#and the costume designer said for season four that he was influenced by Eddie to start wearing dark jeans and converse

[thy-lovelylionheart]

I’m gonna be so for real, if El dies, I can’t imagine Hop being a functional police chief. I can’t picture him being a functional person. That’s one reason I don’t think these new leak photos are proof of El dying like a lot of people are treating them as.

Because he literally talks in s4 about how he blames himself for his daughter Sarah’s death and he feels like a curse, and that he’s afraid he curses everyone that he loves and cares about. And in s2 he talks about how he’s like a black hole, sucking people in and destroying them.

El dying would be confirmation of these things in his brain. It would prove to his mind that he is indeed a curse and shouldn’t be close to anyone less they get hurt.

So I don’t think he would be able to be a police chief anymore. I don’t think he would be able to even stay in a relationship with Joyce. I think he would go on an extremely self-destructive spiral because would be proof that he is a curse in his mind. It would be him losing another daughter. Losing another child.

I can’t imagine him being okay after that. I just can’t. He did go through a lot of growth in s4, but that growth was about fighting through the fear of emotional vulnerability and the fear of getting close to people, so that he can get back to El and be her father. Because he loves her and she’s his daughter and he wants to be there for her.

And if she dies? Total regression. Complete breakdown. Nothing else would make sense.

And since her dying would confirm in his mind that he is a curse who brings harm to others, he would probably distance himself from Joyce, so the argument of, “well he would lose El, but he would gain two sons by being with Joyce“ is implausible, but also pretty dang icky and diminishes the value and love Hop holds for El, and all of his memories with her and time he spent raising her as a single father.

It’s not like he will lose another daughter and go, “oh well, I’ve been through this before, it sucks, but I’ve gotten better at coping with the loss of a child.”

So yeah. I can’t even fathom that the new leaked photos somehow point to El being dead because imo there is no way in hell Hop would still be Chief, look that put together, and be that calm if they’re discussing El’s supposed demise.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again—there are other reasons to look sad and emotional!

[galleryyuhself]

Richard Mark Rawlins:”I want to redesign Trinidad and Tobago’s entire sign system.”

Today I am proud to celebrate the 4th anniversary of Four Corners with my 44th column. This month I’m taking you to the idyllic paradise of Trinidad to introduce you to a seasoned creative, whose work is every bit as characterful as the island’s world-renowned Carnival. Representing the irrepressible Richard Mark Rawlins.

By Tom Banks February 1, 2017 3:02 pm

What’s your background?

I was born and raised in Port of Spain, Trinidad, to middle class, public servant parents. I grew up in Woodbrook, a suburb of Port of Spain and a hub of Carnival activity and creativity. My early years were spent in my grandparents’ home in Baden-Powell Street with my uncles and aunts – on my father’s side – who would be charged with looking after and entertaining my brother and I as we held the prime position of sole grandchildren at the time.

My family was big on reading and felt that if you had nothing to do with yourself, then get a book and read something. The house was full of books and comics: P.G. Woodhouse, Lobsang Rampa, Asterix and Obelix, Tintin, Biggles, William, Billy Bunter, Sydney Sheldon, Jennings, Enid Blyton, Captain America and the Falcon, Superman, Heroes of the Dark Continent… I wanted to be a comic book artist.

My father and grandfather were both makers of things. My grandfather made Mas, (Carnival costumes), and objects out of coconut shells. He had an unholy obsession with making coconut sharks and Columbus’ ships: the Nina, Pinta and the Santa Maria. My dad drew, painted and made miniature battleships as well as dolls’ furniture and worlds. Yes, he created a whole miniature world beneath our home in Lange Park, Chaguanas. My wife, filmmaker Mariel Brown made a film about him. Smallman, the World My Father Made.

After O’levels, I moved to Toronto, did grade 13 and later a BA Geography at York University. On graduation I realised I had no immediate plans – or desire – to teach Geography or go on in the field, so after a little meltdown, and having fulfilled my parents’ desire for me to attain a university education, I promptly enrolled in George Brown College of Art, Science and Technology and studied Commercial Art, with the intention of going into advertising.

How did you get started in your field of expertise?

