Solider. Detective. Vigilante. Cowboy. Pilot. Spy.
Over the course of his career, Charles Bronson sure played a lot of tough guys. But his special niche was the gunslinger with a heart of gold. In The Magnificent Seven, Bronson plays a half-Mexican, half-Irish outlaw who's part of a gang hired by a small Mexican village to fight the bandits terrorizing the town. While all of the guys in The Magnificent Seven display an exemplary Old West code of honor, it's Bronson who's the teddy bear. He befriends the town's children then takes a bullet while shielding them from danger. Aw.

And that's not the only movie in which Bronson's grizzled exterior gives way to the gentle soul within. In Death Hunt, he's a trapper who nurses an injured dog back to health. Double aw. Even for the notoriously violent Death Wish series, his character isn't a senseless murderer. He's a father and husband out to avenge crimes against his family. For the softer side of Bronson, tune in tonight for The Magnificent Seven: Saturday, April 5 at 8PM | 7C. (Click here for the movie's full schedule on AMC). For the tougher side of Bronson, take a look at our gallery spotlighting his more dastardly deeds.

Ask any guy "What's the greatest basketball film?" and he'll likely say Hoop Dreams or Hoosiers. Ask the same question with "football" instead and you might get Any Given Sunday, Jerry Maguire or Friday Night Lights. Keep it up but insert "soccer" and you might get Bend It Like Beckham. Push your luck with "hockey" and you'll just draw a blank. (Does anyone honestly think Slap Shot is great?) Now ask this same sportsfan to pick the best baseball movie. Suddenly, you'll get a long list.

There have been so many great films inspired by America's favorite pastime that you'd almost think that the American and National Leagues were in cahoots with the studios. Whether its major league (Cobb) or minor league (Bull Durham), the Negro League (The Jackie Robinson Story) or the Female Professional League (A League of Their Own), this sport has repeatedly delivered hits that have pleased audiences and critics in equal measure. Even little league has captured the mainstream's fancy with The Bad News Bears. Tonight March 24, AMC celebrates Bull Durham's 20th anniversary with an airing of the classic film at 8PM | 7C. For a primer on other winning baseball movies, check out amctv.com's gallery of the ten classic crowdpleasers.

Although one of the best reviewed movies of 2006, Letters from Iwo Jima received its only Academy Award for Sound Editing. But visually, the film is a marvel, too especially considering how many of the scenes are set in the island's tunnels. Director of Photography Tom Stern previously handled the camera for Clint Eastwood on Million Dollar Baby, Mystic River and Flags of Our Fathers.

In an interview with American Cinematographer, Stern talked about the techniques the crew employed to get their shots in the California desert, and how he and Eastwood first experimented with digital cameras before settling on traditional film stock. See the results for yourself.

At the height of his stand-up career, Steve Martin retired from the art form he'd spent years trying to perfect. In an interview with NPR, he explained why: "I really couldn't change the act. Nobody wanted to hear new material, they wanted to hear the same old material."  Martin qualified his departure: "It wasn't like I walked away and didn't know what I was going to do. I walked away and walked into movies because The Jerk had been a hit." (You can see that outrageous esthetic's evolution in our slideshow The Crazier Side of Steve Martin.)

But Martin's departure from the stage begs the question: If he walked away from stand-up because he knew his movies would be hits, will he walk away from the movies now that he's become a successful writer?

Martin writes not only jokes and screenplays, but now also books. He's moved beyond short stories and essays (Damn you New Yorker for publishing and encouraging him!) to plays and novels. He even has a children's book, The Alphabet from A to Y With Bonus Letter Z!  We like him on screen.

Check him out on February 2 at 8 p.m. | 7c with back-to-back showing of Father of the Bride and Father of the Bride II. For a full schedule of this double feature on AMC, take a look at the online schedule.

The holidays are upon us so whether you're a cold fish, a miserable S.O.B., or a hooker with a heart of gold, 'tis the season to experience the transformative power of love. (Ask the Grinch. Ask Scrooge. They'll tell you!) Here are ten movies to turn cynics into dreamers, ten romantic comedies that joyfully insist that sometimes a kiss really can change your life. What's not to love?

Check out our photo gallery of romantic comedies just in time for the holidays: Under the Mistletoe.

What does Santa look like? A jolly old fat man with a snow white beard? Sometimes, he looks like that. It's true. But sometimes he looks quite different. A whole range of actors from Edmund Gwenn (Miracle on 34th Street) to none other than Whoopi Goldberg (Call Me Claus) have taken on the role of Saint Nick. In our photo gallery recounting famous Santas in celluloid, we remind you just how varied Hollywood's interpretations of that guy from the North Pole have been. Sometimes, he's bearing gifts. Sometimes, he's packing a gun.

Click here to see the many faces of Santa.

In The Gold Rush (1925), Charlie Chaplin's The Little Tramp eats his boot to stave off starvation. In real life, the boot was made out of licorice and Chaplin, who was diabetic, had to be rushed off to the hospital after 60 takes.

For more movie food scene trivia, and to see all photos of memorable food scenes from our favorite movies, visit the photo gallery :

* Photos: Future of Classic Memorable Food Scenes

* Poll: Rank Classic Food Scenes

There are of course many other movies with memorable food moments. If there's a movie with a food scene you particularly love, please let us know in your comments.

The AMC Hollywood Icon of the month has been the legendary Jack Nicholson.  Just so you could chill with the best as July bids you adieu, I scoped out some classic Jack clips on YouTube for you.

Easy Rider:  You'll hear all about paranoia and UFOs in this six-minute clip.

Nicholson & Bob Dylan:  Remember when Jack gave Bob Dylan the Lifetime Achievement Award on the Grammys?  Here it is in all its strange, godly glory.

Fan Montage:  Clips and stills from tons of Jack movies with Sympathy for the Devil from Guns N' Roses playing in the background.  Pleased to meet you, I hope you guessed my name: Jack Nicholson!  This thing should win an award -- it's so nicely edited.