Write it Up

 

Ilang linggo na ang nakakaraan mula nang nakatakdang i-announce dapat sa ASAP ‘08 kung sino na talaga ang magiging leading man ni Bea Alonzo, but at the last minute, kinansela ang naturang announcement. May bulung-bulungan na pinigil muna ang announcement dahil baka makasira sa promo ng bagong pelikula ni John Lloyd with Sarah Geronimo sa Star Cinema na A Very Special Love.

 

Sa birthday presscon ni John Lloyd last Friday, June 21, sa ABS-CBN, inihayag niya ang kanyang damdamin tungkol sa pagganap sana niya bilang si Armanod sa Yo Soy, Betty La Fea.

 

"May mga plano sila sa buhay-buhay," biro ni John Lloyd sa PEP (Philippine Entertainment Portal) sabay tawa. "Hindi naman ako ang may hawak nun. Kumbaga, ngayon, pinapalad lang tayo kasi gusto ko talaga munang magpelikula, e. Pero hindi ko sinasabing ayaw kong mag-Betty. Pero yun nga lang, hindi pa confirmed kung ano ba, kung sino ba ang gagawa, kung meron na ba. So, yun, doon lang muna ako."

 

Ayaw ba niyang tanggapin ang proyekto?

 

"Hindi sa ayaw," paglilinaw ng young actor. "Pinag-aaralan ko kasi yung mga susunod kong gagawin, and I’m really asking na maintindihan ng kung sinuman na dumarating tayo sa… Twenty-five na ako, sa bawat step na gagawin ko na tatahakin ko, kailangan kong maging maingat. E, meron lang mga konting conflict na pinaplantsa namin sa mga plano. Kumbaga, dapat kasi united ‘yan, e. United ang plano ng mga taong concern."

 

SOLDIER OF THE COMPANY. Ayaw ba niyang makasagasa sa balitang pagkakamabutihan ngayon ni Bea at ang Coverboys member na si Jake Cuenca?

 

"Nagpapakaano ako, nagpapakabuti," sabi ni John Lloyd. "Alam ninyo, sinasabi ko lang ito pero at the end of the day, I’m still a soldier of the company. Kung saan nila ako ilalagay, kung ano ang gusto nilang gawin ko, doon ako. So ganun, tatangapin ko kung ano ang maging desisyon nila kung para sa Betty nga ako o hindi."

           

Nilinaw rin ni John Lloyd na walang kinalaman kung si Bea lang ang nasa titulo ng proyekto.

           

"Ay, hindi naman. Hindi, more of ano, ano ba talagang career pathing ang gusto ko this year? Is it TV or movies? So yun yung pinag-iisapan, yun po ang pinaplantsa," paliwanag niya.

           

Sabi ni John Lloyd, wala naman daw siyang hesitation para gawin ang Betty La Fea.

           

"Hindi naman siya hesitation, e. Gusto ko lang…para ka bang namimili. Kung halimbawa, for this year, ano ba, is it movies or TV? You know, is it gonna be me and Bea again?"

           

ACTING LESSONS ABROAD. May particular ba na bagay ang nasa isip niya na gusto niyang gawin ngayong taon kesa sa Betty La Fea?

           

"Actually, I do," pag-amin niya. "Hindi lang naman yung paglihis kay Bea, e. Ang sa akin kasi, kung ako ang masusunod, ha, and I said this to Star Cinema… After nitong movie ko with Sarah, I’m gonna take a short break. Mag-aaral ako, kung puwedeng abroad, mag-a-abroad ako to study acting. Kung hindi man, kung masyadong imposible ang pag-a-abroad, puwede ako dito. May ino-offer ang Star Cinema na nagko-conduct ng workshop, ng acting class."

           

Hindi pa ba siya kuntento sa pag-arte niya considering he has won many acting awards plus a Box-Office King title this year?

           

"Hindi naman sa ganun," sagot niya. "Gusto ko lang lumawak ang kaalaman ko sa isang bagay na ginagawa mo. ‘Pag hindi mo pina-practice, kumbaga, kinakalawang na, nabobobo ka. Parang kumikitid yung kaalaman mo. Siyempre ‘pag may ginagawa kang isang bagay, palawak nang palawak yung kaalaman mo. Hindi dapat nagsi-shrink. 

