Friday, July 26, 2013

Atlas Shrugged Newsletter: 07.25.2013; The Hunt for Dagny; John A. at the WSOP Part 2

Atlas Shrugged Newsletter: July 25th, 2013

“Capitalism has been called a system of greed—yet it is the system that raised the standard of living of its poorest citizens to heights no collectivist system has ever begun to equal, and no tribal gang can conceive of.” - Ayn Rand
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The Hunt for Dagny

Dagny has crash landed somewhere in the Rockies. Follow Hank Rearden, Francisco d'Anconia, and James Taggart online as they deal with the repercussions of Dagny's disappearance.

Follow Hank

Follow Frisco

Follow Taggart

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John Aglialoro's Run at the 2013 World Series of Poker - Part II

OK, where were we? That's right, Atlas Shrugged Producer John Aglialoro was at the World Series of Poker and... he was KILLING IT.
Until... the Atlas Shrugged Production team showed up.

Read Part II of John's Run at the 2013 WSOP.

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When they're gone, they're gone

This is it. The Official Atlas Shrugged Part II Cast & Crew caps willnever be manufactured again. Own a piece of Atlas Shrugged History. Act fast and get 15% off. SUPPLIES ARE LIMITED.

Buy the Official Atlas Shrugged Part II Cap Now.

Thursday, July 25, 2013

John Aglialoro's Run at the 2013 World Series of Poker - Part II

Continued from: John Aglialoro's Run at the 2013 World Series of Poker - Part I
- - - -
OK, where were we? That's right, Atlas Shrugged Producer John Aglialoro was at the World Series of Poker and... he was KILLING IT.

Until... the Atlas Shrugged Production team showed up.

- - - -

On my way out, I decided to text John and reaffirm my earlier sentiment. I'm pretty sure he got it...

We met for breakfast the next morning. John had a bounce in his step that suggested he was in a particularly good mood.

"I doubled up."

"Incredible! That's fantastic!"

"I'm not going."

"Right. We'll record the reading."

"I mean... I'm not going back to the tournament."

The night before, right after I left, John managed to hit a big hand and double-up. Considering John's mid-stacked position, this was a BIG deal.

Today, tournament play was to resume at 12:00 PM. The script reading however, was to begin at 11:00 AM.

"I'm not missing the reading. Maybe later you can go down and get a few pics of my chip stack as it quickly dwindles down. I'm sure the fans will get a real kick out of that."

"Sure John."

On the way to the elevator John continued to explain that moments like this don't come around too often, that we have a responsibility to Ayn Rand, that we have a message to get out, and that there would be other tournaments.

We all knew this was the end of the tournament for John. Even if the reading only took a few hours, there would be no way for his stack to hold up against the antes and blinds. 

John's success as a businessman is no secret. He's responsible for building, growing and nurturing the success of many companies and currently runs Cybex, one of the largest exercise equipment manufacturers in the world.

What most don't know however is that one of John's biggest passions in life is poker. Making three WSOP final tables and cashing out a total of 16 times suggests that poker may even be what John is most passionate about.

Unless of course... we're talking about the Atlas Shrugged Movies.

And, John was not going to miss the Atlas Shrugged Part 3 script reading for anything.

11:00 AM arrived and so did the Atlas Productions crew - Screenwriters Duncan Scott and Brian O'Toole, Associate Producers Joan Carter and Scott DeSapio (Me), Consultants David Kelley and Barbara Brandon, six very enthusiastic actors, and Producers Harmon Kaslow and... John Aglialoro.

 
The actors were fantastic and the reading inspired. From Dagny in the Gulch to "This is John Galt speaking..." to the demise of the Harmonizer, five hours seemed to come and go in an instant. The Atlas Shrugged Part III script reading was over.

Applause filled the room and smiles abound.

John stood up. 

"Thank you all. That was great. You were fantastic. We have a really great movie here. Ayn would be proud." 

John glanced proudly about the room.

"This is the one."

The room's chatter volume began to rise.

"Now... you'll have to excuse me."

John was gone.

And, so was his stack.

By the time John got to the Rio, his stack had taken a serious beating. The situation was bleak. John sat and gave the table a smile.

"What'd you guys do with all my chips?"

