#jim killen

[downthetubes]

Jim Killen joins Rebellion as "Editor-at-Large"

Jim Killen joins Rebellion as “Editor-at-Large”

Jim Killen

2000AD publisher Rebellion has announced that Jim Killen, former Barnes & Noble buyer for science fiction, fantasy and graphic novels, and one of the most influential figures in US publishing, is to join its editorial team.

Jim will join Rebellion Publishing’s fiction team as Editor-at-Large, based out of New York, from Monday 19th October 2020.

A legend in the worlds of…

[tachyonpub]

Readers will enjoy Peter S. Beagle’s THE OVERNEATH

Photo: Rina Weisman

For LIBRARY JOURNAL, Megan M. McArdle praises Peter S. Beagle’s THE OVERNEATH.

In this latest collection from Beagle, readers will enjoy 13 stories, mostly reprints, including two pieces featuring Schmendrick, the magician from his most famous novel, The Last Unicorn. 

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For fantasy fans, Beagle should be a staple, and while the anthology Mirror Kingdoms: The Best of Peter S. Beagle gathers many of the stories of his early career, this volume proves he is still creating plenty of great short fiction.

On the B&N SCI-FI & FANTASY BLOG, Jim Killen includes the collection among The Best Science Fiction & Fantasy Books of November 2017.

This collection of short stories from the legendary author of The Last Unicorn spans the world, reminding readers that magic, and magical creatures, are not always mere objects of wonder—they can be dangerous. In these stories, a traveler discovers a way to enter the shadow universe of the Overneath, an inventor hears mysterious voices on his first-ever wireless sound transmitter, and a team of government agents conduct a raid on a drug operation deep in the woods and discover the criminals are using dragons as security. These 13 stories explore universal themes of love and adventure, with the trademark wry humor and heartfelt emotion that Beagle is known for.

Artur Nowrot at WYSZNUPANE enjoys the book.

Unicorns are a recurring motif for Beagle (they feature, in very different versions, in three stories in this collection), so it seems fitting that one appears at the very end. Olfert Dapper’s Day starts as a story (a very good one, although a big part of that might be my predisposition to like stories about conmen) – and then, at some point, with the appearance of the unicorn, the story seems to transform into a tale of a man who, if not exactly bad, was never particularly good, and who suddenly has to use his one true talent – lying – not to serve himself but to save another person. In the end, he loses something, gains something, and I felt that he will never be the same again, although it would be hard to define how exactly was he changed.

This is one of the stories that demonstrate what I love about Beagle best: his characters are often weak and failing, yet all the more heroic when, through chance or grace, they manage to rise to the trials that stand before them. At his best, he opens your heart up and, through his writing, makes you want to speak in poetry. And that’s exactly what happens when you read THE OVERNEATH.

TOR.COM reprints “The Story of Kao Yu.”

We’re pleased to reprint “The Story of Kao Yu”, a fantasy short story by the legendary Peter S. Beagle which tells of an aging judge traveling through rural China and of a criminal he encounters. Originally published on Tor.com in December 2016, “The Story of Kao Yu” is now collected in Beagle’s THE OVERNEATH, available November 14th from Tachyon Publications.

Of the story, Beagle says it “comes out of a lifelong fascination with Asian legendry—Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Indian, Indonesian—all drawn from cultures where storytelling, in one form of another, remains a living art. As a young writer I loved everything from Robert van Gulik’s Judge Dee mysteries to Lafcadio Hearn’s translations of Japanese fairytales and many lesser-known fantasies. Like my story ‘The Tale of Junko and Sayuri,’ ‘The Story of Kao Yu’ is a respectful imitation of an ancient style, and never pretends to be anything else. But I wrote it with great care and love, and I’m still proud of it.”

Art: Alyssa Winans

There was a judge once in south China, a long time ago—during the reign of the Emperor Yao, it was—named Kao Yu. He was stern in his rulings, but fair and patient, and all but legendary for his honesty; it would have been a foolish criminal—or, yes, even a misguided Emperor—who attempted to bribe or coerce Kao Yu. Of early middle years, he was stocky and wideshouldered, if a little plump, and the features of his face were strong and striking, even if his hairline was retreating just a trifle. He was respected by all, and feared by those who should have feared him—what more can one ask from a judge even now? But this is a story about a case in which he came to feel—rightly or no—that he was the one on trial.