 

"May connection siya sa sinasabi ko tungkol doon sa foreign attack, foreign approach ‘tsaka sa Pinoy. Mas gusto ko… Kasi ang pinakamahirap, lalo na kapag gumagawa ako ng pelikula, dalawang oras lang ang ibinibigay sa ‘yo para makilala mo ang character na ibinibigay sa ‘yo. Unlike sa TV, you have the whole season."

           

Gusto ba niyang subukan an umarte sa ibang bansa?

           

"Not really. Takot ako, e.  Masyado yatang malaki ang Hollywood for me. Pero ‘eto talaga yung gusto kong gawin bago pa ako bumalik from the States, yung sa show namin nina Sam [Milby] and Piolo [Pascual]. Originally, ito talaga ang nakaplano sa akin na gawin," saad ni John Lloyd.

           

DIRECTING & PHOTOGRAPHY. Wala ba siyang planong magdirek ng pelikula balang-araw?

           

"Directing is something that I will never do in my life. Hindi ko kaya. Hindi ko kayang mag-direk. I don’t think I can be a good leader," pag-amin ng young actor.

           

Bakit ayaw niya?

           

"Hindi ko kasi… Hindi ba ganun yun? Somehow ang director, pagdating sa set, leader, e, ako yung captain of the ship. I could be a good follower, pero a good leader, I doubt that. Iba sila. Ewan ko kung meron sila. Pero lahat ng makikita mo sa frame, lahat ‘yan iintindihin ng director. Magko-contribute na lang ako."

           

What about photography?

           

"I like moving pictures. Movies talaga ako. Kahit sa painting, hindi ako masyadong…wala akong knowledge about it. Pero pelikula, emotions, mas nakaka-associate ako doon. Mas nakaka-indentify ako doon."

           

DREAM ROLE. May dream role ba siya?

           

"Halimbawa, ang pinanggagalingan ng dream role, somehow kung ano ang makaka-challenge sa ‘yo, di ba? Kasi dati, automatically, I would say something offbeat. Somehting like psycho-killer na rapist or… Pero yung mga ganung klaseng mga role, as it is, yun na yun, e. Buo na, parang hulmado na yun.

 

"Siguro challenging din siya, pero hindi siya as challenging as normal people. Kung papano mo siya payayamanin? Paano mo bubuuuin ang puso ng character. Masyado na kasing nakatuon ang concept ng dream role sa mga ganun," opinyon ni John Lloyd.

 

Positibo pa rin ang pananaw ni Dingdong Dantes sa pelikulang supposedly ay gagawin niya for GMA Films. Ilang buwan na rin kasi simula nang mai-announce na may movie silang pagsasamahan nina Marian Rivera at Iza Calzado sa movie arm ng Kapuso Network. Pero dahil nga sa napipintong proyektong papasukin ng GMA Films kunsaan magsasama sa iisang pelikula sina Richard Gutierrez at KC Concepcion, sinasabing tila ibinitin muna ng film production ang nakaplano na noong Dingdong-Marian-Iza movie na may tentative title pa naman na Amnesia at may plano pang maipalabas by August.

 

Natawa na lang din si Dingdong nang kamustahin sa kanya ng entertainment press at PEP (Philippine Entertainment Portal) kung nagka-amnesia na rin daw yata ang movie nila at nakaligtaan na itong gawin.

 

"Ako naman, I’m still optimistic. Iniisip ko na lang na habang tumatagal, mas lalo pang gumaganda. Kumbaga, yun na lang siguro ang magandang isipin natin sa nangyayari. Maaaring kaya naman nagtatagal dahil mas lalo pang pinapaganda."

 

Pero as of this writing, wala pa raw siyang balita kung tuloy pa nga ba ang Amnesia or posibleng ibang movie project na lang ang gagawin niya for GMA Films.

 

From the time na nag-sign siya ng exclusive contract sa network, wala pa rin naman siyang pelikulang nagagawa under that contract. At bagama’t exclusive, may option naman daw si Dingdong na gumawa ng movie outside GMA Films, as long as maipagpapaalam lang ito. Kaya kung may maganda raw material at kaya naman ng schedule niya, walang dahilan para hindi rin niya ito gawin.

 

TESTING DINGDONG-MARIAN. sa sa mga in-demand celebrity product endorser si Dingdong ngayon, bukod pa sa sinasabing kanyang pagiging "King of Primetime." Pero aminado si Dingdong na more than ever, mas ganado nga siyang gumawa ng movies ngayon. Magiging masaya rin daw siya na yung team-up nila ni Marian Rivera ay masubukan naman sa big screen.