When I was a child I watched copious amounts of television. Bewitched was one of my favourite shows, not because of Samantha the Witch and the magic and all that other stuff, but because Darren – her husband – and his boss, Larry Tate, worked in advertising. They made it look so grand and easy. They’d be doing these presentations where they’d show illustrated layouts in marker and pencil, and they just seemed fantastic to me. I thought that was really cool and I wanted to be able to do that: make the cool layout, which made clients sit back and say, ‘Brilliant Larry, brilliant Darren… SOLD!’ So that was the start of design for me.

50 Years of Studio Glass 50 Years of Studio Glass Studying Commercial Art at George Brown was a wonderful time. All my professors were artists/designers working in the field with active studios, and the campus was smack dab, downtown Toronto, in a hub of art galleries and studios. There was always something going on: Greg Hart cartoon film festivals, art shows, performances, Caribana. I was surrounded by exciting things and inspiration.

When I eventually returned to Trinidad in 1991, I got a job as the graphic designer for the National Aids Programme of Trinidad and Tobago. My boss at the time, Dr. Asha Kambon, was an inspiring person.  She had been actively involved in the Black Power Movement in Trinidad, and was an activist, so in-between schooling me on black identity and national class struggles in Trinidad, I was designing ‘awareness communication material’ in the fight against AIDS.

50 years of studio glass 50 years of studio glass Every communication was tailored specifically to its intended audiences. She made me aware of the seriousness and the power of design communication. We created activity newsletters for kids, glow in dark condoms, cardholders for pan men, and even a rap cassette.

After about a year of that, I went to work in an ad agency as a designer. In the early 90s, being a designer in an advertising agency wasn’t as sedentary as it is now. Technology has changed many things. Back then, you developed an idea, roughed it out on paper, did finished layouts in marker, presented them to the client, then did your finished artwork. You had to work with photographers, and typesetting houses and you worked your ideas straight up. I was in work by 6am, at a printer on the press by 7am, back in the office by 2pm, on a photo shoot waist deep in a cold river by 5pm, back inside by 7pm. Sometimes we’d work for over 24 hours on a presentation.

In my twenty-something year advertising career, I’ve been a graphic designer, art director, creative manager, assistant account executive and creative director. I’ve written copy, produced layouts, directed TV commercials, been a hand model and even voiced commercials.

Pictures From Paradise, for Robert and Christopher Publishers Pictures From Paradise, for Robert and Christopher Publishers In 2012, I left advertising and began working on my own practice, focusing more on publication design with some identity work and my own parallel art career. This is when I got together with fellow designer/editor Melanie Archer, and my wife filmmaker/editor Mariel Brown, to design books for Robert and Christopher Publishers.

What challenges did you face/overcome in getting into the industry and achieving your ambitions?

I think that I have been one of the fortunate ones. Or maybe I’ve been too naïve to notice. I’ve always seized opportunities. I’ve had few challenges, if any, and a career trajectory that has remained full of opportunities and excitement. It’s all under my own steam in a society that doesn’t really value what graphic designers do.  There is no professional design organisation like AIGA here. Equally, many people aren’t able to differentiate between the work of a graphic designer – to work with a client on sustained communication and problem-solving for design solutions and a graphic artist – to ‘hustle’ down an ad ‘quick quick’.

BOCAS I always maintain a place where I can do the work I want to do – the work I have a passion for. This is the thinking that guided me earlier on when I worked at an advertising agency as the creative director of a department of 15: I encouraged the creative department to be more than just people who did the work of the day; I wanted us to become designers and creative people who could effect change, make things, and do things. A number of us came together in an informal collective, and we held exhibitions, created art shows (such as Erotic Art Week); we worked together on a web series, Indigroove, and of course we all worked as writers, editors, interviewers, or guest designers on the Draconian Switch Magazine. The aim was to always keep moving and to utilize our design and other creative talents in a rewarding and beneficial way.

INTER My parallel art career also provided me an escape from the ‘despondency  of advertising’ and gave me different opportunities. Over the last decade I’ve been fortunate enough to exhibit my work abroad, in New York, Miami, Jamaica, Paraguay etc. A number of the friendships, relationships and engagements made via my art have also led to design work. It’s kept design fresh for me.

Who and/or What are your greatest inspirations and influences?

Here at home my influences and inspiration came from designers and artists whose shoulders I came in on like Steve Ouditt, Eddie Bowen, Irenée Shaw, and Christopher Cozier. Cozier, particularly, has to be singled out, as his mentorship and friendship really opened up my mind to artistic possibilities and the need for ‘criticality, context and content’ while making work.