Kao Yu’s own wisdom and long experience generally governed his considerations in court, and his eventual rulings. But he was uniquely different from all other judges in all of China, in that when a problem came down to a matter of good versus evil—in a murder case, most often, or arson, or rape (which Kao Yu particularly despised), he would often submit that problem to the judgment of a unicorn.

For more info on THE OVERNEATH, visit the Tachyon page.

Cover design by Elizabeth Story

[filmnoirfoundation]

NOIR CITY 19 wraps up today at Oakland's Grand Lake Theatre with ON DANGEROUS GROUND (1:00), THE PROWLER (3:00), ODDS AGAINST TOMORROW (7:00) and FORCE OF EVIL (9:00). All films introduced by Eddie Muller.

Sunday Matinée • March 27

ON DANGEROUS GROUND1:00 PM

Big-city cop Jim Wilson (Robert Ryan), embittered by his job, has become a ticking time bomb. Aware that Wilson's unhinged brutality is a lawsuit waiting to happen, his boss sends him to a snowy upstate town to cool off. There, Wilson meets Mary Malden (Ida Lupino), a sage blind woman who sees through his cynicism and vitriol. But before she can melt his defenses, a young girl is found murdered, and Wilson throws himself into the vengeful manhunt for the killer. Ryan and Lupino give powerhouse performances in this unusually structured film, ingeniously and aggressively directed by Nicholas Ray. Half of it takes place in the nocturnal city, the other half in blinding white snowscapes; notions of natural and human duality abound. Featuring brilliant cinematography by George Diskant and one of Bernard Herrmann's most distinctive scores, which plays up the film's themes through an astounding juxtaposition of propulsive brass and wistful strings.

1952, RKO [Warner Bros.] 82 minutes. Screenplay by A. I. Bezzerides, based on the novel Made with Much Heart by Gerald Butler. Produced by John Houseman. Directed by Nicholas Ray.

THE PROWLER 3:00 PM

Patrolman Webb Garwood is more interested in achieving the American Dream than he is protecting it for others. After answering a woman's distress call about a peeping tom, Garwood hatches a nefarious plot to worm his way into her affluent but lonely life — and into her husband's life insurance policy. Van Heflin and Evelyn Keyes give stellar performances in this disturbing spider-and-fly romance, written covertly by legendary blacklisted screenwriter Dalton Trumbo and directed by the soon-to-be-blacklisted Joseph Losey. Largely dismissed by critics upon its release, it's now regarded as Losey's best American film, one that offers a compelling warning about small-minded people's willingness to abuse power for selfish gain. Restored in 2007 by the Film Noir Foundation and UCLA Film & Television Archive, the first triumph in a long-running partnership.

1951, Horizon Pictures/United Artists [FNF/UCLA Film & Television Archive]. 92 minutes. Screenplay by Dalton Trumbo (fronted by Hugo Butler) . Based on a story by Robert Thoeren and Hans Wilhelm. Produced by John Huston and Sam Spiegel (as S.P. Eagle). Directed by Joseph Losey.Sunday Evening •

ODDS AGAINST TOMORROW 7:00 PM

Disgraced ex-cop Dave Burke (Ed Begley) masterminds a piece-of-cake bank robbery in upstate New York, but to pull it off he requires the cooperation of two dangerously mismatched cohorts: hot-headed redneck war veteran Earle Slater (Robert Ryan) and gambling addict jazzman Johnny Ingram (Harry Belafonte); their racist antagonism threatens to thwart a seemingly fool-proof plan. Silent producer Belafonte hired blacklisted screenwriter Abraham Polonsky to adapt William P. McGivern's novel, specifically to subvert the sanctimony of The Defiant Ones (1958), a "feel good" movie about racism. Robert Wise's direction is as fresh and expressive as anything being done by the French New Wave of the period, and the score by John Lewis's Modern Jazz Quartet is innovative and exhilarating. With vivid supporting performances by Shelley Winters, Kim Hamilton, and Gloria Grahame. An all-time classic heist thriller—and much more.

1959, United Artists [Park Circus]. 96 minutes. Screenplay by Abraham Polonsky, with Nelson Gidding (fronted by John O. Killens). Based on the novel by William P. McGivern. Produced by Harry Belafonte (uncredited) and Robert Wise. Directed by Robert Wise.

