Raiders of the Lost Ark: The Adaptation creators Chris Strompolos, Eric Zala & Jayson Lamb have send me the original news article from Variety that was published past Thursday.
This article is the one that premiered the excellent news that Hollywood producer Scott Rudin had purchased the life rights to Chris, Eric & Jayson their life story.

RUDIN RAIDS “RAIDERS” TRIBUTE TRIO FOR PIC:
VARIETY - THURSDAY FEBRUARY 26TH 2004

Scott Rudin has purchased the life rights of the trio of filmmakers who constructed the ultimate tribute movie, "Raiders of the Lost Ark: The Adaptation," to develop through his Paramount-based production shingle.

In a deal worth mid-six figures, Rudin obtained the rights from Chris Strompolos, Eric Zala and Jayson Lamb. While adolescents in Mississippi, the trio launched a shot-by-shot remake of "Raiders" in Zala's backyard while on summer vacation in 1982 and finished seven years later.

Strompolos, who starred as Indiana Jones, came up with idea when he was 10 and told his friend Zala, who was 11, about it as they rode the bus to school. Zala eventually storyboarded the 649 scenes in the film; Lamb, who was a fan of horror pics and Rick Baker special effects, shot on a VHS camcorder.

The three -- who would eventually spend somewhere between $5,000 and $8,000 -- combined ingenuity with Mississippi backwoods locales to re-create signature scenes from the 1981 blockbuster such as the rolling boulder, the live snakes and the truck sequences. A lack of coin, however, did force them to improvise, subbing a dog for a monkey, for example. After the film was completed, it remained largely unknown until it was discovered two years ago by filmmaker Eli Roth, who submitted it for a showing at the fourth annual Butt-Numb-a-Thon Festival organized by Harry Knowles in Austin, Texas, in December 2002.

That led to a letter of endorsement from director Steven Spielberg, the trio's story being pitched in Hollywood and a "Raiders of the Lost Backyard" feature in the current issue of Vanity Fair.

Many thanks to Chris Strompolos, Eric Zala & Jayson Lamb for sharing this with us.

The same visitor who previously showed us an online article about actor Amrish Puri has found an other one. This second The reluctant actor article he found on Puri is similar to the earlier one but goes into more depth at how Spielberg talked Puri into playing Mola Ram.

Go read this new The reluctant actor article about actor Amrish Puri.

Just read some really heartwarming Indyfan news at Ain't It Cool News! The life story of Chris Strompolos, Eric Zala & Jayson Lamb and the making of their "ultimate fanfilm" Raiders of the Lost Ark: The Adaptation will become a film on its own.

Harry Knowles from AICN reported today that Scott Rudin (Producer of The Addams Family, Wonder Boys, South Park: Bigger, Longer and Uncut, and School of Rock) has purchased the life rights to their story for reportedly mid-Six Figures. And if you have read (or will soon read) the story behind Raiders: The Adaptation in the current issue of Vanity Fair (March 2004 Hollywood Issue), and look at the films that Scott Rudin has produced so far, then you must see how great this film can become. Especially for those of us who grew up with the films of Spielberg and Lucas! Is this a cult classic in making?!

If you would like to know more about Chris Strompolos, Eric Zala & Jayson Lamb and their Raiders of the Lost Ark: The Adaptation film experience I strongly advice you to read Harry Knowles' RAIDERS' shot-for-shot teenage remake review from last year and his RAIDERS' shot for shot filmmakers' life to be MOVIE news article that came online today.

And a Big CONGRATULATIONS!! to Chris Strompolos, Eric Zala & Jayson Lamb from the complete TheRaider.net crew and contributors.

StarWars.com announced that an online retailer of exclusive Star Wars collectible merchandise is on its way soon, as beginning March 10, Lucasfilm opens the virtual doors of its very first online store at StarWarsShop.com.

This official online Star Wars store is on its way with a wide variety of Star Wars products, including new and rare exclusives not available anywhere else. But there's more!
TheForce.net had a chat with Paul Ens, director of Lucas Online, about the new online store. They asked him if they also plan to sell other LFL properties like Indiana Jones on StarWarsShop.com:

Paul Ens: "There is actually going to be one very-cool, never-before-offered Indiana Jones item on the store at launch. You'll have to visit on March 10 to check it out."

Other good news is that TheForce.net found out that this Star Wars store will ship internationally! Here's what Paul Ens revealed on that:

Paul Ens: "We're still putting the final touches on precise agreements, but the plan as of today is to be able to ship to these countries at launch: American Samoa, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bahamas, Belgium, Bermuda, Brazil, British Virgin Islands, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Costa Rica, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Jamaica, Japan, Korea, Malta, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Panama, Peru, Portugal, Singapore, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, United Kingdom, United States of America and Venezuela.
Again, the list is subject to minor changes before launch. There will also be occasional products that will have other shipping restrictions."

I bet every Indiana Jones fan is now looking forward very much to March 10, the day StarWarsShop.com will open its doors.

A regular visitor to TheRaider.net just showed me an article on the internet about actor Amrish Puri, better known as Mola Ram from Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. The article Man-To-Man: Evil Genius talks about Amrish Puri's very successful acting career and why he prefers to play a villain. Here's an except of the article:

His enactment of Mola Ram against Harrison Ford in the Steven Spielberg movie, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, is history now. His picture of the high priest with his horned headgear, surrounded by skulls, is imprinted in many minds. And to think that Puri almost didn't do this film instils curiosity in any film critic.

"After reading the script Spielberg had sent, I felt it was no different from any regular Hindi masala movie... it didn't offer much challenge. I wasn't also sure if I would be able to commit my time as I was already working simultaneously on 15 films then. It was Sir Richard Attenborough, in whose Gandhi I had played a role, who convinced me to do the film, saying that it was Spielberg's technique that made his films special."

Go read the Man-To-Man: Evil Genius article now. And did you know he's still a very popular actor today, in Bollywood?!

The official Indiana Jones site has just been updated with a new article: The Many Awards of Indiana Jones. The article takes a look back at the accolades garnered by the Indiana Jones trilogy. Here follows an except of the article:

Indiana Jones was born on a beach, the result of a creative discussion between two friends albeit two successful filmmakers. While George Lucas and Steven Spielberg set out to create a character that captured the spirit of the old adventure serials, their action-adventure stories ultimately captured the hearts of audiences around the world rendering the films blockbusters...

Go read the The Many Awards of Indiana Jones now! It's very interesting.

CNN.com has published an interesting article about medicine hunter Chris Kilham who is a sort of Indiana Jones of the plant world. Hired by companies that market herbal remedies for ailments ranging from the common cold to depression, Kilham has spent the past decade roaming remote areas of the globe in search of the next best botanical.

Read The Indiana Jones of the medicine world article.

Thanks to Shipwreck and Indy Benson for letting us know.

Received an email from the makers of Raiders of the Lost Ark: The Adaptation fan film today. Chris Strompolos, Eric Zala & Jayson Lamb have let me know that their Indiana Jones story has been covered in Vanity Fair's - March 2004 Hollywood Issue. There is a fantastic 9,000 word article by Jim Windolf in this issue and it has already hit the stands in some states.

If you have no idea what Raiders of the Lost Ark: The Adaptation is then check out this news message.

Thanks to Chris Strompolos, Eric Zala & Jayson Lamb for letting us know.