Proudly Resents: The cult movie podcast

I went to Horrible Movie Night with a couple of microphones to watch “Prison of the Dead” and get some real time reactions. Comedians Dave Stone, Lisa Best and HMN co-producer Aaron Baker weigh in on this junk fest of a film. Listen to a different format for the show. Let me know what you think!   ABout the film from IMDB: Kristof, an eccentric rich kid, tricks his high school friends into getting back together for a reunion of sorts, under the pretense of a funeral. The group of twenty-somethings is forced to spend the night in an old abandoned witches’ prison. During a Ouija Board séance, the schoolmates accidentally unearth three dead executioners from their graves. A little confused, and quite a bit angry, the Crypt Keepers initiate a killing spree that will only end when everyone is dead. Fortunately, the schoolmates all wore black. Too bad it’s for their own funerals… Written by ImortalKandy <imortalkandy@aol.com> Review: Holy sh*t?!?!?!? did I just pay 4 bucks to see this!? Author: death280 from PA 24 July 2001 I will start off by saying this is indeed the worst film ever made.The story if you can call it that,is some guy that looks like he is straight off of beverly hills 90210 pretends he is dead and sets up a fake funeral at a castle.His friends show up and he gets up out of the coffin laughing.they get p***ed,and he tells them they can win a million bucks.All they have to do is find the “talon key”.So they all agree and hold a seance.One girl gets possesed by a cartoon wavy thingy and starts speaking latin.As it turns out the castle was an old witches prison and the cartoon thing was one of there spirits.This somehow wakes up three hunch back/executioners and they rise from there graves.and they repeat the scene of them getting out of the ground about 15 times.From then on everyone wanders around and a cartoon thing goes into their mouth and they just stand still and say “Sutra,Sutra,Sutra” then the 3 hunch backs come and the victim says “ah the executioners” then you see the weapons raise and a squirt of blood goes on the person.Then later when you see the bodies the wounds and blood have magically vanished!It doesnt remotely make sense however it is not as bad as bloodstorm.anywho the people just all get killed without resisting at all.It is the worst movie ever made avoid it at all cost.For anyone who has seen it I recomend flushing your eyes out with acid.And then there is the great quote “I never had sex with a zombie before,is this gonna hurt?”In closing I would like to say if I made this movie I would most likely put a bullet in my head.    

Alan Sacks co-created “Welcome Back, Kotter.” Alan Sacks gave John Travolta his big break. He produced films for the Disney Channel and the Jonas Brother. Most Recently, Alan Sacks managed the kid rock phenom ” .” But for me, he’s best known for the Ray Sharkey LA Punk Rock art house flick, duBeat-e-o. On the podcast, Alan Sacks goes into great detail about his experience in the punk scene and what brought him there. I talked to Alan Sacks and I brought up that I thought he was the manager of the kid heavy metal band, “Unlocking the Truth.” Alan immediately set me straight and let me know that he was let go. Alan’s options are his own. I know nothing of this situation. I invite the parents of the kids or the management to rebut what Alan said. But again, it’s his opinion. Not mine or the show’s. Anyhoo – We started talking about other careers that Alan Sacks launched, like John Travolta. It’s nice to hear that he was superstar from day one. Then I mined him for whatever “Welcome Back, Kotter” stories I could get from him. My big question was – How does a guy go from running the biggest show on TV to hanging out in punk clubs? Alan Sacks had an interesting journey. He’s still on it. Alan Sacks just finished writing his memoirs, which includes things that were so awful he wouldn’t repeat it. duBeat-e-o sounds like a great moment in your life when you get to make what you want and how you want it. I work as a TV talk show producer so I have to follow rules of professionalism and standards and format and all that. It’s hard to break out of that for the podcast. But would this podcast even be listenable if I was all over the place? Or even more than I am now… It’s an interesting situation. How self-indulgent can you be? Very, I guess. But duBeat-e-o would not be worth talking about if Alan Sacks had a full budget and a straight narrative. We would not be searching for copies of it at Vidiots in Santa Monica. What is something that you’ve done that’s just for you? How did it turn out? Share on our FB page or Twitter using #myduBeateo. I’ll share it on an upcoming show. What is it about the film that is so appealing? A programming note – We had to use the phone after Skype decided not to work. So the sound quality is not best on either end. A great interview though. I’m working on it. It’s only be 4 years, I’ll get it. Plus -I removed the clip of the movie. Again, all of Alan Sack’s opinions are Alan Sack’s. Rough transcript of the interview: Welcome to proudly presents I’m obsessed with cold found good bad movies obscure films. It’s just that I just love it. So the movie this week we’re talking about is due Dubeat-e-o. So this movie the Dubeat-e-o would speak to the director of the movie does a great interview with them. You’d be surprised who made it and his journey and who he is and this is a fascinating story. I need you is the first three minutes and I think it gives you an idea of what the film is like at Prather’s and Stockholm’s slash Allen Sachs is my interview with Alan Sachs’s director BDubeat-e-o. How are you. OK how are you doing that. Are you still working on you’re on tour with unlocking truth. No I’m not. Actually there’s a movie that’s playing right now that actually happens to life first at the Lemley in Santa Monica. It’s a movie about the band.And me I’m some featured in the movie. You’re also producing the movie. But as it turned out the band’s parents didn’t think I was doing enough for them.I made them probably a million dollars in the first year. I know the Sony deal is huge right. And so the bands parents thought they could do better without me. So they graciously released me from my contract with nobody even called me. It was really very sad.

