Flash of Genius

Interviews / Articles on Kearns (or other members) portrayed in FoG

2008-10-05T00:56:03Z

Interviews / Articles on Kearns (or other members) portrayed in FoG:

Phyllis Hall - Catholic Moments (podcast)

Phyllis Hall - Payson Roundup *new*

Dennis Kearns - Hometown Life

Tim Kearns - Baltimore Sun

Awards - FYC

2008-10-05T00:49:24Z

As the Awards season hits, FoG may find itself in a position of winning awards or being nominated for awards, or Universal just wants to put a FYC out there for it.

http://universalpicturesawards.com/

Awards so far:

Boston Film Festival - Best Actor - Greg Kinnear

Hamptons International Film Festival - Sloan Foundation Prize - Flash of Genius

Hamptons International Film Festival - Rising Star - Jake Abel

Box Office Thread

2008-10-04T06:25:58Z

Not a good start box office wise (I was hoping it'd get over the million mark on Friday). It does have word of mouth at the moment in its favour. Universal won't drop any screens next week with the movie, it'll all depends on how it holds up the second week as to whether it gains or losses screens..

Credit to Fantasy Moguls:

http://news.fantasymoguls.com/originalcontent/2008/10/early-friday-3.html

In a rather hodgepodge weekend of releases, the remaining 3 titles are all disappointments to varying degrees. Universal’s feel-good Flash of Genius, the real-life story of Robert Kearns, who invented the intermittent windshield wiper, had the invention stolen by Ford and then sued the auto giant, scored about $729 per screen on Friday for an $800,000 gross. With generally positive reviews (59% Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes) and a cast including Oscar nominee Greg Kinnear (As Good As It Gets, Little Miss Sunshine), Golden Globe nominee Lauren Graham (The Gilmore Girls) and Oscar nominee Alan Alda (The Aviator, M*A*S*H), Flash will still only reach $2.6M for the 3-day, and it will miss the top 10 altogether.

EXCLUSIVE FANTASY MOGULS EARLY FRIDAY ESTIMATES
1. NEW - Beverly Hills Chihauhau (Disney) - $8.5M, $2,644 PTA, $8.5M cume
2. Eagle Eye (Dreamworks/Paramount) - $5.5M, $1,564 PTA, $42.4M cume
3. NEW - Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist (Sony) - $4M, $1,739 PTA, $4M cume
4. Nights in Rodanthe (Warner Bros) - $2.45M, $907 PTA, $20.1M cume
5. Apaloosa (Warner Bros) - $1.7M, $1,627 PTA, $2.25M
6. NEW- An American Carol (Vivendi) - $1.4M, $854 PTA, $1.4M cume
7. Fireproof (IDP Films/Samuel Goldwyn) - $1.3M, $1,526 PTA, $9.7M cume
8. Lakeview Terrace (Sony) - $1.2M, $466 PTA, $28.8M cume
9. Burn After Reading (Focus) - $1.15M, $480 PTA, $48.7M cume
10. NEW – Religulous (Lionsgate) - $1.1M, $2,191 PTA, $3.3M cume
11. NEW - Flash of Genius (Universal) - $800,000, $729 PTA, $800,000 cume
12. NEW - Blindness (Miramax) - $1.5M, $888 PTA, $4M cume
*NEW – How To Lose Friends & Alienate People (MGM) - $400,000, $229 PTA, $400,000 cume

EXCLUSIVE FANTASY MOGULS EARLY 3-DAY ESTIMATES
1. NEW - Beverly Hills Chihauhau (Disney) - $29M, $9,020 PTA, $29M cume
2. Eagle Eye (Dreamworks/Paramount) - $17M, $4,835 PTA, $53.9M cume
3. NEW - Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist (Sony) - $10.8M, $4,639 PTA, $10.8M cume
4. Nights in Rodanthe (Warner Bros) - $7.5M, $2,776 PTA, $25.2M cume
5. Apaloosa (Warner Bros) - $5.2M, $4,976 PTA, $5.75M
6. Fireproof (IDP Films/Samuel Goldwyn) - $4.4M, $5,164 PTA, $12.8M cume
7. NEW- An American Carol (Vivendi) – $4.2M, $2,563 PTA, $4.2M cume
8. Lakeview Terrace (Sony) - $4.1M, $1,593 PTA, $31.7 cume
9. Burn After Reading (Focus) - $3.85M, $1,606 PTA, $51.4M cume
10. NEW – Religulous (Lionsgate) - $3.3M, $6,574 PTA, $3.3M cume
11. Igor (MGM) - $3M, $1,306 PTA, $18.3M cume
12. NEW - Flash of Genius (Universal) - $2.6M, $2,368 PTA, $2.6M cume
*NEW – Blindness (Miramax) - $2.1M, $1,243 PTA, $2.1M cume
*NEW – How To Lose Friends & Alienate People (MGM) - $1.2M, $686 PTA, $1.2M cume

Fan Reviews

2008-10-03T01:24:26Z

This post is for anyone who has seen the movie and wants to comment about it.

Note there will be SPOILERS in this thread. So if you don't want to know about the movie before seeing it then don't read the comments.

Enjoy!

ETA: Please avoid starting twenty million threads on the movie, because other information will most likely get lost in the midst of it all.

Perfect timing.. yes folks.

2008-10-03T01:23:20Z

For the next 12 hours I'll be without major internet access. I'll be posting stuff via my phone, like this message, so if I don't make any major updates within that amount of time you know why. Blame work commitments!

What I will be doing tomorrow though, is a cleanup of the community. I'll do some merging of posts so it tidies it up a bit. I'll also create a Fan Reviews thread for anyone who has seen the movie and wants to leave a review (so word of warning, that post will be a spoilers post).

