By Jessica Roy 5/16/12 7:10am

Apple in Your Eye

Mr. Sorkin (flickr.com/politicalpulse)

Aaron Sorkin is Officially Doing a Steve Jobs Biopic

One Steve Jobs biopic isn’t cool. You know what’s cool? TWO Steve Jobs biopics. At least according to Hollywood.

Though it’s been widely-rumored since late last year, a press release issued by Sony Pictures yesterday confirmed what is either your worst nightmare or dream come true, depending on how pearl-clutchy you are about the tech industry: Aaron Sorkin will be adapting Walter Isaacson’s bestselling biography of Steve Jobs for Sony Pictures. We’re positive it will be every bit as packed with heavy-handed dramatic irony and “so bad it’s good” euphoria as The Social Network is. Read More

By Nitasha Tiku 5/02/12 4:42pm

Sign of the Times

The usual suspect.

Kevin Spacey Is Producing a TV Show For E! About ‘Silicon Valley’s Digital Gold Rush’

Randi Zuckerberg isn’t the only enterprising producer trying to bring Startupland to the small screen. Over the weekend, Deadline Hollywood reported that Kevin Spacey will be executive producing a new drama on E! Entertainment Television called “Upstarts” about “Silicon Valley’s digital gold rush.” Michael De Luca, the Oscar-nominated executive producer behind The Social Network will also be executive producing the show. Considering that film was Patient Zero for startup fever, we expect a similar outbreak from the TV version. Read More

By Foster Kamer 10/25/11 3:00pm

The Tao of Steve

sorkin and jobs

Steve Jobs: The Perfect Aaron Sorkin Character For Anyone But Aaron Sorkin

Word broke today that Aaron Sorkin (The West Wing, A Few Good Men, The Social Network) is on the shortlist of those Sony is looking at to write the biopic of Steve Jobs. Surely, it could be like most of Sorkin’s screenplays often are a massive hit. To be kind, there’s just a hint of unfortunate awkwardness that could come into play with Aaron Sorkin at the helm. To be fair: Sorkin’s just not the right guy for this.  Read More

By Nitasha Tiku 9:26am

It's a Zuck Zuck Zuck Zuck World

Sympathy for the (Kinda) Blue-Blooded Devils: Should you feel bad for the Winklevoss Twins?

Larry Summers Was Onto the Winklevei the Moment He Saw Their Suits

Former Harvard University president Larry Summers gave the audience at Fortune‘s Brainstorm Tech conference the real back story on a familiar scene from The Social Network. In Aaron Sorkin’s version of events, Mr. Summers couldn’t be bothered with Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss’ attempt to halt Mark Zuckerberg’s world domination with Harvard’s code of conduct. But what Mr. Summers was really thinking may have been worse. “Rarely, have I encountered such swagger, and I tried to respond in kind,” he told the crowd, adding:

“One of the things you learn as a college president is that if an undergraduate is wearing a tie and jacket on Thursday afternoon at three o’clock, there are two possibilities. One is that they’re looking for a job and have an interview; the other is that they are an asshole. This was the latter case.”

Another reason to keep the start-up dress code “business shabby.”

By Adrianne Jeffries 7/19/11 8:59pm

Silicon Alley Redux

nytm illo

Fever Pitch! New Yorkers Go Starry-Eyed for Start-Ups

“I can’t tell you the whole idea.” The Internet entrepreneur on the other end of the phone sounded panicky. “It’s going to sound ludicrous and ambitious, more ludicrous and ambitious than most.”

The voice belonged to a 27-year-old Stanford law student—“just about the oldest you can be where I cannot remember not having a computer”—who was in New York last week to talk to people about his new concept for a website.

He gave a few vague descriptors that could apply to half the start-ups in New York.

“I definitely don’t want it in the newspaper,” he said. “I’m worried that even little sign posts toward what I want to build are dangerous.” Read More