Then in the absence of a formal design organisation, the people I’ve worked with in my informal creative collective over the years have been inspirational: people like designers Marlon Darbeau, Melanie (hawkeye) Archer, columnist/copywriter Darryn Boodan, and copywriter/ dancer/ choreographer Dave Williams. The people who have always been in my corner and supported my work on many levels like artist/designer/educator Adele Todd, installation artist Dean Arlen, architect Sean Leonard, educator Marsha Pearce.

Logo design Logo design The people that see my work first, my three daughters Maya, Annissa and Emily. My daughter Annissa Marie, and my wife Mariel are both coherent and focused and are responsible for making sure that I am okay and my mind is straight. In the same role but further afield, my Bajan sister, artist Sheena Rose.

In the category of people who I have never met but whose work I admire and read about: Stefan Sagmeister and Jessica Walsh, Ray and Charles Eames, Milton Glaser, Paul Rand, Saul Bass, Paula Scher, David Carson, Jon Daniel, On Kawara, William Klein, So Lewitt, Magaret Calvert and Kerry James Marshall.

What is your best piece of work or the project you are most proud of?

I don’t think I have one ‘best piece’. I’m proud of a lot of the work I’ve done.  Having said that, of the art catalogues I’ve designed, ‘Jamaican Routes’, ‘Rockstone and Bootheel’ and ‘50 Years of Studio Glass’. I really love the identity I developed for ‘Rockstone and Bootheel’ an exhibition of contemporary West Indian Art and the way it translated throughout all of the exhibition materials and wall signage. I love typography and I love big letters, and ‘sign and design’. ‘The Jamaican Routes’ catalogue allowed me the freedom to play typographically across the entire book and create a piece of work that reflected the bold personalities of the exhibition’s artists without overtaking their work.

Routes Routes ‘50 Years of Studio Glass’ was a gem to work on, as it connected me to artists that work in glass in contemporary and unexpected ways. My design for the ‘Studio Glass’ catalogue involved layering text upon text with pasted abstract sea glass imagery – some of which I shot myself with a macro lens attached to my iPhone.

ROUTES What would be your dream job or project?

I would love to have the Ministry of Works and Transport give me a budget and the necessary time to design Trinidad and Tobago’s entire road sign system with my fellow designers Marlon Darbeau and Melanie Archer. And to be able to do so in an environment  that is free of political interference. I’m a big fan of the design of transit and road system signage, and an even bigger fan of Margaret Calvert. This country has really poor signage at every level, from institutional come down, but the highway signage is the worst. You really have to just know how to go where you want to go in this country and if you aren’t from here, finding your way around could be murder.  I’d love to be part of fixing this!

Please name some people in your field that you believe deserve credit or recognition, and why.

I admire the editorial work Melanie Archer has done. ‘Manikin: The Art and Architecture of Anthony C. Lewis’ and ‘Contemporary Caribbean Architecture’ are at the top of my list of ‘things I wish I had done, dammit!’.  Melanie is precise and I love her attention to detail. I call her ‘hawkeye’, and have been lucky to have her design two of my exhibition foldout catalogues. Designer Marlon Darbeau and I have been friends since 2006, and fast became collaborators and peers. What Marlon has done in terms of getting all those sketches out of his books and into real life… just beautiful. The guy makes really sexy stuff that people drool over. He is constantly working on and re-imagining objects. Then there is designer/ artist/ photographer Nadia Huggins co-founder of the beautifully designed Caribbean art magazine ‘ARC’.  Jeunanne Alkins, the creator of Everything Slight Pepper, I admire her drive and determination to keep making things happen from her brand of baby fashion to her Caribbean animated TV series for kids, Bim and Bam.

What’s your best piece of advice for those wanting to follow in your footsteps?

Make work. Make lots of work. Read everything you can, watch everything you can. Become involved. Always maintain a private practice, not so much for an extra income (if you don’t work for yourself already) but so that you can keep your mind straight and have the type of projects you really want and need to work on.  Keep doing and doing and doing and doing. Keep learning new skills. Keep tooling up. Recognise that design is work. Work at it. Respect it. Be honest with your work. Develop your own personal equity and your own design vocabulary. Develop something that is you. Don’t be afraid to be you and assert your own thoughts on design. There are a lot of ‘them’ out there but only one ‘you’. Don’t listen to the pundits. In small societies which base success on fleeting indicators of privilege, and in the age of the social media critic, peripheral commentary can be distracting. Get a mentor. Build a squad, and set some real goals.

