan O’Brien had a great spoof of Glass recently as well! The Glass jokes just don’t quit!

We’ve seen our share of Glass parodies in the last few months, starting with a “How guys will use Google Glass” a hilarious Tumblr entitled “White men wearing Google Glass” and now, the big time, a SNL sketch on “Weekend Update.”

In the SNL sketch, Fred Armisen of Portlandia fame plays a tech-blogger who is showing off the new Google Glass hardware. He pokes fun at the functionality of the device, such as the touch gestures and voice commands. The sketch has some hilarious moments, including accidentally activating porn on Glass and rebooting the device, which requires Armisen to swirl his head wildly.

The tech community has clearly embraced Google Glass, only time will tell how the general public will accept the device. We’re still not sure when Google Glass will make it to the public realm, as developers are currently messing around with the features of the device.

Check out the SNL sketch below.

[Via: Business Insider]

Actor Jorma Taccone of HBO’s Girls and The Lonely Island fame teams up with Beck Bennett to create the commercials, where they ask first graders simple questions such as, “What’s better? Bigger or faster? Faster or slower?” The children respond in kind, usually with hilarious results.

“We’ve found that it really works, and it’s really funny when it comes through their brains and through their own logic,” said Bennett. “What they say is unexpected, though we do prepare scripted versions just in case, but they never make it to air.”

Bennett and Taccone became close while working on a digital campaign for AT&T in 2012, for the NCAA men’s basketball tournament. The campaign featured, you guessed it, children giving advice about NCAA brackett selections. The campaign was a hit, and now Bennett and Taccone have the honor of telling AT&T’s “uncomplicated” 4G network story.

[Via: AT&T Consumer Blog]

Michael is a wealthy, middle-aged former bank robber with a family. Franklin works for a business that repossesses cars and is mixed up in shadier business on the side. Trevor comes off as a wild card, and someone without any self control or social graces.

Grand Theft Auto 5 takes place in Los Santos, the version of Los Angeles from 2004′s Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. According to Rockstar, it will be bigger than the areas from the all the former games combined. You’ll play all 3 protagonists as their intersecting narratives lead you through the missions of the games.

GTA V was delayed from its Spring 2013 release and pushed back to September 17th, so these trailers will have to tide you over for now. They show the level of polish and storytelling that we’ve come to expect from Rockstar titles, but there’s also a little something extra….

Blink and you’ll miss it, but around 3:30 it appears that Trevor (of course it’s Trevor) is hanging out with a Juggalo!

MMFWCL Family!

If you aren’t familiar, Juggalos are the fans and followers of horror core rappers, Insane Clown Posse. They’re known for their love of facepaint, Faygo soda and all things Psychopathic records. If you want any more background, this fascinating documentary (NSFW!!) shows them in the wild practicing their strange and confusing customs. You might want to hold off on the popcorn, though.

I have to admit, I’m a little bit obsessed with Juggalos. In recent years the Miracles video and all those strange Gathering of the Juggalos infomercials brought them back into a national consciousness that was happy to have forgotten them long ago. The inclusion of a Juggalo character in the latest GTA marks a major development in Juggalo culture. Juggalos have been down with the clown since day one, and it’s finally paying off. I really hope this character is more than just a one off joke, and he has a role in the story. Rockstar’s writers could do a lot with him!

[Via Gamespot, Kotaku]

Our apologies on the angry birds Star Wars tweets earlier, our PIO’s 5 y/o son had his phone.In other news the universe is safe from pigs.

— Forest Grove Fire(@ForestGroveFire) April 25, 2013

Up here in Oregon, things sometimes seem to be just a little bit….. goofier. I saw this story on the local news, and had to share.

Forest Grove, a rural community near Portland, was shaken up yesterday when the official Twitter feed of the local fire department started putting out some very weird tweets. Locals follow the Forest Grove Fire Department for info on fire safety and breaking updates on local fires. When community members saw a tweet that said ”Do. Or do not. There is no fly,” they were understandably concerned.

I turns out that fire Marshal Dave Nemeyer’s 5-year-old son had been playing Angry Birds: Star Wars on his dad’s phone, and had enabled the twitter feature of the game!

Here’s the story from local paper, The Oregonian’s website:

For a moment, Fire Marshal Dave Nemeyer thought he’d been hacked.

And the hacker was posting tweets on the Forest Grove Fire Twitter account about Star Wars and Angry Birds.

Then Nemeyer, the spokesman for Forest Grove Fire & Rescue, realized his 5-year-old son had his phone.

“He’s 5, he’s pushing every button trying to figure out how to fly the Luke Skywalker bird into the pig Death Star, or something like that,” Nemeyer explained Thursday.

He said his 5-year-old, one of four brothers, is a great kid, shy and well-behaved. The incident resulted from a few innocent button pushes Thursday morning, sending out two separate tweets to nearly 1,800 followers.

[Via: Oregonlive] [IMG: KGW News]

After the images went viral, Suit Male, a man named Wang, turned himself in and probably ended his career as the Best Pickpocket Ever. Like a great sword being interned into stone, he’ll be retiring his chopsticks into the little paper sheath of history.

All that’s left for Wang now is to atone for his two-pronged crime and face the music (which is probably Chopsticks, by the way). I, for one, think a theft this impressive warrants a Get Out of Jail Free card. At very least he deserves a slap on the wrist in exchange for community service. He could teach proper chopstick etiquette to messy kids or maybe Mr. Miyagi style pest control!

All kidding aside, he told a local journalist that he began stealing to support himself and his daughter, who he’s raising as a single parent. So, I almost feel for the guy and I wish him the best despite his mistakes. Hopefully his notoriety will lead to some TV appearances or a job. I see a chopstick brand sponsorship deal in his future! Or not.

Take a look at these pics and have your mind blown below.  Truly a master at work, he wields those things like Picasso holding a brush.

And remember,  chopsticks are for food and not for criminal activity.

[Via: Sohu.com]

The video depicts a 5’11, 350LB man dressed in sweatpants attempting to rob a small liquor store by throwing a brick at the window. Unfortunately, the window did not break but rather, set off the alarm. The dude freaks out, runs away and trips over the parking block. Like a boss. And he’s still on the run! But not to worry, Redding’s finest is on the case.

Check out the video below, and if you’re ever heading the Redding way, make sure you bring a pair of sweatpants. Jeans are not allowed in public there. Enjoy and remember, it’s almost Friday!

[Via: KRCR]