The three threads that won't be affected in the merger are the Media, Reviews and Articles/Interviews threads. Since those have already been established.

Until tomorrow. Adios!

Alan Alda + Greg Kinnear NBC Today Transcripts FoG

2008-10-02T07:24:34Z

Below is the transcript courtesy of Factiva of Alan Alda on NBC Today.

Interview: Alan Alda discusses his book, "Things I Overheard While Talking to Myself" and his movie, "Flash of Genius"
1 October 2008
NBC News: Today
English
(c) Copyright 2008, NBC Universal Inc. All Rights Reserved.

(Clip from "Flash of Genius")

KATHIE LEE GIFFORD, co-host:

That's a scene from the upcoming film, which I adored, called "Flash of Genius" with my very good friend--may I say that? Because once in awhile, you're not too crazy about me. May I say my very good friend?

Mr. ALAN ALDA: Who, Greg Kinnear?

GIFFORD: Anyway, Alan Alda, not only is he an actor and a director, and sometimes he's funny, but he's also the author of The New York Times best seller called "Things I Overheard While Talking to Myself," which I--came out in hardback, and I reminded you that I loved it so much back then. Apparently, it was so good, New York Times best seller, all those weeks, it's back now in paperback.

Mr. ALDA: Right, right. Even with more stuff in it. But I agree with you about this movie, and I only have a small part in it, but I wanted to be in it because it's so good.

GIFFORD: Yeah.

Mr. ALDA: And then when I saw it, I was shocked at how good it was. Greg Kinnear, I think, is going to get nominated for this.

GIFFORD: He is excellent in this.

Mr. ALDA: The movie was...

GIFFORD: He's such an understated actor.

MARIO CANTONE, co-host:

He's a wonderful actor.

GIFFORD: He's your kind of actor, isn't he?

CANTONE: He really is.

Mr. ALDA: Oh, so good.

GIFFORD: So subtle, and...

Mr. ALDA: I mean, I was watching the movie, and this is unusual for an actor. I forgot I was in it.

GIFFORD: Wow.

Mr. ALDA: When my scene came up, I thought, `Gee, this is really good,' you know?

GIFFORD: You're thinking Greg Kinnear's good, but that guy's really awesome.

Mr. ALDA: Whoa, look at that.

CANTONE: And you play a lawyer in this.

Mr. ALDA: Yeah.

CANTONE: You've heard that same thing from a lawyer, have you not?

Mr. ALDA: I have. I mean, that's one of the--when I read the script, I thought, `Oh, I want to be the one to say this to somebody.' It is so crushing to hear. You go into a lawsuit where somebody's wronged you, and you want...

GIFFORD: You want justice.

Mr. ALDA: ...you want justice, and then you find out--somebody tells you, `Oh, no, you got to pick a figure, a number, and that's going to be justice.'

GIFFORD: That's--money's going to be your justice.

Mr. ALDA: Money is going to be justice, not any admission that they did wrong or--because, you know, if they take away your arm...

GIFFORD: Yeah.

Mr. ALDA: ...they give you money for it.

GIFFORD: Yeah.

Mr. ALDA: That doesn't feel right, you know.

GIFFORD: Well, yeah, but they can't give you, really, your arm back, so you're probably happy to have the money.

Mr. ALDA: Well, I don't know, I'd like my arm back, wouldn't you?

CANTONE: Yeah, I would--I would like my arm back.

Mr. ALDA: I mean, why's she so irrational?

GIFFORD: I don't know.

CANTONE: She's a money hungry lesbian. That's why. And I've had it with her! I'm not working with her anymore.

Can I...

GIFFORD: He knows me well.

CANTONE: I've seen you in, like, a lot of Broadway shows, too. You are of the theater, and you're so magnificent on stage. I saw you in "Art," which you...

GIFFORD: "Art" was amazing.

CANTONE: ...were phenomenal in, and "Glengarry," which you were nominated for a Tony in.

Mr. ALDA: Thank you.

CANTONE: I have a question, and it's about a movie you did a long time ago, `The Seduction of Joe Tynan," which is one of my favorite...

GIFFORD: Oh, Meryl Streep.

Mr. ALDA: Oh, thank you, thank you.

CANTONE: ...favorite movies.

GIFFORD: Talk about a great...

CANTONE: Why isn't it on DVD? Where is it?

Mr. ALDA: Yeah, I don't know.

GIFFORD: Great political movie.

CANTONE: It's brilliant.

Mr. ALDA: Yeah.

GIFFORD: Yeah.

CANTONE: And it's so relevant today.

Mr. ALDA: Yeah, it kind of is. I wrote that, you know.

CANTONE: I know you did.

Mr. ALDA: Yeah.

CANTONE: And you...

Mr. ALDA: And I--you know, you know what's interesting about that? I...

CANTONE: Did you direct it, too?

Mr. ALDA: No, no, Jerry Schatzberg directed it.

CANTONE: You wrote it, and it's Meryl Streep, Barbara Harris...

Mr. ALDA: Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

CANTONE: ...who's magnificent, too.

Mr. ALDA: I think it's one of Meryl's first pictures.

CANTONE: Oh, she's amazing in it.

Mr. ALDA: I went to Washington and researched it, and I...

CANTONE: It's about a senator...

Mr. ALDA: Yeah.

CANTONE: ...who's having an affair, and he's married.

Mr. ALDA: There were some really crazy, strange things in that movie that are all true. They all happened. I don't...

GIFFORD: To you?

Mr. ALDA: Yeah, true.