What’s next for you?

FINDINGBLACKexdesign I’ll be marking my 50th year on this planet by presenting three new bodies of work in two exhibitions and a book of selected works from my exhibition, Finding Black. Then in August, I close up my studio and move to London with my lovely wife to do my MA Print at the Royal College of Art. Other than that just living this adventure called life…

For more information visit:

richardmarkrawlinsdesign.com

richardmarkrawlins.com

artzpub.com

Instagram: rmraffinity

Network:

THE CARIBBEAN:

TRINIDAD CARNIVAL One of the Caribbean’s greatest and most renowned cultural events starts on 27 February 2017.

EUROPE:

MALICK SIDIBÉ Somerset House, London. Til 26 February 2017. This is the first ever solo exhibition of the legendary Malian photographer’s work. Sidibé is celebrated for his black-and-white images chronicling the lives and culture of the Malian capital, Bamako, in the wake of the country’s independence in 1960.

The exhibition presents 45 original prints from the 1960s and 1970s based around the themes of: Tiep à Bamako / Nightlife in Bamako, Au Fleuve Niger / Beside the Niger River, Le Studio / The Studio.

AFRICA:

FESTIMA February 2017. Dédougou, Burkina Faso. The week-long event draws costumed troupes from villages around Burkina Faso, as well as from neighboring West African countries such as Benin, Ivory Coast, Mali, Nigeria, Togo, and Senegal. Each group is composed of musicians and elaborately masked dancers who know how to move to the beat.

THE U.S:

BLACK COWBOY Studio Museum of Harlem, New York. Til 5 March 2017. The exhibition Black Cowboy is a contribution toward overcoming the historical omission of African-American communities with long histories of keeping and training horses, and toward demonstrating that their tradition is alive and well today.

If you have any forthcoming events that you would like to be considered for inclusion in this column, please do not hesitate to contact me by email at info at jon-daniel dot com.

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Jon Daniel is a London-based Independent Creative Director, Designer and Curator. For more information visit his website at www.jon-daniel.com | or his blog at www.visual-intellectual.com

[jlundenberger]

On the Red Carpet with the Stars

I have been a classic film fan since I was in high school. The names Greta Garbo, Humphrey Bogart, Marilyn Monroe and myriad others are mantras for me, evoking worlds of glamour and artistry I find irresistible. And for the classic film fan there is no better TV station than Turner Classic Movies. TCM airs unedited classic movies without commercials, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. It is truly the classic film-lovers dream.

As a bonus, the station has stepped out of the television set and into the world with the TCM Classic Film Festival, held in Hollywood every spring since 2010. I’ve been to several other classic film festivals, all great in their own right but, for me, the TCMFF is the best. It is the gold standard of classic film festivals. It features four days of meet and greets, panel discussions, book signings and film screenings in iconic Hollywood theatres. It’s a chance for fans to see classic films on the big screen in the manner in which they were originally intended to be seen.

Another important element of the festival is the film-fan community that has been created by TCM, the festival, and the power of social media. Fans communicate with one another in the virtual world and then meet face-to-face at the festival at the yearly Hollywood reunion. The festival has inspired me to become a guest essayist for the blog CineMaven’s Essays from the Couch, and influenced my partner, Ed Johnson, who has accompanied me to the festival in past years, to create the Lights! Camera! Politics! film series, which has just finished its fourth season at the Stephen Crane House.

While I did not attend the festival in its premier year I’ve been to each one since. In 2015 and 2016 TCMFF created a social media program and I was honored to be a selected member of that prestigious group. As a TCMFF Social Producer I created two social media projects. “TCM Boulevard” focused on the festival’s Hollywood location while “Best TCM Fan in a Starring Role” was a trivia game that enabled me to engage with other pass holders on a more complex level. This year I was selected to receive media credentials and a spot on the red carpet.