 

"Masaya kami sa nakikita naming suporta ng mga tao sa mga shows namin sa TV. Nag-umpisa nga sa MariMar and then, sa Dyesebel ngayon. Nakaka-overwhelm yung suporta ng mga manonood at ng mga fans. Actually, kahit saan ako or kami magpunta, mararamdaman mo talaga yun.

 

"And of course, hindi maiaalis na marami talaga ang nagtatanong kung kailan daw kaya kami gagawa naman ng movie. Ang sinasagot ko lang sa ganoon, I’m sure, if it’s the right time, mapapanood din nila kami ni Marian sa movie naman. Anyway, right now naman, we’re still concentrating on Dyesebel."

 

ALL POSITIVE. Kung titingnan daw si Dingdong ngayon, puwedeng sabihin na halos lahat na yata ng positibo ay nangyayari sa buhay niya. Walang-dudang he is one the most successful individuals in show business. At kamakailan, pinatunayan ni Dingdong na successful din siya maging sa negosyong kanyang pinasok. Nag-soft launch na nga kailan lang ang Makati branch ng business nila ng girlfriend niyang si Karylle (at iba pang kaibigan) na Centerstage, which has its original branch at Timog, Quezon City.

 

Maging sa personal na buhay ni Dingdong, masasabi ring successful siya. Maayos ngang pinapatakbo nilang dalawa ni Karylle ang relasyon nila sa kabila ng pagkakaroon ni Dingdong ng ka-love team na sikat na sikat namang talaga.

 

Pero sey ni Dingdong sa amin, "Well, ganito…hindi mo puwedeng sabihin na puro positive. Meron ding hindi. Pero siyempre, mas napapansin lang ang magaganda dahil marami talaga ang magagandang nangyayari.

 

"Siyempre, balance pa rin ‘yan. We’re all humans. We have problems, naa-outshine lang. It’s how you take it para matakpan lang yung mga pangit."

 

           

"Feeling model," sagot ni Angel nang i-welcome siya ng host ng event na si Phoemela Barranda.

           

A few weeks back ay naging isyu ang pagiging endorser ni Angel ng ibang clothing line pagkatapos kunin ng dating ini-endorse na JAG jeans si Marian Rivera. But it turned out na may bago nang ie-endorse na brand ng pantalon si Angel, ang Folded & Hung nga.

           

"Ten years na sila business at para rin ‘yang pag-aartista. You always have to show something new to offer. At para sa akin, dahil umabot sila ng ten years with great results, indicator ito na tama ang kanilang ginagawa at talagang tinatangkilik sila.

 

"When I found out  that they were interested in me, sobrang na-flatter at natuwa ako. So, sobrang natutuwa ako, na mabigyan ng ganitong pagkakataon na makasali sa kanila," pahayag ni Angel.

           

Happy and thankful si Angel dahil pinagkatiwalaan siya ng F&H na makasama ang iba pa nilang endorsers na sina Claudine Barretto at Maja Salvador.

           

Sa gitna ng Activity Center ng TriNoma nakasabit ang naglalakihang tarpaulin ni Angel for F&H kung saan wala siyang suot na pang-itaas, kita ang likod at nakasuot ng pantalon. Paano siya napapayag na mag-pose ng topless sa billboard?

           

"Biglaan lang yun, e," sagot niya. "Wala kasi kaming mga peg. Ganyan mag-work ang F&H. Parang sobrang genius nila, biglaan lang.

 

"Nung una na-tense ako dahil hindi ko naman ginagawa. Pero, di ba, parang why not? Wala naman akong ginagawang masama. ‘Tsaka para sa akin, hindi pa siya daring."

 

Ngayon, hindi man gustuhin ni Angel, tiyak na maikukumpara siya sa F&H endorser na si Claudine.

 

"Naku, there’s nothing to compare. Si Ms. Claudine, Ms. Claudine na ‘yan. Ang dami-dami na niyang achievements. Ano naman po ba ako compared to her?" ani Angel.

 

Hindi kaya matalbugan pa niya sina Claudine at Maja as endorser ng F&H? And later, tuluyan na niyang palitan sina Claudine at Maja?

           

"Ah, walang ganun, walang ganun na deal. Kahit hindi pa kami talaga nakakapagtrabaho kapag nasa isang company hindi naman sila ganu’n klaseng tao at iba-ibang ino-offer para sa brand at para sa mga tao kaya nandito kami."