FORCE OF EVIL 9:00 PM

One of the most distinctive works of the noir era, Abraham Polonsky's directorial debut is an exposé of the New York numbers racket and a riveting tale of a fallen man's attempt to reclaim his soul (John Garfield, in one of his best roles). Unfortunately for Polonsky, the House Committee on Un-American Activities also felt the film was a thinly veiled attack on the nation's capitalist system, suggesting parallels between the operations of businessmen and gangsters. Polonsky was blacklisted, unable to put his name on any work he produced over the next twenty years. Force of Evil is innovative and superlative in every respect; its stylized art direction complementing vivid New York location footage. With an evocative score by David Raksin and memorable performances by Thomas Gomez, Beatrice Pearson, Marie Windsor, and Roy Roberts.

1948, MGM [Park Circus]. 78 minutes. Screenplay by Abraham Polonsky and Ira Wolfert, from Wolfert's novel Tucker's People. Produced by Bob Roberts. Directed by Abraham Polonsky.

[davidmann95]

Superman’s 10 Best of the ‘10s

Good Miracle Monday, folks! The first third Monday of May of a new decade for that matter, and while that means that today in the DC Universe Superman just revealed his secret identity to the world on the latest anniversary of that time he defeated the devil, in ours it puts a capstone on a solid 10 years of his adventures now in the rear view mirror, ripe for reevaluation. And given there’s a nice solid ‘10′ right there I’ll go ahead with the obvious and list my own top ten for Superman comics of the past decade, with links in the titles to those I’ve spoken on in depth before - maybe you’ll find something you overlooked, or at least be reminded of good times.

A plethora of honorable mentions: I’m disqualifying team-ups or analogue character stories, but no list of the great Superman material of the last decade would be complete without bringing up Cave Carson Has A Cybernetic Eye #7, Avengers 34.1, Irredeemable, Sideways Annual #1, Supreme: Blue Rose, Justice League: Sixth Dimension, usage of him in Wonder Twins, (somewhat in spite of itself) Superior, from all I’ve heard New Super-Man, DCeased #5, and Batman: Super Friends. And while they couldn’t quite squeeze in, all due praise to the largely entertaining Superman: Unchained, the decades’ great Luthor epic in Superman: The Black Ring, a brilliant accompaniment to Scott Snyder’s work with Lex in Lex Luthor: Year of the Villain, the bonkers joy of the Superman/Luthor feature in Walmart’s Crisis On Infinite Earths tie-in comics, Geoff Johns and John Romita’s last-minute win in their Superman run with their final story 24 Hours, Tom Taylor’s quiet criticism of the very premise he was working with on Injustice and bitter reflection on the changing tides for the character in The Man of Yesterday, the decades’ most consistent Superman ongoing in Bryan Miller and company’s Smallville Season 11, and Superman: American Alien, which probably would have made the top ten but has been dropped like a hot potato by one and all for Reasons. In addition are several stories from Adventures of Superman, a book with enough winners to merit a class of its own: Rob Williams and Chris Weston’s thoughtful Savior, Kyle Killen and Pia Guerra’s haunting The Way These Things Begin, Marc Guggenheim and Joe Bennett’s heart-wrenching Tears For Krypton, Christos Gage and Eduardo Francisco’s melancholy Flowers For Bizarro, Josh Elder and Victor Ibanez’s deeply sappy but deeply effective Dear Superman, Ron Marz and Doc Shaner’s crowdpleasing Only Child, and Kelly Sue DeConnick and Valentine DeLandro’s super-sweet Mystery Box.

10. Greg Pak/Aaron Kuder’s Action Comics

Oh, what might’ve been. In spite of an all-timer creative team I can’t justify listing this run any higher given how profoundly and comprehensively compromised it is, from the status quo it was working with to the litany of ill-conceived crossovers to regular filler artists to its ignominious non-ending. But with the most visceral, dynamic, and truly humane take on Clark Kent perhaps of all time that still lives up to all Superman entails, and an indisputably iconic instant-classic moment to its name, I can’t justify excluding it either.