Each year, on opening night, there is a gala screening held at the TCL Chinese Theatre, originally known as Grauman’s Chinese Theatre, a beautiful movie palace that first opened in 1927. Upper tier pass holders receive access to this screening and make their entrance on the red carpet next to the celebrities in attendance. Afterwards there is a cocktail party, held on the rooftop of the W Hotel, with a breathtaking view of Los Angeles. Past events I have attended included screenings of “An American in Paris” introduced by star Leslie Caron, and “Funny Girl” introduced by Cher, as well as the surprise party appearance of Lulu, singing her hit “To Sir, With Love,” and Kim Novak sidling up to me at the bar. But this year I watched the event from the other side as a member of the press pool.

The opening night film this year was the 1968 Best Picture Academy Award winner “In the Heat of the Night” and would include appearances by stars Sydney Poitier and Lee Grant, Director Norman Jewison, Producer Walter Mirisch, and composer Quincy Jones. I arrived at the event and was happy to find that my position would be with a group of friends. The crew was applying finishing touches to the brilliantly red carpet as we were led to our spots, each marked by the outlet or blog we were representing. I was a more than a little excited as we passed reporters with professional cameras, both still and video – me with my iPhone and pad. I settled in as I chatted with my friends and waited for the celebrities to arrive, some of whom we could now see coming down the line. Beau Bridges, Lee Grant… the red carpet was a classic reunion of stars that night.

There was Wyatt McCrea. The name may not be familiar to you, but he is the grandson of actors Joel McCrea and Frances Dee and has himself been involved in the entertainment business. He would be introducing one of the great comedies of the classic era, “The Palm Beach Story,” which stars his grandfather. The theme of this year’s festival being “Make ‘em laugh,” another reporter asked Wyatt what made him laugh, and he responded his uncle Jody, another acting McCrea you might remember from the 1960’s beach movies. I followed up by asking him if there was a movie that made him cry. He said there was no movie in particular but spoke with sincerity about the power of movies to affect us emotionally, be they happy or sad. That, he said, is what makes for their eternal appeal.  

There was Keir Dullea, star of the film “David and Lisa,” which he would be introducing at the festival, and “2001: A Space Odyssey,” and stage, television and film actress Dana Delany who has been a popular guest host on TCM and was at the festival to introduce the film “Love Crazy.”

Sara Karloff, daughter of horror star Boris Karloff, came by and was talking to reporters about her father’s sense of humor, saying that he was the antithesis of most of the characters he played. She said that he was funny, caring and loving. We agreed that this shows through the heavy makeup and costume he wore in his career-defining role as the monster in the classic “Frankenstein,” probably the subtlest, most sympathetic portrayal of that character in all its cinematic incarnations.

There was Dick Cavett, attending the festival to introduce two comedies, the Marx Brothers’ “Monkey Business” and Laurel and Hardy’s “Way Out West.” I didn’t get a chance to speak to him but he seemed to be one of the more popular and accessible celebrities throughout the remainder of the festival, particularly with the young ladies. I saw several selfies taken with him by friends, Mr. Cavett mocking shock, as if he had been caught in a compromising position with the phone’s owner.

Film critic and historian Leonard Maltin stopped by and I knew from poring over the schedule that he would be introducing 5 films at the festival. I asked if there were any films in particular that he was looking forward to hosting. He told me that he had been allowed to pick two films for the festival, “The Magic Box” and “Street Scene,” and was looking forward to exposing them to a wider audience as, in his opinion, they are both under-seen and underrated. I agreed that, for me, discovering a brilliant film that I am unfamiliar with is often a highlight of the festival.

Actress, writer and director Illeana Douglas talked a bit about the “Trailblazing Women” series she has hosted for 2 seasons on TCM. A quick aside, Ms. Douglas has written a great memoir, “I Blame Dennis Hopper,” that includes a story about her dropping a canapé on the expensive suede shoes of James Woods. I had seen her at a party the night before and couldn’t help noticing her beautiful, very high-heeled shoes, which brought to mind her book. I chatted with her and mentioned the story, promising not to drop anything on her foot.

There was Actor Bob Balaban, unable to speak due to laryngitis, and Fred Willard, in a bright blue suit. Both starred in the film “Best in Show” and would appear at the festival screening of that film.