 

Nilinaw rin ni Angel ang isyu na sinulot niya ang F&H kina Claudine at Maja.

 

"Ganun ka kadali yun? Hindi naman ako nagbayad sa F&H para kunin ako, di ba?"

 

May balita na nagalit daw si Claudine dahil bigla siyang kinuhang endorser ng F&H? Ano ang reaksiyon niya rito?

 

"E, hindi pa kami nagkikita ni Ms. Claudine ngayon, pero hindi naman. Parang sa akin, ginagawan lang ng intriga ng mga tao kasi siyempre, ‘eto, bagong part ako ng famliy ng F&H, pero hindi naman. Bagong sampa lang ako sa pamilya."

 

Hindi niya pinalitan si Claudine?

 

"Hindi po," tanggi ni Angel. "Iki-clear ko po, karagdagan lang po ako dito. Wala po akong pinalitan kahit na sino."

 

Wala bang usapan na magsasama-sama sila nina Claudine at Maja para sa proyekto ng F&H tulad ng billboard?

  

"Merong pinaplano, pero hindi pa sure. Tulad ng sinabi ko kanina, wala kami nung mga  peg talaga," pagwawakas ni Angel.

 

                                 

It was David’s night last night … David Cook won the title of American Idol 2008 with 56% of the audience votes.

The rocker/bartender from Missouri won over little David Archuleta in a finale show that was full of special appearances and entertaining performances.

Lots of viewers and critics thought that David Archuleta was going to be the winner, even Cook himself said that Archuleta was the Idol Champion! It was somewhat of a surprise for all! Even Cook himself!

As for the show, it saw performances from the Idol finalists and Top 10 and other music stars like Seal, ZZ Top, Graham Nash, Carrie Underwood, Jordan Sparks, Donna Summer, Bryan Adams and an impressive performance from the contestants of "So You Think You Can Dance".

Congratulations David Cook!

                                            

Marian Gracia Rivera, more popularly known as Marian Rivera (born August 12, 1984 in Madrid, Spain) is a Filipino actress and commercial model. Her first TV role came in 2005 via TAPE Inc.’s afternoon drama, Kung Mamahalin Mo Lang Ako. However, her breakout role did not come until 2007 when she was cast for the title role in the Philippine remake of MariMar.

Early life

Rivera was born in Madrid, Spain to an interracial couple; Spaniard named Francisco Javier Gracia and a Filipina named Amalia Rivera. When her parents separated 2 years after her birth, Rivera and her mom left Spain and flew back to her mother’s hometown in the Philippines. However, her mother had to leave to continue her work commitment abroad that she was sent to her maternal grandmother, Francisca Rivera in Bacoor, Cavite .

Education

Rivera attended local private schools in Cavite including Saint Francis of Assisi College System where she spent her Elementary and High School years and De La Salle University-Dasmariñas for college. She had a 3-month practicum at the National Mental Hospital, after which she graduated with a degree in A.B. Psychology.

Early work

Rivera left her hometown to pursue a career as a ramp and commercial model. Not long after, she landed an appearance on TV advertisements for Skin White Lotion and Sky Flakes crackers where she was seen by TAPE Inc.’s executive producer, Tony Tuviera. From then on, she starred in a series of afternoon soap operas for TrAPE Inc. and GMA Network such as Kung Mamahalin Mo Lang Ako, Agawin Mo Man Ang Lahat (where she was named as the Best New Female TV Personality at the 2006 PMPC Star Awards) and Pinakamamahal along with Oyo Boy Sotto as her main leading man. GMA Network then cast her into mother roles for the afternoon Philippine-Malaysian drama Muli with Alfred Vargas and the primetime telefantasya Super Twins.

MariMar

Rivera rose to fame when she won an audition for the title role of MariMar, the remake of the Mexican telenovela which starred Thalía. Before the auditions, Rivera knew little about the character as she was only 11 years old when the original soap opera aired on Philippine TV. Rivera then took the time out to do a research about the role over the internet. Other actresses who took part on the auditions were Nadine Samonte, Katrina Halili, Jennylyn Mercado, Karylle, Jewel Mische, and Bianca King.

MariMar premiered on August 13, 2007 with a 36.6% rating. Her participation in the show led her to becoming a household name among the Filipino audiences that some would refer to her as Marimar/Bella even when she’s out of her character, and with critics from the Guillermo Mendoza Memorial Scholarship Foundation, Inc. honoring her as Phenomenal TV Star in the 38th Box-Office Entertainment Awards.