9. Action Comics #1000

Arguably the climax to the decade for the character as his original title became the first superhero comic to reach a 1000th issue. While any anthology of this sort is a crapshoot by nature, everyone involved here seemed to understand the enormity of the occasion and stepped up as best they could; while the lack of a Lois Lane story is indefensible, some are inevitably bland, and one or two are more than a bit bizarre, by and large this was a thoroughly charming tribute to the character and his history with a handful of legitimate all-timer short stories.

8. Faster Than A Bullet

Much as Adventures of Superman was rightfully considered an oasis amidst the New 52′s worst excesses post-Morrison and in part pre-Pak, few stories from it seem well-remembered now, and even at the time this third issue inexplicably seemed to draw little attention. Regardless, Matt Kindt and Stephen Segovia’s depiction of an hour in the life of Superman as he saves four planets first thing in the morning without anyone noticing - while clumsy in its efforts at paralleling the main events with a literal subplot of a conversation between Lois and Lex - is one of the best takes I can recall on the scope on which he operates, and ultimately the purpose of Clark Kent.

7. Man and Superman

Seemingly geared on every front against me, built as it was on several ideas of how to handle Superman’s origin I legitimately hate, and by a writer whose work over the years has rarely been to my liking, Marv Wolfman and Claudio Castellini’s Man and Superman somehow came out of nowhere to be one of my favorite takes on Clark Kent’s early days. With a Metropolis and characters within it that feel not only alive but lived-in, it’s shocking that a story written and drawn over ten years before it was actually published prefigured so many future approaches to its subject, and felt so of-the-moment in its depiction of a 20-something scrambling to figure out how to squeeze into his niche in the world when it actually reached stores.

6. Brian Bendis’s run

Controversial in the extreme, and indeed heir to several of Brian Bendis’s longstanding weaknesses as a writer, his work on The Man of Steel, Superman, and Action Comics has nevertheless been defined at least as much by its ambition and intuitive grasp of its lead, as well as fistfuls of some of the best artistic accompaniment in the industry. At turns bombastic space action, disaster flick, spy-fi, oddball crime serial, and family drama, its assorted diversions and legitimate attempts at shaking up the formula - or driving it into new territory altogether, as in the latest, apparently more longterm-minded unmasking of Clark Kent in Truth - have remained anchored and made palatable by an understanding of Superman’s voice, insecurities, and convictions that go virtually unmatched.

5. Strange Visitor

The boldest, most out-of-left-field Superman comic of the past 10 years, Joe Keatinge took the logline of Adventures of Superman to do whatever creators wanted with the character and, rather than getting back to a classic take absent from the mainline titles at the time as most others did, used the opportunity for a wildly expansive exploration of the hero from his second year in action to his far-distant final adventure. Alongside a murderer’s row of artists, Keatinge pulled off one of the few comics purely about how great Superman is that rather than falling prey to hollow self-indulgence actually managed to capture the wonder of its subject.

4. Superman: Up In The Sky

And here’s the other big “Superman’s just the best” comic the decade had to offer that actually pulled it off. Sadly if reasonably best-known for its one true misfire of a chapter, with the increasing antipathy towards Tom King among fans in general likely not helping, what ended up overlooked is that this is a stone-cold classic on moment of arrival. Andy Kubert turns in work that stands alongside the best of his career, Tom King’s style is honed to its cleanest edge by the 12-pager format and subject matter, and the quest they set their lead out on ends up a perfect vehicle to explore Superman’s drive to save others from a multitude of angles. I don’t know what its reputation will end up being in the long-term - I was struck how prosaic and subdued the back cover description was when I got this in hardcover, without any of the fanfare or critic quotes you’d expect from the writer of Mister Miracle and Vision tackling Superman - but while its one big problem prevents me from ranking it higher, this is going to remain an all-timer for me.

3. Jeff Loveness’s stories Help and Glasses

Cheating shamelessly here, but Jeff Loveness’s Help with David Williams and Glasses with Tom Grummett are absolutely two halves of the same coin, a pair of theses on Superman’s enduring relevance as a figure of hope and the core of Lois and Clark’s relationship that end up covering both sides of Superman the icon and Superman the guy. While basically illustrated essays, any sense of detached lecturing is utterly forbidden by the raw emotion on display here that instantly made them some of the most acclaimed Superman stories of the last several years; they’re basically guaranteed to remain in ‘best-of’ collections from now until the end of time.