I’ve never seen the children’s classic “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory,” which was going to be screened poolside at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel that night but I HAVE met Veruca Salt. Actress Julie Dawn Cole, who played Veruca, and two co-stars, lead Oompa Loompa Rusty Goffe and Paris Themmen, who played Golden Ticket winner Mike Tee Vee, were walking the carpet together and Ms. Cole stopped to chat. She continued to act after the film but eventually left the business to become a child psychotherapist. I asked her about Gene Wilder, who seemed to be looked upon with affection by all who worked with him. She said he had been quite nice during filming and that she had run into him years after the finish of the picture and asked if he remembered her. She was touched when he replied “Veruca Salt wasn’t such a bad girl.”

There was “Marnie” star Diane Baker and Ruta Lee, who appeared in “Seven Brides for Seven Brothers,” both aglow as they made their way down the busy carpet. John Landis, who directed hits such as “The Blues Brothers” and “An American Werewolf in London” was busy with a television interview but his wife, costume designer Deborah Nadoolman Landis, was happy to stop by and share with us her husband’s latest favorite joke (it involved a Caesar salad and a stabbing) and the costumes she was proudest of designing were for the film “Animal House.”

Most of the celebrities had passed and I began to relax when Quincy Jones dashed by. And, as if to prove true a joke I have about myself – If a star isn’t over 80 I don’t know who they are – a somewhat familiar looking man dashed by. Who is that? I asked a friend. Actor and comedian Chris Tucker.

And that was that. A group of us went for a bite to eat and a drink before I headed off to my first movie of the festival. Oh, yes, I did see some movies. That night I watched “Requiem for a Heavyweight” which was introduced by TCM’s Sunday morning Noir Alley series host Eddie Muller.

I started Friday morning with a 9:00 AM screening of the rarely seen “Rafter Romance,” an early Ginger Rogers film, followed by “One Hour with You,” which stars Maurice Chevalier and Jeanette MacDonald, both delightful comedies from the early 1930’s. I followed those with “Panique,” a 1946 French thriller about the power of petty hearsay, “Red-Headed Woman,” another early 30’s comedy starring Jean Harlow, and “Laura,” a landmark 1944 film noir starring Dana Andrews and Gene Tierney.

Saturday started with a 10:00 AM screening of “This is Cinerama,” introduced by Leonard Maltin at Hollywood’s Cinerama Dome, one of the theatres specifically built for that short-lived widescreen process. I then saw the gripping 1950 film noir “The Underworld Story,” the 1936 screwball comedy “Theodora Goes Wild” starring favorites Irene Dunne and Melvyn Douglas (grandfather of the aforementioned Illeana), and the 1948 comedy “Unfaithfully Yours,” which stars Rex Harrison and Linda Darnell.

I was relying heavily on Starbucks coffee Sunday morning when I attended the 9:00 AM screening of “Cock of the Air,” a recently restored 1932 comedy. I then went to the Larry Edmunds bookstore, a long-time Hollywood landmark, for a book signing by Tippi Hedren, star of two Alfred Hitchcock films, “The Birds” and “Marnie.” Still beautiful at 87 years old, Ms. Hedren was kind and gracious as she signed my book and sat with me for a picture. I then saw the 1970 film “The Landlord,” which was introduced by stars Beau Bridges and Lee Grant, “What’s Up, Doc,” (1972) introduced by the film’s director Peter Bogdanovich (who confided that Cary Grant’s advice to Ryan O’Neal regarding the portrayal of his character was to “wear silk underpants”), and the somewhat ridiculous but beautiful 1944 film “Lady in the Dark,” again Ginger Rogers, in this film wearing a jewel-lined mink evening gown – the perfect way to end the festival.

After the last film I attended the closing party at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel, a chance to say goodbye to friends old and new, and to make a few new ones before my departure. I was shocked when I returned to my room and discovered that it was after 3:00 AM. Well, at least I didn’t have to get up for an early screening the next morning.

If you are not a classic film fan I urge you to give one a try. They are a major component of 20th century cultural history and many of them are the foundation for the films we watch today. Do you like special effects and science fiction? Try the original 1933 “King Kong,” or “The Day the Earth Stood Still” (1951). Are you a romantic comedy fan? Watch “The Lady Eve” (1941) or any of the films of Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn. Suspense? Thrillers? Look up film noir. There are hundreds of dark, bleak 1940’s films full of tension, moral ambiguity and shocking violence, usually more inferred than explicit.

If you are a classic film fan, put the TCM Classic Film Festival on your to-to list. It is 4 days of movie heaven. But be prepared – if you go, you will more than likely be planning your trip for the following year on the plane trip home.