Monday, July 25, 2022

Hot This Week: July 25

Check out this week's lists!
 
Movies
  1. Memory (Blu-ray)
  2. The Bad Guys (Blu-ray | 4K)
  3. Morbius (Blu-ray | 4K)
  4. Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore (Blu-ray | 4K)
  5. Father Stu (Blu-ray)
  6. The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent (Blu-ray | 4K)
  7. Uncharted (Blu-ray | 4K)
  8. Everything Everywhere All at Once (Blu-ray | 4K)
  9. Dog (Blu-ray)
  10. Ambulance (Blu-ray | 4K)
Music
  1. Aespa, Girls: The 2nd Mini Album
  2. Harry Styles, Harry's House
  3. Morgan Wallen, Dangerous: The Double Album
  4. Future, I Never Liked You
  5. The Weeknd, The Highlights
  6. Post Malone, Twelve Carat Toothache
  7. Olivia Rodrigo, Sour
  8. Zach Bryan, American Heartbreak
  9. Luke Combs, Growin' Up
  10. Kendrick Lamar, Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers
Fiction
  1. The 6:20 Man, David Baldacci (AB24M | eB24M)
  2. The It Girl, Ruth Ware (PA | AB24M | eB24M)
  3. The Hotel Nantucket, Elin Hilderbrand (PA | eB24M)
  4. Sparring Partners, John Grisham (ABP | AB12M | eB12M | eB24M)
  5. Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, Gabrielle Zevin (ABP | eB12M | eB24M)*
  6. Upgrade, Blake Crouch (ABP | AB12M | eB12M | eB24M)*
  7. Rising Tiger, Brad Thor (AB24M | eB24M)
  8. The Last Thing He Told Me, Laura Dave (AB24MeB24M)
  9. The Midnight Library, Matt Haig (PA | ABP | AB12M | eB12M | eB24M)
  10. Horse, Geraldine Brooks (ABP | AB12M | eB12M | eB24M)*
Nonfiction
  1. Tanqueray, Stephanie Johnson and Brandon Stanton (PA | ABP | eB24M)
  2. Thank You for Your Servitude, Mark Leibovich (ABP | AB12M | eB12M | eB24M)*
  3. Battle for the American Mind, Pete Hegseth (ABP | eB26C)
  4. Finding Me, Viola Davis (PA | ABP | eB26C)
  5. Happy-Go-Lucky, David Sedaris (PA | AB24M | eB24M)
  6. Leadership, Henry Kissinger (ABP | AB12M | eB12M | eB24M)
  7. James Patterson, James Patterson (PA | eB24M)
  8. Killing the Killers, Bill O'Reilly and Martin Dugard (PA | ABP | eB24M)
  9. Crying in H Mart, Michelle Zauner (ABP | AB12M | eB12M | eB24M)*
  10. An Immense World, Ed Yong (ABP | AB12M | eB12M | eB24M)*
Fiction/Nonfiction format key:
PA = Playaway (physical)
ABP = hoopla Flex digital audiobook, perpetual license
AB12M = hoopla Flex digital audiobook, 12-month license
AB24M = hoopla Flex digital audiobook, 24-month license
eB12M = hoopla Flex eBook, 12-month license
eB24M = hoopla Flex eBook, 24-month license
eB26C = hoopla Flex eBook, 26-circulation license
* = CD audiobook currently unavailable
 
Contact your sales rep for more information about hoopla Flex.

Wednesday, July 13, 2022

In Memoriam: James Caan

Written by Jon Williams

The film industry lost an incredible actor and a unique, larger-than-life personality last week with the passing of James Caan. He was 82.

Born in the Bronx in 1940, Caan was determined to avoid working as a butcher like his father. He went to Michigan State University with hopes of playing football but moved on to Hofstra University when those dreams fell through. It was at Hofstra that he met Francis Ford Coppola and developed an interest in acting. In the early 1960s he started turning that interest into a career, first with some stage work and then with a series of small television roles. His first significant film role was opposite Olivia de Havilland in 1964’s Lady in a Cage, and his part in 1965’s The Glory Guys earned a Golden Globe nomination for New Star of the Year. He landed his first starring role in the racing film Red Line 7000 for director Howard Hawks in 1965. He followed that up with another Hawks film, the Western El Dorado, which also starred John Wayne, Robert Mitchum, and Ed Asner. He worked with Robert Altman in the 1967 space thriller Countdown, and with his friend Francis Ford Coppola for the first time in 1969’s The Rain People.