Alan Sacks co-created “Welcome Back, Kotter.” Alan Sacks gave John Travolta his big break. He produced films for the Disney Channel and the Jonas Brother. Most Recently, Alan Sacks managed the kid rock phenom ” .” But for me, he’s best known for the Ray Sharkey LA Punk Rock art house flick, duBeat-e-o. On the podcast, Alan Sacks goes into great detail about his experience in the punk scene and what brought him there. I talked to Alan Sacks and I brought up that I thought he was the manager of the kid heavy metal band, “Unlocking the Truth.” Alan immediately set me straight and let me know that he was let go. Alan’s options are his own. I know nothing of this situation. I invite the parents of the kids or the management to rebut what Alan said. But again, it’s his opinion. Not mine or the show’s. Anyhoo – We started talking about other careers that Alan Sacks launched, like John Travolta. It’s nice to hear that he was superstar from day one. Then I mined him for whatever “Welcome Back, Kotter” stories I could get from him. My big question was – How does a guy go from running the biggest show on TV to hanging out in punk clubs? Alan Sacks had an interesting journey. He’s still on it. Alan Sacks just finished writing his memoirs, which includes things that were so awful he wouldn’t repeat it. duBeat-e-o sounds like a great moment in your life when you get to make what you want and how you want it. I work as a TV talk show producer so I have to follow rules of professionalism and standards and format and all that. It’s hard to break out of that for the podcast. But would this podcast even be listenable if I was all over the place? Or even more than I am now… It’s an interesting situation. How self-indulgent can you be? Very, I guess. But duBeat-e-o would not be worth talking about if Alan Sacks had a full budget and a straight narrative. We would not be searching for copies of it at Vidiots in Santa Monica. What is something that you’ve done that’s just for you? How did it turn out? Share on our FB page or Twitter using #myduBeateo. I’ll share it on an upcoming show. What is it about the film that is so appealing? A programming note – We had to use the phone after Skype decided not to work. So the sound quality is not best on either end. A great interview though. I’m working on it. It’s only be 4 years, I’ll get it. Plus -I removed the clip of the movie. Again, all of Alan Sack’s opinions are Alan Sack’s. Rough transcript of the interview: Welcome to proudly presents I’m obsessed with cold found good bad movies obscure films. It’s just that I just love it. So the movie this week we’re talking about is due Dubeat-e-o. So this movie the Dubeat-e-o would speak to the director of the movie does a great interview with them. You’d be surprised who made it and his journey and who he is and this is a fascinating story. I need you is the first three minutes and I think it gives you an idea of what the film is like at Prather’s and Stockholm’s slash Allen Sachs is my interview with Alan Sachs’s director BDubeat-e-o. How are you. OK how are you doing that. Are you still working on you’re on tour with unlocking truth. No I’m not. Actually there’s a movie that’s playing right now that actually happens to life first at the Lemley in Santa Monica. It’s a movie about the band.And me I’m some featured in the movie. You’re also producing the movie. But as it turned out the band’s parents didn’t think I was doing enough for them.I made them probably a million dollars in the first year. I know the Sony deal is huge right. And so the bands parents thought they could do better without me. So they graciously released me from my contract with nobody even called me. It was really very sad.