With a quick read of the table, John picked his target and masterfully went to work. John waited patiently for all the right moments, setting up his mark for the kill - all the while appearing to trade jabs. And then...

Pocket Kings.

Kings are STRONG. How strong? Against non pocket pairs, kings are around an 80% favorite on average.

John was on the Button with his mark on the Big Blind. The table folded into John. John raised. The Small Blind got out of the way. The mark, having recently lost a hand to John, was tilting and thought John was making a move - exactly what John wanted him to think.

John raised. The mark re-raised. John went all-in. The mark called.

Ace-nothing. John had him.

Until...  the Atlas Shrugged Part 3 Production team showed up for a script reading.

The flop came and the mark hit.

At breakfast the next morning, John was all smiles. Mission accomplished. We had a great script reading and we were on track to make our production schedule.

As well as being a great businessman, John is one of the greatest poker players in the world. He is also one of the greatest advocates in the world of Ayn Rand's ideas, of reason, of Capitalism, and, of honor and integrity. To which his heart and mind truly belong, only John knows. One thing is for certain however, everything John does, he does with extreme passion and intensity.

Ayn Rand wrote about heroes. Heroes that some suggest are bigger than life and couldn't possibly exist.

I, disagree.

- - -

This post originally appeared at Galt's Gulch Online.

Friday, July 19, 2013

Atlas Shrugged Newsletter: 07.18.2013; Atlas Shrugged 3 Script Pages Released; John A. at the WSOP

Atlas Shrugged Newsletter: July 18th, 2013

“Why is it moral to serve the happiness of others, but not your own? If enjoyment is a value, why is it moral when experienced by others, but immoral when experienced by you?” - Ayn Rand
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John Aglialoro's Run at the 2013 World Series of Poker - Part I

In 2004, Atlas Shrugged Producer John Aglialoro, won the United States Poker Championship. This past week, he was entered in the 2013 World Series of Poker.
And, he was KILLING IT.
Until... his pocket-Kings met Ace-nothing.
Or should I say... until the Atlas Shrugged Part 3 Production team showed up for a script reading.

Read more about John's Run at the WSOP.

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GALT'S GULCH PRODUCERS ONLY: ASP3 Script Pages Released

We wish you could have been there. Gulch Producers, we are proud to present to you three (unfinished) pages from the Atlas Shrugged Part 3 script...

SPOILER ALERT: SCRIPT POINTS MENTIONED BELOW. DO NOT CONTINUE IF YOU HAVE NOT READ THE BOOK.

Dagny has just returned from the Gulch. Hank, having just ended his search in the Rockies, has all but given up hope...

Read what happens next at Galt's Gulch Online.

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LAST CALL: Galt's Gulch Summer T-Shirt Sale Ends Soon

Act fast. The Galt's Gulch Summer T-Shirt Sale won't last forever. For a limited time, take 50% off select Galt's Gulch t-shirts.
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Thursday, July 18, 2013

John Aglialoro's Run at the 2013 World Series of Poker - Part I

In 2004, Atlas Shrugged Producer John Aglialoro, won the United States Poker Championship. This past week, he was entered in the 2013 World Series of Poker.

And, he was KILLING IT.

Until... his pocket-Kings met Ace-nothing.

Or should I say... until the Atlas Shrugged Part III Production team showed up for a script reading.

Yep. We, the ASP3 Production team, met for a script reading and, during the course, managed to ruin John's chances of going all the way. How'd we do that exactly?

A couple of weeks ago, we scheduled a script reading for the second draft of Part III. The meeting was to be held in Vegas on Thursday, July 11th at 11:00 AM. Everyone confirmed and Duncan Scott, the screenwriter for Part III, even went so far as to schedule six actors to travel to Vegas to perform the reading.

It was going to be epic.

All systems go, on July 10th, I packed my bags and headed to the airport.



After landing at around 7PM on Wednesday, I started to make my way to the Wynn when I got a call from Producer Harmon Kaslow to meet him and fellow Associate Producer Joan Carter for dinner.

"Where's John?" I thought. I remembered Harmon mentioning something about John playing poker but I just brushed it off as inconsequential.

Barely sitting down for dinner, the topic quickly turned to "John's still in. What are we going to do? We have a reading tomorrow!"