CANTONE: No, I thought it would--was based on a number of different politicians.

Mr. ALDA: Yeah.

CANTONE: Kind of a...

GIFFORD: You can't make this stuff up sometimes.

CANTONE: ...combination of things.

GIFFORD: You know?

CANTONE: It's an amazing film, and it was made in the--what, late '70s?

Mr. ALDA: Yeah. But this more recent one is also wonderful.

CANTONE: I bet it's incredible. I'm sorry, I'm obsessed with that movie.

GIFFORD: To that, all right?

CANTONE: Well, I just was wondering where it was.

GIFFORD: Hurry home, Hoda.

CANTONE: I know "Flash of Genius" is fantastic.

Mr. ALDA: That--imagine it coming back 30 years later to promote a movie.

CANTONE: I know. Well, you know what, things get forgotten. I don't know.

Mr. ALDA: Yeah, I don't know why it's not...(unintelligible)...somewhere.

CANTONE: And I just--I--you've done so many great things that--you know.

Mr. ALDA: Thank you. That's really nice. I appreciate that. Thank you.

CANTONE: People need to know about things, too.

GIFFORD: And you did, years ago, "Paper Lion."

Mr. ALDA: Yes.

GIFFORD: So Frank said to me on my way out this morning, he did--with my husband, he said, `Tell Alan hi, we need to do a new picture together.'

Mr. ALDA: I remember going--just about ready to go on camera with him while we were shooting that movie.

GIFFORD: Uh-huh.

Mr. ALDA: And he's dancing before we go on, right?

GIFFORD: Yeah, he's not a very good dancer.

Mr. ALDA: And he says to me, `I would give anything to just dance all my life. I love dancing. It's my favorite thing.' Is he still...

GIFFORD: I wouldn't have married him if he told me that.

Mr. ALDA: Really?

CANTONE: Why?

GIFFORD: You were at our wedding, you saw him dance.

Mr. ALDA: No, I don't do--I don't like to watch people dance.

GIFFORD: Do you?

Mr. ALDA: Yeah.

CANTONE: Is he not a good dancer?

GIFFORD: He's a cute dancer, but I wouldn't call--he's no Mario Lopez.

CANTONE: Well, he was a football player, I...

GIFFORD: He did that very, very well.

CANTONE: Yeah, he did well.

Mr. ALDA: They dance a lot now. You know, in the end zone and everything? Do they...

GIFFORD: Oh, yeah, He doesn't like all that.

Mr. ALDA: Yeah?

GIFFORD: That--he doesn't like all that stuff.

CANTONE: What about all the tire moves?

Mr. ALDA: Yeah.

CANTONE: You know? I'll get it.

GIFFORD: Oh, you know what, I have an IFB, and guess what, I'm not even wearing it, and they're probably trying to tell me--excuse me, I'll be right with you.

Mr. ALDA: What exactly...

CANTONE: And I want to know...

GIFFORD: Wrap Alan? OK.

Sorry, sweetheart, we got to go. But you've got to have Arlene come on with her new children's book with us, OK?

Mr. ALDA: I will, thank you.

GIFFORD: And love you, the movie is terrific. "Flash of Genius" from our sister company, Universal. You can catch it in a theater near you starting this Friday.

Mr. ALDA: Oh, Friday.

CANTONE: And still to come, just how much do you know about man's best friend.

GIFFORD: That one!

CANTONE: Oh!

GIFFORD: The one he's pointing at.

CANTONE: Oh, well, what's the difference?

Mr. ALDA: We'll test your knowledge in the WHO KNEW? quiz show, but first, these messages.

CANTONE: We'll test your knowledge in the WHO KNEW quiz show, but first, these messages.

Interview: Greg Kinnear discusses "Flash of Genius"
2 October 2008
NBC News: Today
(c) Copyright 2008, NBC Universal Inc. All Rights Reserved.

MATT LAUER, co-host:

A telephone, a radio and a telescope. What do the things have in common? Well, they were all invented by people who actually didn't get credit for their inventions. In the new movie "Flash of Genius," Greg Kinnear plays professor Robert Kearns, a man who took on the automobile giants to fight for his invention, the intermittent windshield wiper.

(Clip from "Flash of Genius")

LAUER: Greg, good morning. Good to have you back.

Mr. GREG KINNEAR ("Flash of Genius"): Morning.

LAUER: Don't take this the wrong way, but you're in demand, OK, you got lots of options. When someone came to you and said, `I got a great idea. You're going to do a movie about the guy who invented the intermittent windshield wiper,' did you think, `What? Are you nuts?'

Mr. KINNEAR: Yeah, I guess in retrospect, none of your great literature or cinema has the concept...

LAUER: (Unintelligible)

Mr. KINNEAR: ...of windshield wiper...

LAUER: Yeah.

Mr. KINNEAR: ...in it, does it, now that I think about it. But I--you know, I read the script. I was gobsmacked with this guy's story. I didn't know the story, Dr. Kearns and his fight with Ford. I ended up having great respect for him and I was just--I was thrown by where the story went.

LAUER: Yeah. He basically comes up with this, you know, mechanism that allows windshield wipers to do that and then basically gets the mechanics of it stolen.

Mr. KINNEAR: Yeah.

LAUER: They take it, they give him no credit, and thus begins a David and Goliath story. But it's a different kind of David and Goliath story. It doesn't have a simple ending.

Mr. KINNEAR: Yeah, it's not--it's not painted in perfect colors. It's not a guy that doesn't--we show you the price of the battle. I mean, this really was a 15-year fight for this man against Ford and he did everything he could to try and--try and, you know, find justice in this. They offered him a lot of money, there were a lot of options to get--bail out of this, and what he needed from them was for them to acknowledge that what they had done was taken his idea from him.

