Ripped From the Newsstand!

Time Inc. Studios, together with management-production company the Collective and XYZ Films, will produce features and documentaries based on articles published in Time Inc. publications such as Time, Sports Illustrated, Fortune, and Life.

—VARIETY.COM

This is, of course, is great news for humble scribes made even more so by the conventional wisdom that ink-on-dead-trees publishing is in extremis. Sure, some of the film deals will come through archived historical content, but new stories are expected to serve as fodder, too.

We looked at the current issues of some of Time Inc.'s best-selling magazines and tried to picture how their content could be adapted for the big screen. Here are our suggestions for how the company could turn its current cover stories into blockbuster films.

1. Sports Illustrated, August 4, 2008
   Cover story: "NFL Training Camp 2008"

   Starring: John Krasinski as Eli Manning, Mekhi Phifer as Jason Taylor, Kevin Costner as Brett Favre, and Russell Crowe as Jeremy Shockey

   From the people who brought you NFL Training Camp 2007 and NFL Training Camp 2006 comes the true story of four men, divided by the color of their jerseys, united by being really, really, really good at football.




2. Time, July 31, 2008
   Cover Story: "Can Paulson Save The Economy?"

   Starring: Nicholas Cage as Henry Paulson

   In a world where subprime debt rules, one man alone has a robust China policy and an unlimited line of credit from the U.S. Treasury. This summer, Nicholas Cage is ... PAULSON.




3. Fortune, September 2008
   Cover Story: "Listen Up!"

   Starring: Katherine Heigl as Meredith Whitney

   Based on the heartwarming true story of Meredith Whitney, an average girl with a not-so-average distrust for investment banks and the agencies that rate them. Together, they'll discover that her apocalyptic vision for the U.S. economy might be just what they needed all along.




4. People, August 18, 2008
   Cover Story: "Double The Joy"

   Starring: Brad Pitt as himself, Angelina Jolie as herself.

   For one young couple, creating the world's first single-family bobsled team was more than a dream.




5. Coastal Living, July-August, 2008
   Cover Story: "Five Beach Cottages You'll Love"

   Voiced By: Angela Lansbury, Hank Azaria, Miley Cyrus, Kelsey Grammar, and Chris Rock.

   Dreamworks brings you the extraordinary off-season adventures of five ordinary beach cottages.

by Liz Gunnison