tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-286901852009-11-10T17:18:54.998-08:00thoughts and images from the semi-fictional city of Los AngelesJoehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02536096683421557320noreply@blogger.comBlogger1069125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28690185.post-48648950456163260742009-11-02T12:58:00.000-08:002009-11-06T16:20:52.365-08:00

You know that feeling you used to get as a kid when the circus or the traveling carnival left town? All of the excitement and energy that had briefly transformed the normal into the surreal was suddenly gone, and all that remained was an empty field of memories. That’s how I felt leaving Vegas last night, after Fangoria’s 1st TRINITY OF TERRORS. I don’t mean to suggest that Vegas is suddenly

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02536096683421557320noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28690185.post-44198932537950039622009-10-27T16:02:00.000-07:002009-10-28T07:01:13.151-07:00

Muslims pilgrimage to Mecca. Jews to Jerusalem. Catholics to Rome. Entertainers go to Vegas. So said Bono at Friday night’s U2 concert in Sin City. This sums up U2’s musical journey better than I ever could. I remember in the mid-90s reading a biography of the band called Until the End of the World. It proposed that Achtung Baby, their 1991 release, was a concept album – charting a

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02536096683421557320noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28690185.post-8550104490748302692009-10-20T10:22:00.000-07:002009-10-21T07:41:23.359-07:00

Halloween is not just one night for me, it’s a season. As a kid, I associated Halloween with the dying fall, changing leaves, cool crisp air, the smell of chimney smoke and apple cider and pumpkin pie. It was a season of anticipation that began on October 1st and built until Halloween, a day of symbolic transformation that made every other day seem dull by comparison. Halloween marks the end

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02536096683421557320noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28690185.post-32962047575564023772009-10-14T08:39:00.001-07:002009-10-14T09:10:09.663-07:00

Thanks to everyone who came out for the screening of NIGHTMARES at Monsterfest on Saturday! It was great to see so many friends from M2 Pictures, New Dominion Pictures, Dr. Madblood, Scary Monsters Magazine and The House Between. I arrived early and chatted with Rob Floyd and Jim Blanton, founders and directors of Monsterfest, and Craig Eckrich, who provided “special security” (I won’t ask…).

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02536096683421557320noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28690185.post-48975834700557656952009-10-05T15:20:00.000-07:002009-10-05T19:04:01.454-07:00

Shriekfest kicked off the Halloween season in Los Angeles this past weekend with a lineup of 14 features and 26 short films – including the west coast premiere of NIGHTMARES IN RED WHITE AND BLUE. Attendees included filmmakers Mick Garris and Tom McLoughlin, both of whom are featured in the documentary, and Eileen Dietz – best known to horror fans as the face and voice of evil Regan (a.k.a.

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02536096683421557320noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28690185.post-85471643901858394092009-10-01T11:08:00.000-07:002009-10-01T11:14:19.814-07:00

Here are nine ways to catch NIGHTMARES IN RED WHITE AND BLUE before Halloween....October 4: Barcelona, SpainNIGHTMARES will play back-to-back with the original A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET (introduced by John Saxon!) as part of the Sitges Film Festival's Tribute to the 1980s. Fangoria editor (and NIGHTMARES interviewee) Tony Timpone will introduce the documentary at 10AM in the Cine Prado.October 4

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02536096683421557320noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28690185.post-89393487475934215242009-09-23T10:12:00.000-07:002009-09-23T10:15:56.298-07:00

"Chickens Everywhere" by L.A. poet Richard GarciaYou can't escape chickens. Chickens are all the rage. Alone in your car, you turn on the radio. It's The Chickens singing Glenn Miller's "In the Mood."Even in your sleep there's no escape. You dream of a woman. She comes toward you opening her bathrobe. Between her legs, a chicken peeks out.You are in the yard staring at your chicken. Your

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02536096683421557320noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28690185.post-82887467420149713132009-09-10T09:40:00.000-07:002009-09-13T07:52:21.816-07:00

I’m back from an overwhelming weekend on the coast of France, where Andrew Monument & I attended the European premiere of our documentary NIGHTMARES IN RED, WHITE AND BLUE at the Deauville Festival of American Cinema. My head is still spinning – probably from a combination of the glamour of the festival and jetlag from the 24-hour trip home. I have only just begun to mentally process the

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02536096683421557320noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28690185.post-46052603250767815592009-08-30T11:17:00.000-07:002009-08-30T15:05:59.956-07:00

The view from Mulholland yesterday afternoon, looking north:L.A. Times has a frequently-updated map of the fire here.