 Dyesebel

After MariMar, Rivera will play the role of Dyesebel Dingdong Dantes, who was her leading man in MariMar, will pair up with Rivera as Fredo.

 

                                          

Daniel Jacob Radcliffe (born 23 July 1989) is an English film, television and stage actor. He is best known for playing Harry Potter in each of the first five films based on the best-selling Harry Potter book series, and will also appear in the final three films of the series.

Early life

Radcliffe was born in Queen Charlotte’s Hospital, West London, England,^] the only child of Alan Radcliffe, a literary agent, and Marcia Gresham (born "Marcia Gresham Jacobson"), a casting agent who was involved in several films for the BBC, including The Inspector Lynley Mysteries and, most recently, Walk Away And I Stumble. Radcliffe’s mother is Jewish and grew up in Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex; his father is a Protestant who grew up in Northern Ireland.  Radcliffe first expressed a desire to act at the age of five. In December 1999, he made his acting debut in the BBC’s televised two-part version of the Charles Dickens novel David Copperfield, portraying the title character as a young boy.

Personal life

Radcliffe previously attended the Sussex House School, an all-boys school, and for his AS levels at City of London School. He achieved A grades in the three AS-levels he sat in 2006, but then decided to take a break from education.

Radcliffe has said that he is "very proud of being Jewish" but is not religious. He plays bass guitar (taught by Gary Oldman) and is a fan of punk rock music; he admires a diverse lineup of bands, from Sex Pistols to Arctic Monkeys and more recently Hard-Fi, Jack Penate and Kate Nash. His favourite band is The Hold Steady. He is also a fan of Fulham Football Club. While on set, to keep busy, he enjoys playing table tennis and video games with his fellow cast members. He is close friends with Rupert Grint, Emma Watson, and Gary Oldman.

Radcliffe appeared on the Sunday Times Rich List in 2006, which estimated his personal fortune to be GB£14 million, making him one of the richest young people in the United Kingdom. He made another appearance on the British young people’s rich list in 2007, which placed him as the thirty-third richest young person in Britain with an estimated wealth of £17 million. He is reported to have earned approximately £250,000 for the first Potter film, around £5.6 million for the fourth film, and more than £8 million for Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. Despite his wealth, Radcliffe has said he does not have expensive tastes. Radcliffe has said that his main expense is books, as he "read[s] a lot".Radcliffe has been a supporter of various charities, including Demelza House Children’s Hospice in Sittingbourne, Kent, to which he has requested fans make donations in lieu of birthday presents. In February 2005, Radcliffe put a "Hogwarts Crew" T-shirt which he autographed up for auction to help raise money for the Tsunami victims in 2005. His T-shirt was part of the Tsunami Celebrity Clothes Auction which raised money for the Rebuilding Sri Lanka Organization. He wore the t-shirt during the making of the film, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone. These T-shirts were only issued to members of the cast and crew. His shirt raised £520 or $995. He has become a keen follower of cricket and attended the first England v India test match on his 18th birthday. He queued up for the autographs of Indian batting maestro Sachin Tendulkar and English opening batsman Andrew Strauss at the end of the final day’s play.  

 

Lindsay Dee Lohan (born July 2, 1986) is an American actress and pop music singer. Lohan started in show business as a child fashion model for magazine advertisement and television commercials. At age 10, she began her acting career in a soap opera; at 11, she made her motion picture debut by playing identical twins in Disney’s 1998 remake of The Parent Trap.

Lohan rose to stardom with her leading roles in the films Freaky Friday, Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen, Mean Girls and Herbie: Fully Loaded. Her subsequent roles include appearances in A Prairie Home Companion and Bobby. In 2004, Lohan launched a second career in pop music yielding the albums Speak (2004) and A Little More Personal (Raw) (2005).

Family life

Lohan was born on East 236th Street in the Woodlawn section of the Bronx and grew up in Merrick and Cold Spring Harbor on Long Island. She is the eldest child of Donata "Dina" (née Sullivan), a former Rockette, and Michael Douglas Lohan, Sr., a onetime actor. Lohan has three younger siblings, all of whom are actor-models: brother Michael Jr., whom she affectionately calls "Punk," appeared with her in The Parent Trap as the "Lost Boy at Camp"; sister Aliana had a small role in Freaky Friday, as did brother Dakota, the youngest Lohan child, whom she once saved from drowning. Most recently she starred alongside Jane Fonda in "Georgia Rule".

