Archive for December 2009

 

CINEFAMILY Q&A ARCHIVE #4: ANDY KAUFMAN tribute night

Wednesday, December 30th, 2009

Cinefamily Q&A Archive #4: “Dear Andy Kaufman, I Hate Your Guts!” tribute night, Bob Zmuda & Lynne Margulies, Dec. 3rd, 2009

Our Andy Kaufman tribute night was a great avenue to show the audience recently unearthed Kaufman clips that had never been seen by any audience before, EVER! Lynne Marguiles (author of the new book “Dear Andy Kaufman, I Hate Your Guts!”, and Kaufman’s former girlfriend) and Bob Zmuda (Kaufman’s closest friend and comedy collaborator) were on-hand to reminisce about the late, great Kaufman, as well as give some background on his ingenious brand of comedy pranks, and his love of professional wrestling.

Bob Zmuda & Lynne Margulies (1 of 3)

Bob Zmuda & Lynne Margulies (2 of 3)

Bob Zmuda & Lynne Margulies (3 of 3)

- bret

CINEFAMILY Q&A ARCHIVE #3: A TRIBUTE TO MAURICE SENDAK

Monday, December 28th, 2009

Q&A with director Lance Bangs, Sept. 30th, 2009

Right before the theatrical release of “Where The Wild Things Are”, The Cinefamily hosted a fantastic tribute night to Wild Things author Maurice Sendak, which climaxed with the L.A. premiere of a brand-new documentary co-directed by Spike Jonze and Lance Bangs, called Tell Them Anything You Want: A Portrait of Maurice Sendak.

After the screening, Lance was kind enough to stick around and give the audience more background on the doc.

- bret

BONNIE ‘PRINCE’ BILLY’S “Ladies Night” in the L.A. Weekly!

Tuesday, December 22nd, 2009

Our “Ladies Night” double feature (curated by Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy aka Will Oldham) just got a big mention from Randall Roberts on the L.A. Weekly blog!

- bret

COMEDY DEATH-RAY ARCHIVE #1: PAUL F. TOMPKINS

Monday, December 21st, 2009

Sept. 6, 2009 – Paul F. Tompkins introduces Pee Wee’s Big Adventure

Comedy Death-Ray (held Tuesdays at the UCB Theater) is famous for offering world-class comics in an intimate and revealing setting. Host Scott Aukerman also comes to the Cinefamily every first Sunday of the month, for film screenings chosen by some of the same comics that grace the Comedy Death-Ray stage.

Back on Sept. 6, Scott brought out comedian Paul F. Tompkins (“Mr. Show”, VH1’s “Best Week Ever”) for a 35mm screening of Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure. Here’s footage from Paul’s introduction to the film…

- bret

JERRY BECK’S CARTOON XMAS in the L.A. Weekly!

Thursday, December 17th, 2009

Jerry Beck’s upcoming “Cartoon Christmas Chaos!” show (on Tuesday, Dec. 22) just got picked by David Cotner of the L.A. Weekly as one of their event picks of the week!.

CINEFAMILY Q&A ARCHIVE #2: Don Herztfeldt

Tuesday, December 15th, 2009

Cinefamily Q&A Archive #2: animator Don Hertzfeldt, Nov. 30th, 2008

When indie animator Don Hertzfeld came to the Cinefamily last year while on tour with his latest short “I Am So Proud Of You”, we knew the event would be big — but we had no idea that it’d be one of the biggest events we’ve ever hosted!

Hertzfeld sold out three successive shows in one evening, a feat we’ve yet to match. Hertzfeld’s fans were so passionate that we were taken totally by surprise. Lucikly we managed to capture the Q&A session from the second show, moderated by Cinemad publisher/Sundance film programmer/longtime Cinefamily friend Mike Plante.

NOTE: We apologize for the dim picture quality on these clips — the Q&A session was shot under low-light conditions, and we’ve enhanced the image as much as possible before it got to the completely-washed-out point.

Don Hertzfeld Q&A (1 of 2)

Don Hertzfeld Q&A (2 of 2)

- bret

STEVE YOUNG & I SEE HAWKS IN L.A. tomorrow night!

Friday, December 11th, 2009

Both outlaw country legend Steve Young and local twangers I See Hawks In L.A. will be performing live tomorrow night (Saturday, Dec. 12th), as part of our Cinefamily Country Christmas Party night, in addition to our encore screening of “Heartworn Highways”, the classic ’70s country music documentary.

Here’s some clips of the music to come tomorrow night:

Steve Young – “Alabama Highway” (outtake from Heartworn Highways)

Steve Young – “The Ballad of William Sycamore”

I see Hawks In L.A. – live on BBC Radio Ulster)

I see Hawks In L.A. – Wonder Valley

“Heartworn Highways” on DVD
I See Hawks In L.A. on Amazon MP3 Store

- bret

NEIL HAMBURGER on FRANK SINATRA, JR!

Thursday, December 10th, 2009

Neil Hamburger will be here at The Cinefamily on January 10th to present a loving tribute to one of his all-time favorite underwhelming performers, Frank Sinatra, Jr.! Hamburger sez:

Frank Jr. has an intense stage presence unlike any I have ever encountered. Like his father, there is a lifetime of regret, disappointment, and longing in every note that comes out of his mouth — but with a career shattered by unjustified critical malevolence and public indifference, Frank Jr.’s experiences are drawn from a completely different well. To hell with today’s slovenly singer-songwriter scam-artists! If you’re looking for an amazingly gifted vocalist who puts every ounce of his experience into every word he sings, Sinatra Jr. is your man.

Just caught wind of an excellent short WFMU blog article from a few days ago, detailing the sordid story of Frank Jr.’s notorious 1963 kidnapping hellride — read it ‘n snicker!

As well, here’s a few YouTube nuggets to tide you over until January 10th: Frank Jr. performing on “Letterman” (alongside Was [Not Was])…

…and Frank Jr. on the legendary “Once Upon A Tour” syndicated TV special (starring the irrepressible Solo paper cup empire madam Dora Hall)!

Buy tickets to Neil Hamburger’s Jan. 10th tribute to Frank Jr. at The Cinefamily!
Neil Hamburger on Amazon.com

- bret