Before reality shows, there was something even crazier – Daytime Talk Shows. Burt Dubrow is the man behind some of the craziest moments on TV. Everyone from Cher to “Lesbian Nuns” to  “Feuding Sisters,” appeared on Sally Jessy Raphael. It was Burt Dubrow who brought them all to daytime TV.  He discovered Sally Jessy Raphael and Jerry Springer. Not only did Burt live through the craziest period of TV, he helped create it. Burt Dubrow talked to me from his office at his show, “Dr. Drew.” Burt serves as the EP of the HLN show. After our interview, Burt Dubrow took me on a tour of the set. It was originally just a desk and backdrop. Drew occupied one half of the set, while Piers Morgan had the other. When Peers went away, Burt drew on his old school talk days and added an audience that would join in on the conversation. Related interviews: Madeleine Smithberg  Robert Morton Pt 1    Robert Morton Pt 2   Todd Yasui For even more interviews check out “Proudly Resents: Interviews.” Here’s a classic clip from Sally Jessy Raphael.   Bio from the his website: Dubrow targeted an unknown broadcaster and broke two traditional rules of television: radio personalities don’t translate to television and women can’t host talk shows, focusing on controversial issues – when he launched Sally Jessy Raphael. This successful syndicated series spanned a phenomenal 18 years. Named Senior Vice President of Programming for Multimedia Entertainment, Dubrow also saw potential in another little known local news commentator – Jerry Springer – and developed a talk show around him. Burt served as Executive producer on both series. Some of Dubrow’s other projects include: Executive Producer of Dr. Joy Browne and Executive Producer for the syndicated series, Crook & Chase. Dubrow began his illustrious career as the youngest ever Associate Producer of the local morning series on WLS-TV in Chicago, Kennedy & Company as well as three other shows. From there, he became Associate Producer on The Mike Douglas Show. He then moved on to executive produce all live programming for Warner Communications’ Qube, the first two-way television system. While at Qube, Dubrow designed and implemented a wide variety of game shows that were the foundation of the Qube Network. This led him to create and executive produce the first teenage talk/game show, America Goes Bananas, which won a Cable Ace Award and helped launch the Nickelodeon Network. After leaving Qube, Dubrow spent four years producing ABC-TV’s, the Emmy award winning Kids Are People Too. Dubrow has been fortunate to excel on both management and creative levels, giving him a varied and unique perspective of the broadcasting industry. Burt is a 1950’s television buff and owns an extensive collection of memorabilia, ventriloquist figures, videotapes and kinescopes. Born and raised in Westchester County, New York, he currently resides in Calabasas, California with his wife and two daughters.    