Lohan is of Irish and Italian heritage and was raised as a Catholic. Her maternal family were "well known Irish Catholic stalwarts" in Merrick, with her great-grandfather, John L Sullivan, being a co-founder of the Pro-life Party in Long Island. In 2005, Lohan explained to a TEENick audience that she had decided to use Morgan as her middle name because it sounded more professional.

Lohan attended public schools on Long Island, including Sanford H. Calhoun High School. She finished her studies at home through Laurel Springs School of Ojai, California.

Her family was financially comfortable. Her mother was a Wall Street analyst before becoming Lohan’s manager.^{[citation needed]} Dina also claimed that she worked as a Rockette, though Radio City Music Hall records have not verified this claim.

Michael Lohan inherited his family’s pasta business, which he later sold to trade in futures (briefly becoming President of New York Futures Traders). Sentenced to four years in prison in the late 1980s, he spent much of his daughter’s preteen years in prison for securities fraud. More recently, he worked as an investment banker, securing funding for independent films. In 2005, he was sent back to prison for nearly two years, released in March 2007, for "aggravated unlicensed driving" and attempted assault. Michael currently works with Teen Challenge.

In December 2005, Michael and Dina Lohan signed a separation agreement. In August 2007, Lohan’s parents announced that their divorce proceedings had been finalized.

 

                               

           Out of the mellow folk-pop dudes who’ve surfed to stardom on Jack Johnson’s wave, Jason Mraz may be the most entertaining, since he’d rather crack a joke than ruminate on life and stuff. (When he mentions Jesus, it’s in the same verse as ‘’a party getting started in the yard.'’) His third studio CD, We Sing. We Dance. We Steal Things., includes pleasantly lightweight jams with beachy guitars ('’Live High'’), R&B horns ('’Make It Mine'’), even playful scat singing ('’I'm Yours'’). Of special note is ‘’Lucky,'’ Mraz’s bubbly duet with Colbie Caillat, which should have girls swooning all summer long.

The ‘Top Gun’ star is making a new film glorifying American Billy Fiske as the hero of this country’s ‘finest hour’. But veterans say that, though a remarkable man, Fiske died without shooting down a single plane. Cole Moreton talks to those who knew him

Billy Fiske was a racing driver, a pilot, an Olympic gold medallist and an American - but one thing he did not do was win the Battle of Britain single-handed. Veterans and historians fear that will be the impression given, however, when Tom Cruise plays Fiske in a new film called The Few.

Billy Fiske was a racing driver, a pilot, an Olympic gold medallist and an American - but one thing he did not do was win the Battle of Britain single-handed. Veterans and historians fear that will be the impression given, however, when Tom Cruise plays Fiske in a new film called The Few.

"I’ve heard it is almost like he won the war all on his own," says Ben Clinch, who loaded the guns fired by the real Billy Fiske and his comrades in 601 Squadron during the summer of 1940. "I can’t see how they can make a film of Fiske’s life. It was quite short. He was unremarkable, in the context of the squadron. He was just another pilot as far as we were concerned."

Hollywood’s version of the Second World War has already shown Americans capturing the Enigma code machine in U571 (they didn’t) and leading The Great Escape from a German prisoner of war camp (also not true). Pearl Harbor even suggested that the RAF only thwarted the Luftwaffe in the summer of 1940 because US pilots popped across the Atlantic to help out. Now Mr Cruise looks set to expand on that with his own version of what Churchill called our "finest hour".

Fiske was a remarkable character who did fly in the Battle of Britain, but recorded no confirmed kills. "It is going to be a farce if we have the Yanks shooting down everything in sight," says Bill Bond of the Battle of Britain Historical Society. "The battle was four weeks old when Billy was shot down. He made several sorties but he didn’t shoot anything down, and his impact on the battle was negligible. We are concerned."