LAUER: And while I understand the principle of the guy--and we all like principled characters--I don't--I'm sure it won't surprise when a lot of people watch this movie and they think at several times this guy does things that aren't very heroic.

Mr. KINNEAR: Yeah, well, I felt like that was true when I first read the script. I liked the fact that he's a flawed guy, you know. He's stubborn and he's abrasive. He's a little prickly, but at the end of the day I found myself, and I think people who see this movie find themselves, rooting for him. And they root for him not because he invented the intermittent windshield wiper but because when it came time to settle up he was about more than money. He seemed to be about something bigger than that. And that's just a story you don't hear about very often.

LAUER: Alan Alda plays a hotshot lawyer in this movie and he has said about your performance here that it is Oscar worthy. How good are you in this?

Mr. KINNEAR: How are we doing on time?

LAUER: Yeah.

Mr. KINNEAR: Where's Ann? Ann, get in here.

LAUER: Yeah.

Mr. KINNEAR: It's--listen, I--the truth is this is--this was a movie that is--it's put out by Universal but it was financed, as you might expect, a small movie about intermittent windshield wipers, by independent money, by Spyglass, and they were--they were good to do it. It's a hard movie to get out to an audience. It's a good film, and at the end of the...

LAUER: And all kidding aside, you're really good in it, too, by the way.

Mr. KINNEAR: Well, thank you. But, I mean, at the end of the day, really, the art--the attempt here is to try any way we can--we'll take any discussion that's looming out there just to try and get people to at least consider the movie because it doesn't necessarily have a built-in audience base.

LAUER: No, it's true. But you know what? It is a great story, and there's no question about it.

And by the way, I want to thank you. You're coming back a little--you're going to help us with this Read for the Record, this Jumpstart. You're going to help read "Corduroy" to some kids in just a little way.

Mr. KINNEAR: I guess I am. I know "Corduroy" well. So...

LAUER: You do? Yeah, you got five-year-old and a two-year-old. Do they know you're retiring as an actor?

Mr. KINNEAR: Yeah, I have not mentioned that to them yet.

LAUER: You have not mentioned it. OK.

Mr. KINNEAR: No, I haven't gotten that to them yet.

LAUER: Good to see you.

Mr. KINNEAR: They'll have a lot more dad around the house.

LAUER: Congratulations.

Mr. KINNEAR: Thank you.

LAUER: "Flash of Genius" from our sister company Universal Pictures opens this Friday in theaters nationwide.

Here's Ann.

ANN CURRY, co-host:

All right, Matt. Thanks.

Ford fires back at claims

2008-09-29T23:48:39Z

Ford has fired back at the claims that are portrayed in Flash of Genius.

http://www.edmunds.com/insideline/do/News/articleId=132546

Kinnear receives award from Boston Film Festival + Sloan Foundation Prize

2008-09-18T08:50:26Z

Courtesy of The Boston Globe.

Kinnear's role is 'Genius'

Greg Kinnear received the Boston Film Festival's "best actor" award after last night's screening of "Flash of Genius." Kinnear and director Marc Abraham both attended the screening at the Kendall Square Cinema, and answered questions from fans afterward.

Flash of Genius was awarded this year's Hamptons International Film Festival Sloan Foundation Prize.

http://hamptonsfilmfest.org/2008/09/flash-of-genius-awarded-alfred-p-sloan-foundation-prize/

FLASH OF GENIUS
Wins Alfred P. Sloan Foundation Award
As part of the 2008 Hamptons International Film Festival

Special Sloan/HIFF New York Premiere Thursday October 2nd at MoMA

For the 9th consecutive year, the $25,000 Alfred P. Sloan Foundation Feature Film Prize is presented as part of the Hamptons International Film Festival. The cash prize is awarded to a feature-length film that explores science and technology themes in fresh, innovative ways and depicts scientists and engineers in a realistic and compelling fashion.

This years recipient of the Alfred P. Sloan award is Marc Abraham’s, Flash of Genius, a Universal Pictures release, Written by Philip Railsback, based on the New Yorker article by John Seabrook and starring Greg Kinnear, Alan Alda, Lauren Graham, Dermot Mulroney and Jake Abel (one of this year’s HIFF Rising Stars). Based on the true story of a college professor and part-time inventor Robert Kearns' (Greg Kinnear) long battle with the U.S. automobile industry, Flash of Genius tells the tale of one man whose fight to receive recognition for his ingenuity would come at a heavy price. But this determined engineer refused to be silenced, and took on the corporate titans in a battle that nobody thought he could win.

“Kearns' story of unwavering dedication to the sanctity and innovation of his invention is just the kind of tale that we're happy to share with our audiences”, states Program Director, David Nugent. “I'm thrilled that the Sloan Foundation will again support us in bringing inspiring and enlightening films such as Flash of Genius to the Festival, and to elevating them to the platform that they deserve.”
-
The Hamptons/Sloan Feature Film Prize comes from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation’s program in public understanding of science and forms part of a broader effort to stimulate leading artists in film, television, and theater to create more credible works about science and technology. Past Hamptons/Sloan Prize winners include: Julian Schnabel’s Diving Bell and the Butterfly, Darren Aronofsky’s The Fountain, Su Rynard’s Kardia and Bill Condon’s Kinsey.

"We are delighted to recognize Flash of Genius, the powerful and moving story about the inventor Robert Kearns who made an important contribution to modern life--the intermittent windshield wiper, still used in cars around the world--and then had to battle the big automakers for decades to prove patent infringement," said Doron Weber, Sloan Program Director.