Before reality shows, there was something even crazier – Daytime Talk Shows. Burt Dubrow is the man behind some of the craziest moments on TV. Everyone from Cher to “Lesbian Nuns” to  “Feuding Sisters,” appeared on Sally Jessy Raphael. It was Burt Dubrow who brought them all to daytime TV.  He discovered Sally Jessy Raphael and Jerry Springer. Not only did Burt live through the craziest period of TV, he helped create it. Burt Dubrow talked to me from his office at his show, “Dr. Drew.” Burt serves as the EP of the HLN show. After our interview, Burt Dubrow took me on a tour of the set. It was originally just a desk and backdrop. Drew occupied one half of the set, while Piers Morgan had the other. When Peers went away, Burt drew on his old school talk days and added an audience that would join in on the conversation. Related interviews: Madeleine Smithberg  Robert Morton Pt 1    Robert Morton Pt 2   Todd Yasui For even more interviews check out “Proudly Resents: Interviews.” Here’s a classic clip from Sally Jessy Raphael.   Bio from the his website: Dubrow targeted an unknown broadcaster and broke two traditional rules of television: radio personalities don’t translate to television and women can’t host talk shows, focusing on controversial issues – when he launched Sally Jessy Raphael. This successful syndicated series spanned a phenomenal 18 years. Named Senior Vice President of Programming for Multimedia Entertainment, Dubrow also saw potential in another little known local news commentator – Jerry Springer – and developed a talk show around him. Burt served as Executive producer on both series. Some of Dubrow’s other projects include: Executive Producer of Dr. Joy Browne and Executive Producer for the syndicated series, Crook & Chase. Dubrow began his illustrious career as the youngest ever Associate Producer of the local morning series on WLS-TV in Chicago, Kennedy & Company as well as three other shows. From there, he became Associate Producer on The Mike Douglas Show. He then moved on to executive produce all live programming for Warner Communications’ Qube, the first two-way television system. While at Qube, Dubrow designed and implemented a wide variety of game shows that were the foundation of the Qube Network. This led him to create and executive produce the first teenage talk/game show, America Goes Bananas, which won a Cable Ace Award and helped launch the Nickelodeon Network. After leaving Qube, Dubrow spent four years producing ABC-TV’s, the Emmy award winning Kids Are People Too. Dubrow has been fortunate to excel on both management and creative levels, giving him a varied and unique perspective of the broadcasting industry. Burt is a 1950’s television buff and owns an extensive collection of memorabilia, ventriloquist figures, videotapes and kinescopes. Born and raised in Westchester County, New York, he currently resides in Calabasas, California with his wife and two daughters.    

Graham Elwood (“Comedy Film Nerds”) & Susanna Brisk (“MILF Code”) proudly resent the cult classic, “Miami Connection.” They join me at the Hollywood Improv Lab for a live show for a very few (select) people. The great Kathleen Wilhoite covers one of the terrible “songs” from “Miami Connection.” She also sings the song that she did in the movie “RoadHouse.” Yes, that “RoadHouse.” Hear Kathleen spill the beans on the onset drinking and drugging on a previous episode with Joel Stein.  Back to this episode… Here’s a trailer for the film and part of the original song that Kathleen covers.   Listen to past live shows… “A live Tribute to Troma” With Christian Finnegan (Late Late Show) Mike C. Williams (Blair Witch Project) Asta Paredes & Catherine Corcoran (Return to Nuke’Em High) Robert Prichard (Class of Nuke Em High) and music from Ben Lerman.   Birdemic With Eric Schaeffer, Frank Conniff (MST3K), Bryan Tucker (SNL head writer) and music from Rob Paravonian. FROM WIKIPEDIA: Miami Connection is a 1987 independent martial arts film starring Y.K. Kim, who also wrote and produced the feature. Originally, the film was critically maligned and received poor box office return upon release. It remained unseen for decades until Drafthouse Films restored the film for a proper release in 2012. The film was released on DVD, Blu-ray, limited-edition VHS, and various digital download options on December 11, 2012. Since then, the film has been better received by audiences and has garnered a cult following. Plot A cocaine deal in Miami is interrupted by a group of motorcycle-riding ninjas led by Yashito, who steal the drugs and rides back to Orlando to party. At a club, the ninjas’ second-in-command, Jeff, sees his sister Jane onstage. She has become romantically involved with John, the bassist of the club’s band, Dragon Sound, which consists of five University of Central Florida students who live together and train Tae Kwon Do. Jeff disapproves of his sister’s relationship with John and confronts him at school, but Mark, the leader of Dragon Sound, stands up to him. Another band confronts the owner of the club over his hiring of Dragon Sound, but gets beaten up. The band leader brings a large group of rowdy guys to Dragon Sound directly and fights them in the street, but Dragon Sound defeats them. Consequently, the rival band enlists the help of Jeff, who summons Dragon Sound to fight at a train depot, but he and his men are badly defeated by Dragon Sound’s superior Tae Kwon Do. Jeff tries again by kidnapping Tom, the lead singer of Dragon Sound. The remaining band members stage a rescue, wherein they free their singer and accidentally kill Jeff. Yashito is angered by Jeff’s death and sets out for revenge. Meanwhile, another member of the band, Jim, has revealed that he is searching for his long-lost father. He finally receives word that his father has been relocated, so the band pools their money to buy him a suit and then head to the airport. Along the way, the ninjas surround Mark, Jim and John and chase them into a park, where they do battle. Jim is critically injured, but John and Mark manage to kill all of the ninjas and Mark kills Yashito in single combat. At the hospital, Jim survives his wounds and reconnects with his repentant father. Cast Y.K. Kim as Mark Vincent Hirsch as John William Ergle as Jeff Siyung Jo as Yashito Kathie Collier as Jane Joseph Diamond as Jack