Many of his films in the ‘60s struggled at the box office, but Caan’s status was about to skyrocket. The 1970s started with the starring role in Rabbit, Run, an adaptation of the John Updike novel. In 1971 he played dying football player Brian Piccolo in the TV movie Brian’s Song, earning an Emmy Award nomination (as did costar Billy Dee Williams). Then in 1972 came the role with which he would forever be associated, mobster Sonny Corleone, in Coppola’s The Godfather, widely regarded as one of the best films of all time. Playing the short-tempered and violent Sonny, the oldest son and heir apparent to Don Vito Corleone, earned Caan nominations for both an Academy Award and a Golden Globe. He reprised the role in a cameo appearance for The Godfather: Part II in 1974. Other notable performances in the ‘70s include The Gambler, Funny Lady, Rollerball, and A Bridge Too Far, to name a few.

The ’80s started strong for Caan. In 1980 his passion project, Hide in Plain Sight, was released, the only film he directed. Next came the stylish crime thriller Thief, the directorial debut of Michael Mann. Soon thereafter, though, a series of personal issues forced Caan from the limelight. Thinking he was done acting, he paused his career for several years. He did return, though, starting with another Coppola flick, Gardens of Stone, in 1987. He dipped his toe into sci-fi with 1988’s Alien Nation, which spawned a separate TV series. He then completed his comeback with another iconic role, playing injured and stranded author Paul Sheldon against Kathy Bates’s sadistic nurse and “number one fan” Annie Wilkes in the adaptation of Stephen King’s Misery.

From then until his passing, Caan worked steadily, appearing in roles both large and small across all genres. He did straight drama (The Program), crime drama (The Yards, The Way of the Gun), and comedy (Mickey Blue Eyes, Get Smart). He appeared in Wes Anderson’s debut film, Bottle Rocket, and Lars von Trier’s avant garde ensemble drama Dogville. He starred in the modern Christmas classic Elf. He’s done voice work for Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs and its sequel, as well as for the anime film The Tale of the Princess Kaguya, and even voiced himself in cameos for both The Simpsons and Family Guy. He also had TV roles in the shows Las Vegas, Magic City, and Back in the Game. Caan’s final role was as an aging mob boss in the crime drama Fast Charlie, which will release in 2023.

James Caan leaves behind an extensive body of work that fans old and new will want to explore for years to come. Click on the links above, or SmartBrowse his name on our website to find all his movies we have available on DVD and Blu-ray. Patrons can also find a selection of his films available digitally on hoopla.

Monday, July 11, 2022

Hot This Week: July 11

Check out this week's lists!
 
Movies
  1. The Bad Guys (Blu-ray | 4K)
  2. Morbius (Blu-ray | 4K)
  3. Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore (Blu-ray | 4K)
  4. Father Stu (Blu-ray)
  5. The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent (Blu-ray | 4K)
  6. Ambulance (Blu-ray | 4K)
  7. Uncharted (Blu-ray | 4K)
  8. Firestarter (Blu-ray)
  9. Dog (Blu-ray)
  10. The Contractor (Blu-ray | 4K)
Music
  1. Harry Styles, Harry's House
  2. Morgan Wallen, Dangerous: The Double Album
  3. Shinedown, Planet Zero
  4. Future, I Never Liked You
  5. The Weeknd, The Highlights
  6. Post Malone, Twelve Carat Toothache
  7. Luke Combs, Growin' Up
  8. Imagine Dragons, Mercury: Act 1
  9. Kendrick Lamar, Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers
  10. Olivia Rodrigo, Sour
Fiction
  1. The Hotel Nantucket, Elin Hilderbrand (PA | eB24M)
  2. Sparring Partners, John Grisham (ABP | AB12M | eB12M | eB24M)
  3. Suspects, Danielle Steel (PAABP | eB12M | eB24M)
  4. The House Across the Lake, Riley Sager (PA | ABP | AB12M | eB12M | eB24M)*
  5. Escape, James Patterson and David Ellis (PA | eB24M)
  6. The Measure, Nikki Erlick (PA | ABP | eB26C)
  7. The Midnight Library, Matt Haig (PA | ABP | AB12M | eB12M | eB24M)
  8. Lessons in Chemistry, Bonnie Garmus (ABP | AB12M | eB12M | eB24M)*
  9. The Last Thing He Told Me, Laura Dave (AB24MeB24M)
  10. Horse, Geraldine Brooks (ABP | AB12M | eB12M | eB24M)*
Nonfiction
  1. Battle for the American Mind, Pete Hegseth (ABP | eB26C)
  2. Why We Did It, Tim Miller (ABP)
  3. Finding Me, Viola Davis (PA | ABP | eB26C)
  4. Happy-Go-Lucky, David Sedaris (PA | AB24M | eB24M)
  5. An Immense World, Ed Yong (ABP | AB12M | eB12M | eB24M)*
  6. Killing the Killers, Bill O'Reilly and Martin Dugard (PA | ABP | eB24M)
  7. Crying in H Mart, Michelle Zauner (ABP | AB12M | eB12M | eB24M)*
  8. Rogues, Patrick Radden Keefe (ABP | AB12M | eB12M | eB24M)*
  9. James Patterson, James Patterson (PA | eB24M)
  10. I'd Like to Play Alone, Please, Tom Segura (PA | eB24M)
Fiction/Nonfiction format key:
PA = Playaway (physical)
ABP = hoopla Flex digital audiobook, perpetual license
AB12M = hoopla Flex digital audiobook, 12-month license
AB24M = hoopla Flex digital audiobook, 24-month license
eB12M = hoopla Flex eBook, 12-month license
eB24M = hoopla Flex eBook, 24-month license
eB26C = hoopla Flex eBook, 26-circulation license
* = CD audiobook currently unavailable
 