"With its insight into the personal roots of invention and the cost of turning the individual "flash" of discovery into a widespread technological innovation--and receiving recognition for doing so--this finely observed and
psychologically compelling film shows how science and technology continue to offer a treasure trove of great stories and wonderful characters for filmmakers and the general public."

The Sloan Film program also supports the Sundance Institute, the Tribeca Film Institute, Film Independent and six of the nation's leading film schools with annual awards in screenwriting and film production.

ETA: New York Premiere will be held on October 2 as part of the HIFF.

Official FoG Press Conference + LA Premiere

2008-09-16T10:16:47Z

The official FoG Press Conference was held at the Four Seasons Hotel on September 12.

Credit to Wireimage for the pictures linked below.

http://pics.livejournal.com/gossipcom/gallery/0009gy88

Courtesy of Bob Kearns, the LA Premiere will be held on 22 September, 2008.

LA Premiere Pictures

Access Hollywood (video)

GettyImages

Wireimage

Yahoo! News

Upcoming Cast Appearances.

2008-09-14T08:48:38Z

As the release date gets closer, you'll find that there will be a number of cast appearances to promote the movie.

Here's a rundown so far:

September 17 - Alan Alda - Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson
September 17 - Alan Alda - Tavis Smiley
September 29 - Lauren Graham - The Ellen DeGeneres Show
September 29 -Greg Kinnear - The Hour with George Stroumboulopoulos
October 1 - Alan Alda - NBC Today (10-11am)
October 1 - Greg Kinnear - Tonight Show with Jay Leno
October 2 - Greg Kinnear - NBC Today (7-9am)
October 2 - Greg Kinnear - The View
October 2 - Lauren Graham - The Hour with George Stroumboulopoulos (CBC)
October 2 - Lauren Graham - The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson
October 3 - Greg Kinnear - The Early Show
October 3 - Greg Kinnear - Late Night with Conan O'Brien
October 4 - Greg Kinnear - Entertainers (may talk about Ghost Town and/or FoG)
October 4 - FoG previewed / reviewed on At the Movies
October 6 - Lauren Graham - The Bonnie Hunt Show *new*

Flash of Genius Official Site has been updated

2008-09-05T18:36:44Z

The official Flash of Genius site has been updated. It's worth checking out.

http://flashofgenius.net/

Media

2008-09-02T14:58:01Z

And let's not forget any audio/video that might pop up from the Festivals and press junkets.

Greg & Lauren @ Telluride (Variety)

Marc, Greg, Lauren and Alan @ TIFF (CityTV)

Press Conference @ TIFF (TIFF Official Site)

Greg Interview (EW)

New clips / interviews of FoG (The Trailer Addict)

Additional video interviews with cast/crew (Movieweb)

Greg & Marc (CNN)

Graham loves Costumes in FoG (Fox 5)

Greg @ TIFF (Shootout)

Lauren (Black Tree TV)

Greg (Black Tree TV) *new*

Greg (MTV Movies)

Videos + Transcripts (About.com)

Greg - Podcast (Madness Hamster)

Greg - Audio (NPR)

Greg interviewed (BJ Shea Morning Show)

Marc Abraham interviewed (Manny the Movie Guy)

Greg interviewed (Manny the Movie Guy)

Lauren interviewed (Manny the Movie Guy)

Greg on The Hour (CBC)

Greg & Lauren + Featurette (ComingSoon.net) (Sendspace) link

FoG Interviews (MovieWeb)

Lauren on The Ellen Degeneres Show (Credit Lancer @ FF)

Mark interview (eAsylum)

Greg interview (eAsylum)

Lauren interview (eAsylum)

Greg on ABC News (ABC)

Greg, Lauren & Dermot BTS (Fox 5)

Greg on The Newsroom (KVVU)

Greg and Marc interview (2wenty.Tv)

Greg interview (Bob Rivers Show)

Alan Alda (NBC Today)

Interview with Bob Kearns (WJFK)

Greg Kinnear - Oscar Watch (EW)

Greg interview (ArtisanNewsService)

Marc, Greg and Lauren interviewed (Latino Review)

Greg interviewed (NBC Today)

FoG cast interviewed (My Fox Kansas City)

Lauren on The Hour (CBC) - second link (33 min mark)

Greg on The Early Show (CBS)

Science Friday: Windshield Wipers Invented in 'Flash of Genius' (NPR)

Marc talks to WSJ (Wall Street Journal)

Greg on CNN (CNN)

Marc intereviewed (American Superstar TV)

Greg intereviewed (American Superstar TV)

Lauren intereviewed (American Superstar TV)

Multiple FoG Interviews (CTV) *new*

ETA: Thanks grizzly_mouse and christinefalls for the additional links.

Articles / Interviews

2008-08-31T23:47:42Z

As the Festivals go on, more articles/interviews will emerge. Below are some:

The struggle to make 'Flash of Genius' (LA Times)

Tidbits from Telluride (Blog Critics)

FoG reaction has been lukewarm, needs a massive push come awards time (Variety)

Surreel Films

FoG out of place at Telluride (Variety)

Tidbits from Telluride #2 (Blog Critics)

Where have all the good films gone? (First Showing)

FoG mugged by critic (LA Times)

American Dream gone wrong (The Canadian Press)

Greg Kinnear brings everyman quality to the role (LA Times)

Marc Abrahams' Fight to tell the story... (NY Times)

TIFF Press Conference (National Post)

Greg's picking up Oscar buzz (AP)

Pitt, Hathaway, Kinnear have Oscar Buzz (MSNBC)

Marc Abraham interview (Greyhound)