Graham Elwood (“Comedy Film Nerds”) & Susanna Brisk (“MILF Code”) proudly resent the cult classic, “Miami Connection.” They join me at the Hollywood Improv Lab for a live show for a very few (select) people. The great Kathleen Wilhoite covers one of the terrible “songs” from “Miami Connection.” She also sings the song that she did in the movie “RoadHouse.” Yes, that “RoadHouse.” Hear Kathleen spill the beans on the onset drinking and drugging on a previous episode with Joel Stein.  Back to this episode… Here’s a trailer for the film and part of the original song that Kathleen covers.   Listen to past live shows… “A live Tribute to Troma” With Christian Finnegan (Late Late Show) Mike C. Williams (Blair Witch Project) Asta Paredes & Catherine Corcoran (Return to Nuke’Em High) Robert Prichard (Class of Nuke Em High) and music from Ben Lerman.   Birdemic With Eric Schaeffer, Frank Conniff (MST3K), Bryan Tucker (SNL head writer) and music from Rob Paravonian. FROM WIKIPEDIA: Miami Connection is a 1987 independent martial arts film starring Y.K. Kim, who also wrote and produced the feature. Originally, the film was critically maligned and received poor box office return upon release. It remained unseen for decades until Drafthouse Films restored the film for a proper release in 2012. The film was released on DVD, Blu-ray, limited-edition VHS, and various digital download options on December 11, 2012. Since then, the film has been better received by audiences and has garnered a cult following. Plot A cocaine deal in Miami is interrupted by a group of motorcycle-riding ninjas led by Yashito, who steal the drugs and rides back to Orlando to party. At a club, the ninjas’ second-in-command, Jeff, sees his sister Jane onstage. She has become romantically involved with John, the bassist of the club’s band, Dragon Sound, which consists of five University of Central Florida students who live together and train Tae Kwon Do. Jeff disapproves of his sister’s relationship with John and confronts him at school, but Mark, the leader of Dragon Sound, stands up to him. Another band confronts the owner of the club over his hiring of Dragon Sound, but gets beaten up. The band leader brings a large group of rowdy guys to Dragon Sound directly and fights them in the street, but Dragon Sound defeats them. Consequently, the rival band enlists the help of Jeff, who summons Dragon Sound to fight at a train depot, but he and his men are badly defeated by Dragon Sound’s superior Tae Kwon Do. Jeff tries again by kidnapping Tom, the lead singer of Dragon Sound. The remaining band members stage a rescue, wherein they free their singer and accidentally kill Jeff. Yashito is angered by Jeff’s death and sets out for revenge. Meanwhile, another member of the band, Jim, has revealed that he is searching for his long-lost father. He finally receives word that his father has been relocated, so the band pools their money to buy him a suit and then head to the airport. Along the way, the ninjas surround Mark, Jim and John and chase them into a park, where they do battle. Jim is critically injured, but John and Mark manage to kill all of the ninjas and Mark kills Yashito in single combat. At the hospital, Jim survives his wounds and reconnects with his repentant father. Cast Y.K. Kim as Mark Vincent Hirsch as John William Ergle as Jeff Siyung Jo as Yashito Kathie Collier as Jane Joseph Diamond as Jack