Contact your sales rep for more information about hoopla Flex.

Tuesday, July 5, 2022

Hot This Week: July 5

Check out this week's lists!
 
Movies
  1. The Bad Guys (Blu-ray | 4K)
  2. Morbius (Blu-ray | 4K)
  3. The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent (Blu-ray | 4K)
  4. Ambulance (Blu-ray | 4K)
  5. Father Stu (Blu-ray)
  6. Uncharted (Blu-ray | 4K)
  7. The Northman (Blu-ray | 4K)
  8. Dog (Blu-ray)
  9. The Contractor (Blu-ray | 4K)
  10. The Batman (Blu-ray | 4K)
Music
  1. Harry Styles, Harry's House
  2. BTS, Proof
  3. Morgan Wallen, Dangerous: The Double Album
  4. Future, I Never Liked You
  5. Post Malone, Twelve Carat Toothache
  6. Kevin Gates, Khaza
  7. Olivia Rodrigo, Sour
  8. Zach Bryan, American Heartbreak
  9. Logic, Vinyl Days
  10. Doja Cat, Planet Her
Fiction
  1. The Hotel Nantucket, Elin Hilderbrand (PA | eB24M)
  2. Sparring Partners, John Grisham (ABP | AB12M | eB12M | eB24M)
  3. The House Across the Lake, Riley Sager (PA | ABP | AB12M | eB12M | eB24M)*
  4. Escape, James Patterson and David Ellis (PA | eB24M)
  5. Lapvona, Ottessa Moshfegh (ABP | AB12M | eB12M | eB24M)*
  6. The Midnight Library, Matt Haig (PA | ABP | AB12M | eB12M | eB24M)
  7. The Last Thing He Told Me, Laura Dave (AB24MeB24M)
  8. Meant to Be, Emily Giffin (PA | ABP | AB12M | eB12M | eB24M)
  9. Horse, Geraldine Brooks (ABP | AB12M | eB12M | eB24M)*
  10. Run, Rose, Run, James Patterson and Dolly Parton (PA | AB24M | eB24M)
Nonfiction
  1. Battle for the American Mind, Pete Hegseth (ABP | eB26C)
  2. An Immense World, Ed Yong (ABP | AB12M | eB12M | eB24M)*
  3. Happy-Go-Lucky, David Sedaris (PA | AB24M | eB24M)
  4. Killing the Killers, Bill O'Reilly and Martin Dugard (PA | ABP | eB24M)
  5. James Patterson, James Patterson (PA | eB24M)
  6. Finding Me, Viola Davis (PA | ABP | eB26C)
  7. I'd Like to Play Alone, Please, Tom Segura (PA | eB24M)
  8. River of the Gods, Candice Millard (ABP | AB12M | eB12M | eB24M)
  9. Crying in H Mart, Michelle Zauner (ABP | AB12M | eB12M | eB24M)*
  10. Greenlights, Matthew McConaughey (ABP | AB12M | eB12M | eB24M)
Fiction/Nonfiction format key:
PA = Playaway (physical)
ABP = hoopla Flex digital audiobook, perpetual license
AB12M = hoopla Flex digital audiobook, 12-month license
AB24M = hoopla Flex digital audiobook, 24-month license
eB12M = hoopla Flex eBook, 12-month license
eB24M = hoopla Flex eBook, 24-month license
eB26C = hoopla Flex eBook, 26-circulation license
* = CD audiobook currently unavailable
 
Contact your sales rep for more information about hoopla Flex.