Greg Kinnear and an obsessive inventor (CNN)

Kinnear doubles up as obsessed inventor, departed spirit (AP)

Q&A with Greg & Lauren (USA Today)

Dennis Kearns interview (Freep.com)

Greg Kinnear had to learn to be unlikeable (Toronto Star)

Interest lies in eccentric, quirky inventors (AP)

Lauren talks FoG, DotR and a return to TV (Winnipeg Sun)

'Genius' gang likes cement, salsa-tortilla chips (Associated Press)

Greg Press Junket transcript (Collider)

Greg Press Junket transcript #2 (Screen Crave)

Lauren Press Junket transcript (Screen Crave)

Alternate source for Press Junket interviews (Radio Free)

Talking with Marc Abraham (New York Times)

Director Marc Abraham tells story of common man with 'Genius' (Baltimore Sun)

Have you patented your product? (Wall Street Journal)

Greg interviewed in Atlanta (Sunday Paper)

Even Kennear finds character exasperating (Seattle Times)

Greg interview (Time Magazine) *new*

Photos

2008-08-31T00:58:48Z

Just setting this up for any photos (coverage) from the festivals that might emerge.

Marc Abraham - Traverse FF (Yahoo)

Class of 2008 - Telluride FF (Indiewire)

Patron's Brunch (Friday) (Wireimage)

Actors & Directors Seminar (Greg in attendance) (Credit
mjbialas @ Flickr)

Flash of Genius Q&A (Saturday) (Wireimage)

Thompson on Hollywood (Variety)

Complete FoG Gallery (IESB & Universal) HQ

TIFF Premiere (Wireimage) *new*

TIFF Press Conference (Wireimage) *new*

TIFF Portrait Sessions (Wireimage) *new*

TIFF Press Conference (Wireimage) *new*

All FoG related pics (Wireimage) *new*

TIFF Premiere(Up in Gallery) *new*

Larger pictures from Wireimage can be found here.

ETA: So I'm not duplicating if you check out Hayley and Lena's LG site she has put up pictures of Lauren in her gallery - I'll put any non-duplicated pictures into my gallery account later tonight.

Reviews

2008-08-30T23:51:07Z

Reviews are starting to come in about Flash of Genius. Here's a post dedicated to reviews.

Celebrity Hot Dump aka Film Gecko

mitchadler gives it a thumbs up too.

The Cool Kid Stable

Entertainment Weekly

Nicorama (2/5 stars

Slash Films (8/10)

Erin Hillmar

Cinematical

Variety (negative)

Goldderby/LA Times (small tidbit, very positive)

Collider (negative)

The Hollywood Reporter (neutral)

College Movie Review (B+) *new*

Movie Review Query Engine (for tons of reviews)

Rotten Tomatoes (like MRQE, it'll have tons of review)

Note: To avoid duplication, any remaining reviews that are part of MRQE and Rotten Tomatoes will not be linked in this post.

Film Festivals

2008-08-29T03:38:38Z

Here is a list of Film Festivals that Flash of Genius has been added to thus far:

Telluride Film Festival - Confirmed (August 30) (Marc, Greg and Lauren in attendance)

Movies for Grownups - September 4 (includes Q&A with Marc and Greg)

Toronto Film Festival - September 7 (Premiere), 9 and 11 (Marc, Greg and Lauren in attendance)

Boston Film Festival - September 17 (Closing Night) (Marc and Greg in attendance)

Chesapeake Film Festival - September 19 (Opening Night)

Virginia Film Festival September 16 (year-round series) (includes Q&A with Marc)

Aspen Film Festival - September 24 (Opening Night)

Additional Preview Screenings (North Carolina) (End of September) *NEW*

Woodstock Film Festival - October 2

Mill Valley Film Festival - October 2 *new*

Hamptons Film Festival - October 15-19 *new*

This post will be updated if any others are added.

Moved up 2 weeks

2008-08-19T06:25:03Z

Flash of Genius will now be opening on October 3, two weeks earlier than first stated.

Father son battle with auto giants becomes movie

2008-08-17T12:11:26Z

Father son battle with auto giants becomes movie (Hometown Life)

Father son battle with auto giants becomes movie

By Larry Ruehlen
ECCENTRIC STAFF WRITER

Dennis Kearns sits in his Keego Harbor office telling tales of a principled man that will soon unfold on the Silver Screen.

"It was them damn Jesuits. They made an impression on him. He wasn't into living on an island. He was into making the world a better place."

The main character in the movie Flash of Genius is Robert Kearns, a former Wayne State professor who vanquished corporate auto titans to rightfully claim what belonged to him all along - the invention of the intermittent windshield wiper.

"Their idea was to grind us down and wait us out," said Dennis. "Patents were only good for 17 years. By the time we went to court, they had already accomplished their goal."

Dennis spent years by his father's side fighting Ford and Chrysler over the invention. While the jury deliberated, Dennis said, Ford offered $200 million to settle the case but his father refused to be bought.

Shortly thereafter, the jury awarded them just over $5 million, an amount that was later doubled in settlement negotiations.

"He was very happy he won. It was never about money to him. It was about recognition. Who was right and who was wrong. That jury said he was right. That's what really counted to him. Now I would have liked the $200 million, but I was happy to turn it down the day we did."

UPBRINGING

Robert Kearns attended University of Detroit-Jesuit school in Detroit, which weaves key values into everything it teaches. Graduates are supposed to emerge from school committed to the pursuit of justice and ready to serve the world.

After serving a stint in the Office of Strategic Services, the forerunner to the CIA, during World War II, Robert went to college to pursue engineering.