Tommy Wiseau made a movie so bad, there’s a 2 hour doc about it. And there are two 45 minute podcast about the doc. On a special joint Proudly Resents/Projection Booth crossover, Mike White joins Adam to talk about Room Full of Spoons, a documentary from Rick Harper that chronicles the making and impact of Tommy Wiseau’s magnum opus, The Room. This doc answers all the questions you can ever have about the movie “The Room.” Mike and I talk about the actual movie “The Room,” Tommy Wiseau and the doc itself. Links: Visit the official Room Full of Spoons website Buy The Disaster Artist by Greg Sistero Buy The Room on DVD Buy the Rifftrax version of The Room Visit the official The Room website Play The Room video game     Listen to The Projection Booth’s version of this show, which includes an interview with Rick Harper, the director of “Room Full of Spoons.”  Proudly Resents Room Episodes: Philip Halderman: Tommy Wiseau: Sandy Schklair: The Room: Watch:    About Room Full of Spoons: SYNOPSIS Room Full of Spoons is an in depth documentary about the cult film that is widely accepted as the worst film ever made: The Room, and it’s eccentric creator Tommy Wiseau. Referred to as “The Citizen Kane of bad movies” by Entertainment Weekly, The Room grossed only $1800 during it’s initial box office run. Against all odds, Mr. Wiseau’s disastrous film found a new life on the midnight movie circuit and now plays to audiences around the world making it one of the most adored and important films in popular culture. Follow Rick Harper and his team on their journey across the Globe as they experience this midnight movie phenomenon, meet with the entire cast and crew of the The Room and piece together the story behind the mysterious Tommy Wiseau. // // // //

Tommy Wiseau made a movie so bad, there’s a 2 hour doc about it. And there are two 45 minute podcast about the doc. On a special joint Proudly Resents/Projection Booth crossover, Mike White joins Adam to talk about Room Full of Spoons, a documentary from Rick Harper that chronicles the making and impact of Tommy Wiseau’s magnum opus, The Room. This doc answers all the questions you can ever have about the movie “The Room.” Mike and I talk about the actual movie “The Room,” Tommy Wiseau and the doc itself. Links: Visit the official Room Full of Spoons website Buy The Disaster Artist by Greg Sistero Buy The Room on DVD Buy the Rifftrax version of The Room Visit the official The Room website Play The Room video game     Listen to The Projection Booth’s version of this show, which includes an interview with Rick Harper, the director of “Room Full of Spoons.”  Proudly Resents Room Episodes: Philip Halderman: Tommy Wiseau: Sandy Schklair: The Room: Watch:    About Room Full of Spoons: SYNOPSIS Room Full of Spoons is an in depth documentary about the cult film that is widely accepted as the worst film ever made: The Room, and it’s eccentric creator Tommy Wiseau. Referred to as “The Citizen Kane of bad movies” by Entertainment Weekly, The Room grossed only $1800 during it’s initial box office run. Against all odds, Mr. Wiseau’s disastrous film found a new life on the midnight movie circuit and now plays to audiences around the world making it one of the most adored and important films in popular culture. Follow Rick Harper and his team on their journey across the Globe as they experience this midnight movie phenomenon, meet with the entire cast and crew of the The Room and piece together the story behind the mysterious Tommy Wiseau. // // // //

