The Count of Canoga Park . . . and my mental CD player
Shortly after relocating to the far reaches of the western San Fernando Valley, I came across this sign while driving home one day. Was this street named after Francis Lederer, actor? Of course, it was. It must have been fate and a collective touch of native soil...
Odds and Ends
While resolving that I will not be at the screenings of Red Light and Walk a Crooked Mile at Noir City in San Francisco this Thursday because work beckons, my thoughts turned to . . . The Noir City opener this weekend in San Francisco A better weekend of darkness...
Soldier in the Rain . . . and a Favorite Femme Fatale
I watched Soldier in the Rain (1963) for the second time in my life this week. The initial viewing was on a local New York television station some four decades ago. I was many things different back then starting with “impressionable” followed by “young”. Soldier in...
Philip Yordan — The Rest of the Story
In addition to my article about Phil Yordan, (here’s a link to it on the Film Noir Foundation website), here are some other interesting details gleaned from my research about Yordan: Claimed to have watched every movie with Jean Gabin who served as a model for...
Celebration of A Life Well Lived . . . and a New Tome
My initial shock about director/producer Arnold Laven’s death last month has morphed into regret and appreciation. Regret for only knowing him for slightly under a year and appreciation for the brief time we spent together talking about his career and the...Final Round for Budd Schulberg
The timekeepers bell finally sounded for Budd Schulberg who died aged 95 today. Although he became one of the more astute chroniclers of Old Hollywood, his seminal writing including the novel What Makes Sammy Run? and screenplays for On the Waterfront, The Harder They...
Examining Film Noir . . . On Campus
For those who are interested in the historical study of film noir, a close friend and colleague – Chris D., ace programmmer at the American Cinematheque – will be teaching “Examining Film Noir” at the Academy of Art in San Francisco during the...Final Curtain for an Actor’s Actor
When I found out that Karl Malden died last week, I initially recalled many of my favorite roles that he played and thought about how much he would be missed. His peaceful demise at 97 years of age doesn’t qualify as a tragedy, but even as a signpost of normal...The hottest Streak
I was chatting with an actor friend recently and as we discussed a couple of his choicest roles in successful pictures, he remarked, “I was a pretty hot actor at that time!” His statement resonated with me. Actors, are like baseball players, gamblers and any number of...Books
Blu-ray Discs
Alan contributed numerous commentaries and special feature appearances for a variety of Blu-ray© and DVD classic film releases.
Several recent releases include documentary featurettes produced by TVP Enterprises, Alan’s production company that he co-founded with filmmakers Steven C. Smith and Patrick Francis.