As a kid, he played in the shadows of the largest industrial complex in the world, the River Rouge Ford plant. It was only natural that he wanted to invent and manufacture something useful to the auto industry.

He had invented cold-weather batteries for the U.S. Marines and a guidance system for missiles that didn't quite take off, but it was his notion that windshield wipers should work more like eyelids that had the family hoping for big things Nov. 22, 1963.

Dennis said it was easy to remember the day his father perfected his invention because it was the same day President John F. Kennedy was assassinated.

The inventor bolted the thing to the family sedan, a Ford Galaxie, and took to the road whenever it rained for testing. The wipers worked and Robert was soon off to show his invention to Ford. At first Ford was interested, said Dennis, but then the company backed off before signing a deal.

Ford later began selling cars with intermittent wipers and Robert Kearns was convinced it was his patented invention under all those hoods - an invention for which he wasn't making a dime.

LEGAL BATTLE

In one of the longest cases in U.S. history, Kearns eventually prevailed against Ford and Chrysler. A cadre of lawyers represented the family along the way but father and son, with coaching from two law professors, took over and won one of the trials. After millions in awards started coming in, all those lawyers wanted chunks of cash. The case put a huge strain on the family and Robert and his wife, Phyllis, divorced. Dennis and his five brothers and sisters went on with life. Some live in Michigan and others don't.

VINDICATION

During the court battle, the saga of Robert Kearns played out on the pages of The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times. It was writer John Seabrook who first took the time to get to know the man behind the invention. In 1993, he wrote about Robert Kearns in a piece titled The Flash of Genius in The New Yorker.

A member of Seabrook's family invented boil-in-a-bag vegetables and he was slightly fascinated with inventive minds.

"He said in court that he wore a badge that said inventor," said Seabrook, in a telephone interview Thursday. "People couldn't see it, but it was there. I told him if he let me write about him, someday, someone will make a movie about him and everyone would see that badge."

Seabrook's prediction came true as Flash of Genius is set for national release Oct. 17 with Greg Kinnear playing Robert Kearns, Jake Abel playing Dennis Kearns and Lauren Graham playing Phyllis Kearns.

The movie was 10 years in the making.

"It's a good film," said Seabrook. "I wouldn't be excited if this were some shlock film or even the typical little guy turns hero movie. Kinnear really does capture the ambiguity of Kearns' quest."

Dennis went to Canada during filming to make sure the film would ring true. He recently saw it at the Traverse City Film Festival.

"I loved the movie. I thought it tells the story with a pretty good punch."

LESSONS LEARNED

Robert Kearns died of cancer Feb. 9, 2005, at age 77. He never lived the extravagant life and much of the money is sitting in a family trust. Dennis Kearns now runs a legal assistance company in Keego Harbor. He has two children, likes to drive his motorcycle now and then and just like his father, isn't wrapped up in money.

"My dad had all the money he could ever spend because he never spent money," said Dennis. "It was never about the money. It was about proving he was right."

Film reveals inventor's fight over wiper design

2008-08-14T22:10:26Z

http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5iKAqbwHvl3oy4zfsYJ2riw7LfOLAD92I6H9G0

Film reveals inventor's fight over wiper design
By JOHN FLESHER – 4 hours ago

TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. (AP) — For two decades, Robert Kearns waged an obsessive crusade against the auto industry, which he accused of stealing his invention. It destroyed his marriage, brought on a mental breakdown and may have cost him millions.

All because of a dispute over a humble piece of equipment: the intermittent windshield wiper.

Not exactly the stuff of Hollywood drama, you say? Veteran film producer Marc Abraham would beg to differ. He found Kearns' story so captivating that instead of hiring a director to bring it to the screen, he did the job himself.

"There was something about this story that I felt so personally committed to," said Abraham, who makes his directorial debut with "Flash of Genius," starring Greg Kinnear as Kearns. The movie, distributed by Universal Pictures, was shown during the recent Traverse City Film Festival and opens in theaters Oct. 17.

"I've always had a lot of respect for average working people," said Abraham, a Kentucky native who drove a beer truck, waited tables and sold baby pictures door-to-door while trying to break into show business. "Bob wasn't an ordinary man; he was probably a genius. But as a person, his lifestyle, his family scale, he was just an average guy. So I felt like I understood that."

Kearns died of cancer in 2005 at age 77, four decades after perfecting the intermittent wiper design in his basement workroom. The one-time engineering instructor at Wayne State University in Detroit received numerous patents for his mechanism.

The idea came to him from the irregular blinking of his left eye, which eventually went blind after being struck by a champagne cork on his wedding night.

Kearns took his gadget to Ford Motor Co., which initially showed interest; its engineers had been trying to develop a similar system. But he never reached a licensing agreement with Ford or other automakers, partly because he insisted on forming his own company to manufacture the wipers.

Ford began turning out cars with intermittent wipers in 1969, and competitors soon did likewise. Kearns sued Ford in 1978, claiming patent infringement, and took on Chrysler Corp. four years later.

He ultimately filed lawsuits against 26 companies, including General Motors Corp. Most were tossed out of court, although he won judgments against Ford and Chrysler that ultimately brought him more than $30 million.
Most of the money paid attorneys' fees and other costs of the legal battle, which in the Chrysler case went to the U.S. Supreme Court. The justices refused to overturn the verdict against the company.

Kearns insisted his primary motive wasn't money, but principle — a point his character makes repeatedly in the film. He turned down settlement offers more lucrative than what he won from juries. To the end, Kearns wanted the automakers to admit they pilfered his design and stop making the wipers so he could do it — a concession he never received.

"What they did was downright wrong," his character tells jurors in the movie version of the Ford trial, during which Kearns represented himself. "They used another man's work as their own."