The Few is being made by Michael Mann, director of Top Gun, the jet-fighter movie that made Tom Cruise’s name. Currently in development, it will be based on the life of William Meade Lindsley Fiske III, son of a wealthy Chicago family, who became the youngest Winter Olympics contestant to win a gold medal, in the bobsleigh at the age of 16. Handsome, charming and addicted to speed, he married the former Countess of Warwick and raced at Le Mans. So far, so historical, and filmable. But alarm bells started ringing when Variety, the movie world’s magazine of choice, described the film’s historical content. "In 1940, expert German fighters had decimated the Royal Air Force to the point that there weren’t enough pilots left to fly the Spitfire planes sitting idly in hangars," it said. "Unable to rouse the US into action, a desperate Winston Churchill hatched a covert effort to recruit civilian American pilots to join the RAF. Risking prison sentences in the then-neutral US, a ragtag bunch of pilots answered the call." The magazine also looked forward to "ferocious dogfights between the overmatched American pilots and the German ace fliers".

This account prompted despairing laughter from Bill Bond last week. "It’s hilarious," he said. "Totally wrong. The whole bloody lot. They flew Hurricanes for a start." Spitfires have a more romantic image, however. "Recruited by Churchill? Crap. They wouldn’t have gone to prison either." And as for the idea of aircraft sitting idly by in hangars while the brave Americans took to the skies: "What a load of bloody rubbish. We did have a pilot shortage, but not to that extent."

Mr Bond has much more confidence in the accuracy of a forthcoming book by the author Alex Kershaw, whose proposal was the inspiration for The Few. The book is due to be published by Michael Joseph next year. Mr Kershaw also wrote The Bedford Boys, the basis for the film Saving Private Ryan.

There was no crack American squad of flyers, but at least nine US citizens did fly and fight during the Battle of Britain, according to the aviation historian Andy Saunders. "It would be an injustice to the memory of Billy Fiske were Hollywood to corrupt his story," said Mr Saunders in a recent edition of Aeroplane magazine. Although a gifted pilot, Fiske was frustrated by his own lack of combat action. His Hurricane caught fire in the air on 16 August 1940, but nobody knows whether this was because of enemy bullets or an accident. Soon after he landed, his airfield, RAF Tangmere, was attacked by Stuka bombers. Fiske died in hospital the next day from his burns.

Two other American pilots had been killed before him, but it was the dashing, well-connected Fiske who caught the public imagination - or was recognised as useful for propaganda purposes. Churchill sent a wreath to his airfield, and in July 1941 a plaque was unveiled by the Minister for Air at St Paul’s Cathedral. His gravestone at Boxgrove in Sussex was replaced and rededicated in 2002.

"There is no doubt the Few, as Churchill called them, were wonderful," said Ben Clinch, now chairman of the 601 Squadron Royal Auxiliary Air Force Old Comrades’ Association. "They gave their lives without thought. It’s a good job they were there."

But his memories of the time are very different to those told in heroic movies: 601 was nicknamed the Millionaire’s Squadron because most of its pilots moved in high social circles. "They were very aloof," said Mr Clinch.

When petrol rationing hit hard, one of the wealthy flyers bought a local garage outright, he said. "We used to get visits from theatrical types from the West End. The stars went to see the officers. The chorus line went to the non-commissioned officers. We got nothing."

Mr Clinch saw Billy Fiske’s Hurricane land for the last time but took cover as buildings around him exploded. He has a print of a painting on his wall that shows one version of Fiske’s last moments, but at 85 he is bemused by the attempts to immortalise this one of many pilots. "This resurrection is commercial, as far as I can see," he said. "But at my age I let sleeping dogs lie."

HOW UNCLE SAM REWROTE THE SCRIPT

Objective, Burma! (1945)

Errol Flynn’s paratroopers overcome the Japanese with barely a Brit in sight, although it was really they who won the battle. The press and public, some of whom had fought in Burma, were so outraged that the film had to be withdrawn.

The Great Escape (1963)

Steve McQueen played a leading part in a mass escape from a POW camp. In real life, 76 got out of Stalag Luft III, but only three made it alive; 50 were shot and 23 recaptured. No Americans among them.

Braveheart (1995)

Mel Gibson as a charming William Wallace - not the real man who wore the skin of an opposing general as his belt. Wallace fathers a son by the Princess of Wales who really gave birth seven years after his execution.

Titanic (1998)

First Officer William McMaster Murdoch is remembered as a hero in his Scottish home for saving passengers. He froze to death in the sea. The film shows him shooting passengers in a blind panic.

U-571 (2000)

Harvey Keitel and other plucky American seamen pull an Enigma code machine from a sinking German submarine and change the course of the war. Except that it was the crew of HMS Bulldog.

The Patriot (2000)

Gibson again as a pacifist provoked into joining the American War of Independence when sadistic Brits herd women and children into a church and set fire to it. Nothing like that happened.