You see, John was not supposed to "still be in", or so we thought. This was the World Series of Poker. With a $10,000 buy-in, only the best poker players in the World were playing. It was day 3 - all the riff-raff should have been long gone by now.

We all seemed to forget however, that John... is one of the best poker players in the world.

Oh boy.

It was getting late but I didn't want to miss an opportunity to maybe get some pics of John playing. I decided to head on over to the RIO.


The first thing that hit me was that the poker rooms were HUGE. How on Earth was I going to find John!?



It took a minute, or fifteen, but I found him (look for the red arrow in the above pic).

John eventually saw me hovering on the outskirts. He popped up, came over with a smile and, right on cue as if he were continuing the dinner conversation...

"I'm still in. We have a reading tomorrow!"

Apparently John too forgot that he was one of the best poker players in the world.

"Yes, you're still in and you need to stay in. We'll record the reading. You can't dump."

"Yeah, yeah. We'll see."

"How's your stack?"

"Mid."

"We'll record the reading."

It was now after 1AM and another hand was being dealt. John swiftly moved back to his table.


END PART I. READ PART II.

- - -

This post originally appeared at Galt's Gulch Online.

Wednesday, July 10, 2013

Atlas Shrugged Newsletter: 07.10.13; ASP3 Script Reading

Atlas Shrugged Newsletter: July 10th, 2013

“Any man who’s afraid of hiring the best ability he can find, is a cheat who’s in a business where he doesn’t belong.” - Ayn Rand
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ASP3 Script Reading Tomorrow

This Thursday, July 11th, the Atlas Shrugged Part 3 Production team will be meeting to do a table read of Duncan Scott's second draft of the Atlas Shrugged Part III script.
Wish you could be there?
Follow Atlas Productions as we post behind-the-scenes pics and vids throughout the day on our NEW Facebook and Twitter channels as well as Galt's Gulch Online.

Like our NEW Facebook page now.

Follow our NEW Twitter account now.

Join us in the Gulch now.

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The Galt's Gulch Summer T-Shirt Sale has Arrived.

If you've been waiting for the perfect time to buy your Official Atlas Shrugged T-Shirt, this is it. For a limited time, take 50% off select Galt's Gulch t-shirts.
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PRODUCERS ONLY: Ayn Rand's House by Frank Lloyd Wright

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In case you missed it last week...
Inspirational in the creation of Ayn Rand's Fountainhead hero Howard Roark, Frank Lloyd Wright is widely considered the greatest American architect of all time.
In 1946, Rand commissioned Wright to design a home for her - that home would never be built.

Read Rand's letter to Wright and see the house now.

Wednesday, July 3, 2013

Atlas Shrugged Newsletter: 07.03.13; Ayn Rand's House

Atlas Shrugged Newsletter: July 3rd, 2013

“America’s founding Ideal was the principle of individual rights. Nothing more - and nothing less.”
- Ayn Rand
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An Independence Day Message from Producer John Aglialoro

"Our Republic is worth fighting for."
Come to Galt's Gulch Online to read a special message from Atlas Shrugged Producer John Aglialoro and tell him what you think about what's going on in the country today.

Write John Aglialoro an Independence Day Message now.

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FOR GULCH PRODUCER'S EYES ONLY: Ayn Rand's House Designed by Frank Lloyd Wright

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Recognized by the American Institute of Architects as "the greatest American architect of all time", Frank Lloyd Wright served as inspiration in the creation of character Howard Roark in Ayn Rand's The Fountainhead.
In 1946, 3 years after the Fountainhead was published, Rand commissioned Wright to design a home for her. For a variety of reasons, that home would never be built.
A limited number of prints of Wright's rendering of the house were made available however. One of those prints hangs today in Atlas Shrugged Producer John Aglialoro's office - along with a letter from Ayn Rand to Frank Lloyd Wright praising the house.

Read Ayn Rand's letter to Frank Lloyd Wright and see the house now.

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This massive 40" x 70" towel is just as well suited for the shower as it is for the beach and boasts the same Official Atlas Shrugged “Who Is John Galt?” you’ve come to recognize and rally around.
Who says objectivists don't know how to party?

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