Kearns had a nervous breakdown and was committed to a psychiatric ward in the 1970s after discovering Mercedes-Benz was using an intermittent wiper with an electric circuit similar to his. A few years later, his wife left him, saying his single-mindedness had driven them apart.

Abraham, whose credits as a producer include three-time Oscar nominee "Children of Men," "Air Force One," "Spy Game" and "The Emperor's Club," said it took nine years to make the film — largely because selling the concept to the necessary backers wasn't easy. The intermittent wiper just wasn't as sexy as, say, a factory polluting someone's water and giving children cancer.

"It's not something that's going to change humanity," he said.

Even so, Abraham added, the themes of putting principle before expediency and the courageous loner battling the system are time-honored winners in literature and the cinema.

"Whether you are Bob Kearns or ... Ghandi or Martin Luther King, if you go up against the forces, you will pay."

Despite his sympathy and respect for Kearns, Abraham said he didn't want "Flash of Genius" to caricature him as a spotless, larger-than-life hero — or Ford as an evil, thieving corporation. The truth, he said, is more nuanced.

Like his on-screen character, the real Kearns could be maddeningly stubborn and even paranoid. When Abraham first telephoned to propose the film after reading about the case in a New Yorker magazine article, Kearns suspected he might be a Ford spy.

"You think to yourself, 'What's wrong with this guy?'" Abraham said. "He's an addict in some ways. He wants to give it up, but he can't."

Meanwhile, Ford insiders are portrayed as acting more out of frustration with Kearns' quirkiness and the need to meet corporate deadlines than a blatant intent to defraud.

"I think they had a leg to stand on, in a certain way," Abraham said. "I think they thought, 'We would have come up with this anyway, based on the amount of time and energy and research and people we had on it.'

"But I don't think they had come up with it yet. And what Bob Kearns came up with — whether or not it was the most revolutionary idea anyone ever had — was Bob's idea. They were denying him his dignity."

Other characters are shown with strengths and weaknesses, including Kearns' wife Phyllis (Lauren Graham), a business partner who eventually deserts him, (Dermot Mulroney), and Kearns' attorney (Alan Alda).

Despite its warts-and-all depiction, Abraham said he believes Kearns would have liked "Flash of Genius" and wishes he had lived long enough to see it.

The inventor's son, Dennis Kearns, who helped his father prepare for the Ford trial, gave the film a thumbs-up.

"It's a huge victory," said Kearns, 53, of Waterford, Mich. "It shows that there is justice in the world, that you can't steal something and get away with it."

Ford and Chrysler spokesmen said they hadn't seen the film and could not comment.

"We're not going to reopen the case," said Wes Sherwood of Ford. "We're clearly focused on moving Ford forward and tomorrow's innovations."

On the Net:
"Flash of Genius" trailer: http://www.apple.com/trailers/universal/flashofgenius
Internet Movie Database site: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1054588
Universal Pictures: http://www.universalpictures.com

Toronto Film Festival

2008-08-13T22:42:23Z

Not really a surprise, but Flash of Genius has been added to the Toronto Film Festival lineup.

http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117990479.html?categoryId=19&cs=1

Official Site is now active

2008-07-18T02:09:33Z

The official site is now active at the previously announced URL.

http://www.flashofgenius.net

The photo gallery, trailer and story information has been added to the official site.

Downloadable links for trailer (right mouse click save-as option)

Small Link: (6MB) - http://movies.apple.com/movies/unive...-tlr1_h320.mov
Medium Link (14MB) - http://movies.apple.com/movies/unive...-tlr1_h480.mov
Large Link (23MB) - http://movies.apple.com/movies/unive...tlr1_h640w.mov

HD Links:

480P (46MB) - http://movies.apple.com/movies/unive...tlr1_h480p.mov
720P (112MB) - http://movies.apple.com/movies/unive...tlr1_h720p.mov
1080P (180MB) - http://movies.apple.com/movies/unive...lr1_h1080p.mov

Mini Update

2008-07-16T22:40:39Z

Okay here's a mini-update until next week when a full one will occur.

Credit to Joy @ Fanforum for pointing me in the direction of some of this stuff.

Firstly the poster for Flash of Genius has been released. Go here to view it.

Trailer can be found at the moment over at Worst Previews.

The film will have its world premiere at the Traverse City Film Festival later this month.

Music Supervision has been completed

2008-05-19T09:05:06Z

35 Sound which is the company responsible for the music supervision on Flash of Genius reported on their website last month that their involvement in the movie has been completed.

http://www.35sound.com/

4-14-08
'FLASH OF GENIUS'
Roswell and Swart completed music supervision on Universal's ‘Flash of Genius' starring Greg Kinnear.

Release Date

2008-04-01T02:09:09Z

Universal has set a release date for the film.

Courtesy of Variety.

U and Spyglass will open "Flash of Genius," based on the real-life story of the Detroit engineer who claimed the auto industry stole his idea for the intermittent windshield wiper, on Oct. 25. Greg Kinnear, Lauren Graham and Dermot Mulroney star.

ETA: Universal Pictures website is stating it will open October 17. So it could be limited then expanding the week later.

Apologies

2008-02-10T06:08:14Z

Apologies for not updating this community sooner. If anyone has anything to post here, feel free to do it. The other things I was going to update, will be done before the end of the month.

Two tidbits I do have is the MPAA rating for the movie and a potential release date (that should be taken as a grain of salt right now).

MPAA Classification:

PG-13

"Flash of Genius" (rated for brief strong language) Universal

Potential Release Date:

June 2008 (as per this article [scroll down to read it])