The man that brought you “Slacker,” “Clerks,” “Thin Blue Line” and “Go Fish” comes on the podcast to talk about the golden age of indie film – the 80’s. John Pierson talks about negotiating, finding new films, dealing with film makers and more. He tells his story of making a place for himself in the indie film scene in his great book, “Spike, Mike, Slackers and Dykes.” This book is filled with great stories. Instead of having JohnPierson just repeat them, I tried to get him to expand and give a perspective 20 years later. In the interview I might have slammed Michael Moore for making money on his message and I also might have gotten sucked into an internet scheme. You’ll have to listen to find out! John Pierson wasn’t here just to indulge us! He’s got a great film festival to promote. At the Cinefamily Theater on March 4 John Pierson is presenting Spike Lee’s first film “She’ Gotta Have It” and on March 5th he’s presenting “Roger & Me.” On both films Pierson was the “Producer’s Representative.” Find out what that means when you listen to the podcast. The Cinefamily Theater in Los Angeles on Fairfax Ave, up the street from Cantor’s and down the street from Oakie Dog, is in the middle of the “Underground USA Indie Cinema of the 80’s film festival. There are great films like Repo Man, Blood Simple, Henry Portrait of a Serial Killer, The Evil Dead, Desperately Seeking Susan and more. That’s right, MORE! John Pierson was born on April 30, 1954 in Baltimore, Maryland, USA. He has been married to Janet Pierson since 1983.  

The man that brought you “Slacker,” “Clerks,” “Thin Blue Line” and “Go Fish” comes on the podcast to talk about the golden age of indie film – the 80’s. John Pierson talks about negotiating, finding new films, dealing with film makers and more. He tells his story of making a place for himself in the indie film scene in his great book, “Spike, Mike, Slackers and Dykes.” This book is filled with great stories. Instead of having JohnPierson just repeat them, I tried to get him to expand and give a perspective 20 years later. In the interview I might have slammed Michael Moore for making money on his message and I also might have gotten sucked into an internet scheme. You’ll have to listen to find out! John Pierson wasn’t here just to indulge us! He’s got a great film festival to promote. At the Cinefamily Theater on March 4 John Pierson is presenting Spike Lee’s first film “She’ Gotta Have It” and on March 5th he’s presenting “Roger & Me.” On both films Pierson was the “Producer’s Representative.” Find out what that means when you listen to the podcast. The Cinefamily Theater in Los Angeles on Fairfax Ave, up the street from Cantor’s and down the street from Oakie Dog, is in the middle of the “Underground USA Indie Cinema of the 80’s film festival. There are great films like Repo Man, Blood Simple, Henry Portrait of a Serial Killer, The Evil Dead, Desperately Seeking Susan and more. That’s right, MORE! John Pierson was born on April 30, 1954 in Baltimore, Maryland, USA. He has been married to Janet Pierson since 1983.  

“The Daily Show” co-creator, Madeleine Smithberg talks about her amazing career in TV. From  Late Night With David Letterman to life after co-creating and running “The Daily Show.” Madeleine give a lot of insight to the creative part of TV as well the harsh business practices. Talks about Jon Stewart changing the work atmosphere at “The Daily Show,” how she got David Spade to stop doing fat actress jokes and why Bloomberg TV rejected a very funny Julie Klasner. She tells amazing stories about starting in live Italian TV, her one try at Reality to harsh and ridiculous network notes, to what she thinks of “The Daily Show’s” new host. Plus insights on her latest project “This Week in Black Twitter.” Fans of TV and comedy will love her from a true insider. We talked at her home in Valley with her son in the other room playing video games and her dog protecting us from lawn mowers and people taking out the trash. In Madeleine’s living are her trophies for her years of work. A Peabody, an Emmy and a wax bust of David Letterman. Madeleine Smithberg earned Peabody and Emmy Awards, and two other Emmy nominations, for Comedy Central’s The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, which she co-created and ran as executive producer for seven years. During her tenure, she was directly responsible for the hiring/casting of performers such as Jon Stewart, Stephen Colbert, Steve Carell, Ed Helms, and Rob Corddry, Mo Rocca, Lewis Black, among others. She served as producer/show-runner for The Daily Show forerunner, The Jon Stewart Show, on MTV and later in syndication. She also brought her skills as executive producer and writer of The WB comedy/variety show Steve Harvey’s Big Time. She spent six years as a talent coordinator, then producer, for NBC’s original ’t Sleep! Hosted by T.J. Holmes.   If you want more, here’s another interview with Madeleine.  Related interviews: Robert Morton Pt 1 Robert Morton Pt 2 Todd Yasui