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02536096683421557320noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28690185.post-82001129465184977232009-08-26T16:05:00.001-07:002009-09-23T08:14:16.164-07:00

We are continuing to roll out Nightmares in Red, White and Blue at numerous festivals and conventions in the weeks leading up to Halloween. Here are the confirmed screenings so far:September 5 – Deauville American Film Festival in Deauville, FranceSeptember 16 – Athens International Film Festival in Athens, GreeceSeptember 19 – Bangpop! Comic and Pop Culture Convention in Bangor, MaineOctober 4

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02536096683421557320noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28690185.post-27860038602697087892009-08-26T09:27:00.000-07:002009-08-29T10:47:34.997-07:00

I’m always writing about outdoor destinations in and around L.A. Today, I thought I’d write about two of my favorite indoor destinations: the Iliad Bookshop and Eddie Brandt’s Saturday Matinee, both conveniently located in North Hollywood, just a few blocks away from Dark Delicacies (another favorite). Iliad reminds me of a bookstore I used to frequent in my hometown of Charlottesville,

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02536096683421557320noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28690185.post-37321913031234970832009-08-19T16:51:00.000-07:002009-08-19T17:11:19.272-07:00

Nightmares in Red, White and Blue has been accepted into two more festivals: Athens International Film Festival in Greece (September 16 - 27) and Sitges Film Festival in Barcelona (October 1 - 12). For the uninitiated -- Sitges is the #1 genre film festival in the world, as well as one of the most popular festivals in Europe. This year, Sitges will honor actor Malcolm McDowell as well as Ridley

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02536096683421557320noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28690185.post-75151398120762356402009-08-12T17:31:00.000-07:002009-08-12T17:49:03.660-07:00

Here are some photos from the Queen Mary, a distinguished ocean liner that was first launched in 1936, pressed into service during World War II, retired in 1967, and is now being touted as the world’s “most haunted ship.” I first learned about this Long Beach tourist attraction when it was featured years ago on an episode of Unsolved Mysteries. Since then, it has been the subject of countless

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02536096683421557320noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28690185.post-62026975444818174462009-08-07T12:55:00.001-07:002009-08-08T12:16:40.652-07:00

When Hollywood got its start as a filmmaking community, Southern California was still part of the Wild West. Upon arrival in 1914, silent film star William S. Hart reflected: “The very primitiveness of the whole life out there, the cowboys and the Indians, staggered me. I loved it. They had everything to make Western pictures. The West was right there!”For that very reason, Westerns were the

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02536096683421557320noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28690185.post-13617246712641015402009-08-06T07:57:00.000-07:002009-08-06T08:10:17.176-07:00

My documentary Nightmares in Red, White and Blue will make its festival debut tonight at the Rhode Island International Film Festival. The screening begins at 9:30pm at the Columbus Theatre Arts Center in Providence. There will also be an encore screening tomorrow at midnight at the nearby Cable Car Cinema. If you're in the area, by all means check it out!For Angelenos, the New Beverly offers

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02536096683421557320noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28690185.post-8217537022965519002009-08-05T11:20:00.000-07:002009-08-07T13:37:57.524-07:00

The following is an exchange between directors Peter Bogdanovich and Allan Dwan, from a 1970 interview.Bogdanovich: Do you believe films are a director's medium?Dwan: I think no individual ever makes a motion picture - it's a team. Nobody ever writes one: you can put words on paper, but that isn't what people see when they go to the theatre. they listen to a few of the words, but they see

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02536096683421557320noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28690185.post-82373407670860581212009-08-04T10:43:00.000-07:002009-08-04T10:56:16.215-07:00

Southern California is where people go to lose touch with reality. Interpret that however you want, but it’s been the case for more than a hundred years – at least since the publication of Helen Hunt Jackson’s novel Ramona (1884). This past weekend, we visited Rancho Camulos, one-time home of the pioneering del Valle family and real-world model for the Moreno estate in Jackson’s novel. Rancho

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02536096683421557320noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28690185.post-50536134816465734772009-08-04T10:36:00.000-07:002009-08-04T10:42:52.383-07:00

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02536096683421557320noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28690185.post-51124841893867947272009-08-04T10:35:00.002-07:002009-08-04T10:36:30.657-07:00

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02536096683421557320noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28690185.post-49284433067321014732009-08-04T10:35:00.001-07:002009-08-04T10:39:44.333-07:00

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02536096683421557320noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28690185.post-38616797481816274722009-08-04T10:32:00.000-07:002009-08-04T10:51:26.082-07:00

Photos taken in Palos Verdes, March 2008

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02536096683421557320noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28690185.post-85962187644188347922009-08-04T10:30:00.000-07:002009-08-04T10:31:48.149-07:00

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02536096683421557320noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28690185.post-68626846740652568032009-08-01T00:01:00.000-07:002009-08-01T10:34:34.115-07:00

On September 15, viewers will finally be able to watch Don Coscarelli’s entire PHANTASM series on DVD. For years the rights to PHANTASM II have been in limbo, but at long last Universal has resolved the problem and completed the quadrilogy. This is significant because, as a whole, Coscarelli’s series is one of the most remarkable achievements in the history of cinema fantastique. Since the

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02536096683421557320noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28690185.post-49390384666401873702009-07-19T15:16:00.000-07:002009-07-21T07:37:45.407-07:00

I admit that “Little Gidding” – the poem that Eliot regarded as his most accomplished work, and the work that the poet ultimately rested on – has always been a mystery to me. I attended the T.S. Eliot Summer School with the hope that I would be able to gain a deeper understanding of the Four Quartets, and particularly of “Little Gidding.” Appropriately, this poem opened and closed the week. We

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02536096683421557320noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28690185.post-47476495615739082682009-07-19T08:09:00.001-07:002009-07-19T08:10:19.872-07:00

If you came this way,Taking any route, starting from anywhere,At any time or at any season,It would always be the same:

Joehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02536096683421557320noreply@blogger.com0