CES 2014 live: Michael Bay ‘embarrassed’ by meltdown on stage [Video]
LATEST: More fireworks at CES 2014 -- T-Mobile’s chief executive gets kicked out of rival AT&T’s event.
LAS VEGAS -- Director Michael Bay stopped short of offering an apology for storming off the stage at Samsung’s news conference.
In a blog post on the director’s website, Bay said: “Wow! I just embarrassed myself at CES.”
Bay was blindsided by a malfunctioning teleprompter Monday afternoon while appearing on stage at Samsung’s news conference to help tout its new 105-inch curved UHD (see video above).
Unable to ad lib his way through the appearance, the director became clearly agitated before fleeing in front of hundreds of reporters, leaving Samsung Executive Vice President Joe Stinziano alone on stage.
CES 2014: Follow our full coverage of the Consumer Electronics Show
“I rarely lend my name to any products, but this one is just stellar,” Bay said. “I got too excited to talk, that I skipped over the Exec VP’s intro line and then the teleprompter got lost. Then the prompter went up and down -- then I walked off. I guess live shows aren’t my thing.”
He added that he was doing a “special curved screen experience with Samsung and “Transformers 4” footage that will travel the world.
We’ve reached out to Samsung for comment but haven’t heard back yet.
Bay’s meltdown, which became the most talked-about moment yet at the consumer electronics show, was just the latest social media headache for Samsung.
On Sunday night, a Times reporter tweeted a photo from a Samsung reception that showed the company’s rain machine misspelling the word “experience” (the falling water instead spelled “experiece”).
The image was retweeted nearly 400 times by Monday afternoon, with people making cracks about the missing N. “LEAVE SAMSUG ALOE,” one person tweeted.
Other things generating talk at CES 2014:
Dozens of companies were pitching their newest, coolest and nerdiest tech wares for the media during press day. See our latest real-time updates at the bottom of this post.
Samsung has been everywhere at CES 2014, hosting receptions, a news conference and private dinners to tout its latest products. Besides Bay, also getting buzz for Samsung was its 105-inch curved ultra-high-def television and it’s 85-inch bendable TV, which goes from flat to curved with the press of a button.
Samsung will begin selling curved UHD TVs in spring.
Another big gadget announcement was the Pebble Steel, the second edition of the popular smartwatch. The device features a smaller build and nicer material. It uses a stainless-steel watch face and offers the choice of either a steel or leather band. The new Pebble Steel is available now for $249 -- $100 more than its predecessor -- and will begin shipping Jan. 28.
Earlier in the day, Mozilla and Panasonic announced a partnership to develop smart TVs that use Firefox OS. Smart TVs are integrated with the Internet, bringing video on demand, instant messaging and more to the TV screen. Now, the software behind the Firefox Web browser will be put on Panasonic’s Web-connected TVs.
Vizio on Monday morning officially announced the specs of its 120-inch Ultra HD TV. The Reference Series Ultra HD LED Smart TV is more than 6 feet high, nearly 9 feet wide and weighs more than 100 pounds. And LG confirmed plans for its curved smartphone.
The giant consumer electronics show opens Tuesday, when 150,000 industry attendees are expected.
A team of Los Angeles Times reporters is at the scene to bring you all the happenings live.