“The Daily Show” co-creator, Madeleine Smithberg talks about her amazing career in TV. From  Late Night With David Letterman to life after co-creating and running “The Daily Show.” Madeleine give a lot of insight to the creative part of TV as well the harsh business practices. Talks about Jon Stewart changing the work atmosphere at “The Daily Show,” how she got David Spade to stop doing fat actress jokes and why Bloomberg TV rejected a very funny Julie Klasner. She tells amazing stories about starting in live Italian TV, her one try at Reality to harsh and ridiculous network notes, to what she thinks of “The Daily Show’s” new host. Plus insights on her latest project “This Week in Black Twitter.” Fans of TV and comedy will love her from a true insider. We talked at her home in Valley with her son in the other room playing video games and her dog protecting us from lawn mowers and people taking out the trash. In Madeleine’s living are her trophies for her years of work. A Peabody, an Emmy and a wax bust of David Letterman. Madeleine Smithberg earned Peabody and Emmy Awards, and two other Emmy nominations, for Comedy Central’s The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, which she co-created and ran as executive producer for seven years. During her tenure, she was directly responsible for the hiring/casting of performers such as Jon Stewart, Stephen Colbert, Steve Carell, Ed Helms, and Rob Corddry, Mo Rocca, Lewis Black, among others. She served as producer/show-runner for The Daily Show forerunner, The Jon Stewart Show, on MTV and later in syndication. She also brought her skills as executive producer and writer of The WB comedy/variety show Steve Harvey’s Big Time. She spent six years as a talent coordinator, then producer, for NBC’s original ’t Sleep! Hosted by T.J. Holmes.   If you want more, here’s another interview with Madeleine.  Related interviews: Robert Morton Pt 1 Robert Morton Pt 2 Todd Yasui

While some out of work actors spend their days in coffee shops or on Playstation, Feikamoh Massaquoi is literally hitting the streets. I see him in front the entrance of the Warner Brothers Studio lot. Many people pass him everyday. Writers, producers, actors, accountants, set designers and most importantly casting agents. While we’ve never heard of an actor picketing for a role. After looking him up, I decided to say hi and see what his deal was. I didn’t have too much time, I had to punch in at the TV mill. Watch his clips, they are impressive. Which shocks me because he’s standing in front of studios with a sign. Remember Dennis Woodruff? (Look it up. It’s too late at night to be looking him up and linking him. Seriously!) So why is a good actor standing on the street and not working? He has what most people dream of, an agent and manager. He has a good look and a sense of humor. One thing he doesn’t have is a sense a monologue. You got to have one ready. A producer in my office told me he has a Shakespearean and a regular monologue ready at a drop of a hat. I guess in LA it’s like having breath mints or an AAA card – you never know when it will come in handy. If you’re at SONY Studios next week and you see Feikamoh, give him a smile or better yet, a role.

While some out of work actors spend their days in coffee shops or on Playstation, Feikamoh Massaquoi is literally hitting the streets. I see him in front the entrance of the Warner Brothers Studio lot. Many people pass him everyday. Writers, producers, actors, accountants, set designers and most importantly casting agents. While we’ve never heard of an actor picketing for a role. After looking him up, I decided to say hi and see what his deal was. I didn’t have too much time, I had to punch in at the TV mill. Watch his clips, they are impressive. Which shocks me because he’s standing in front of studios with a sign. Remember Dennis Woodruff? (Look it up. It’s too late at night to be looking him up and linking him. Seriously!) So why is a good actor standing on the street and not working? He has what most people dream of, an agent and manager. He has a good look and a sense of humor. One thing he doesn’t have is a sense a monologue. You got to have one ready. A producer in my office told me he has a Shakespearean and a regular monologue ready at a drop of a hat. I guess in LA it’s like having breath mints or an AAA card – you never know when it will come in handy. If you’re at SONY Studios next week and you see Feikamoh, give him a smile or better yet, a role.