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American Morning
Entertainment Industry Mourns Two Losses; Weekend Movies Get 'Fast and Furious'
Aired June 22, 2001 - 10:35 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
MICHAEL OKWU, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, I'm Michael Okwu in New York.
The entertainment industry is mourning the loss of two luminaries this morning. As we said earlier, actor Carroll O'Connor died of a heart attack yesterday in Los Angeles. O'Connor was best known for his work as comic curmudgeon Archie Bunker on the 1970s ground breaking sitcom, "All in the Family." The role of Archie won him four Emmy awards. O'Connor was 76 years old.
And in the music world, Mississippi blues man John Lee Hooker died at his California home yesterday. He was 83 years old. Hooker spent six decades singing delta blues, but many also see him as the grandfather of modern pop music. He inspired Eric Clapton, the Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan and many others. Upon learning of his death, Grammy award winner Carlos Santana says Hooker, "was the first circus I wanted to run away with." Great quote.
On a much lighter note, the weekend's new movies. If you like fast cars and lots of action, the race car film "The Fast and The Furious" might drive you into the theater this weekend. With stars Paul Walker and Vin Diesel and all sorts of Internet buzz, the street raising film will try to take the pole position at the cineplex. CNN's Paul Vercammen takes us on a ride with the fuel injected flick.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PAUL VERCAMMEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Gentlemen, start your engines, especially young gentlemen. "The Fast and the Furious" roars into movie theaters aimed at all the young dudes.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, "THE FAST AND THE FURIOUS")
VIN DIESEL, ACTOR: It don't matter if you win by an inch or a mile. Winning is winning.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VERCAMMEN: Vin Diesel is in the driver's seat with Paul Walker, Rick Yune, Jordana Brewster and Michelle Rodriguez. Diesel plays the leader of a crack crew of speeding gear heads and he attended a few illegal street races before shooting. VIN DIESEL: What was amazing was that the whole group would, in a matter of five or 10 minutes, congregate at another location without maps or I don't know what kind of telepathy the racers used, but somehow they did.
VERCAMMEN: Diesel hit the streets of L.A. after several projects. Many moviegoers remember him from "Saving Private Ryan."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, "THE FAST AND THE FURIOUS")
JORDANA BREWSTER, ACTRESS: You know, my brother likes you. He usually doesn't like anybody.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VERCAMMEN: And one time soap star Jordana Brewster is a student at Yale, for crank-shaft's sake. She studied some street racers up close for her role.
BREWSTER: You kind of pace it a little bit more instead of always looking down on it like oh, it's just a hobby or it's silly or it's for the adrenaline. So that's how I justify it. But I don't know how I'd feel about like my professor seeing it. I don't know. It'd be weird.
VERCAMMEN: Universal is concerned about someone imitating the film's stunts or racing. The studio put up a disclaimer on its Web site urging people not try any of these stunts.
(on camera): Any fear that someone might try to imitate something they've seen in this movie?
PAUL WALKER, ACTOR: People have been doing that for a long time. It'll continue. I mean that's really all I can say.
ROB COHEN, DIRECTOR: I have a lot of respect for the audience and I think they're smart enough to know that you can't do these things unless you're going to kill yourself.
VERCAMMEN: All this action and adrenaline might best be described by Yune, former Wall Street trader turned model turned actor and motorcycle wizard in the movie.
RICK YUNE, ACTOR: A tremendous duo, man. It's like, you know, having a billion dollar position go your way, you know what I mean? And for those few moments, you know, everything else stops.
VERCAMMEN: Some early research shows teen audiences can't wait for "The Fast and the Furious," but will older moviegoers find this fast and infuriating?
Paul Vercammen, CNN Entertainment News, Hollywood.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
OKWU: For the inside track on the rest of the weekend's big movies, we'll have "Rolling Stone" film critic Peter Travers in the 11 o'clock hour. I'll see you then.
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