2. Superman Smashes The Klan

A bitter race for the top spot, but #2 is no shame here; while not quite my favorite Superman story of the past ten years, it’s probably the most perfectly executed. While I don’t think anyone could have quite expected just *how* relevant this would be at the top of the decade, Gene Yang and Gurihiru put together an adventure in the best tradition of the Fleischer shorts and the occasional bystander-centered episodes of Batman: The Animated Series to explore racism’s both overt and subtle infections of society’s norms and institutions, the immigrant experience, and both of its leads’ senses of alienation and justice. Exciting, stirring, and insightful, it’s debuted to largely universal acknowledgement as being the best Superman story in years, and hopefully it’ll be continued to be marketed as such long-term.

1. Grant Morrison’s Action Comics

When it came time to make the hard choice, it came in no small part down to that I don’t think we would have ever seen a major Golden Age Superman revival project like Smashes The Klan in the first place if not for this. Even hampering by that godawful Jim Lee armor, inconsistent (if still generally very good) art, and a fandom that largely misunderstood it on arrival can’t detract from that this is Grant Morrison’s run on a Superman ongoing, a journey through Superman’s development as a character reframed as a coherent arc that takes him from Metropolis’s most beaten-down neighborhoods to the edge of the fifth dimension and the monstrous outermost limits of ‘Superman’ as a concept. It launched discussions of Superman as a corporate icon and his place relative to authority structures that have never entirely vanished, introduced multiple all-time great new villains, and made ‘t-shirt Superman’ a distinct era and mode of operation for the character that I’m skeptical will ever entirely go away. No other work on the character this decade had the bombast, scope, complexity, or ambition of this run, with few able to match its charm or heart. And once again, it was, cannot stress this enough, Grant Morrison on an ongoing Superman book.

[graphicpolicy]

Around the Tubes

Check out some comic news and reviews from around the web in our morning roundup #comics #comicbooks

The weekend is almost here and we’ll be celebrating the 4th at GP HQ by relaxing and social distancing. What will you all be doing? Anything geeky related? Sound off in the comments! While you wait for the weekday to end an weekend to begin, here’s some comic news and a review from around the web.

The Hollywood Reporter – Comic Stores and Diamond Distributors Clash as Industry Reopens– This…

[redcarpetview]

ATX TELEVISION FESTIVAL ANNOUNCES NEXT WAVE OF PROGRAMMING

       ATX Television Festival continues to announce major programming for season eight, which will take place June 6-9, 2019, in Austin, Texas.  

     ATX will premiere HBO's upcoming summer series "Euphoria," created, written by, and executive produced by Sam Levinson, as this opening night screening and panel on Thursday June 6th. "Euphoria” follows a group of high school students as they navigate drugs, sex, identity, trauma, social media, love and friendship. The screening will be followed by a panel conversation with creator/executive producer Sam Levinson, and cast members Zendaya, Hunter Schafer, Barbie Ferreira, and Eric Dane. Executive producers also include Drake, Future the Prince, Ravi Nandan, Kevin Turen, Hadas Mozes Lichtenstein, Ron Leshem, Daphna Levin, Tmira Yardeni, Mirit Toovi, Yoram Mokady, Gary Lennon and Jim Kleverweis. "Euphoria" is produced in partnership with A24, and based on the Israeli series of the same name from Ron Leshem and Daphna Levin.

       ABC’s record-breaking medical drama “Grey’s Anatomy” will screen the season 15 episode “Silent All These Years,” written by Elisabeth R. Finch and directed by Debbie Allen, which marks one of the series’ most riveting and emotional hours yet. The screening will be followed by a Q&A conversation with showrunner & executive producer Krista Vernoff, co-executive producer & writer Elisabeth R. Finch, and stars Camilla Luddington and Kim Raver, who will discuss the impact that the episode has had on viewers, as well as their approach to tackling topics of sexual assault and consent.

    Debbie Allen. Photo source www.facebook.com/TheRealDebbieAllen 

     This year’s festival will feature a screening of an all-new episode of Freeform’s “grown-ish,” followed by a Q&A with cast & creatives, including cast members Yara Shahidi, Trevor Jackson, Francia Raisa, Chloe Bailey, Halle Bailey, Emily Arlook and Jordan Buhat, and executive producer and writer Craig Doyle. “grown-ish” returns on Wednesday, June 5, at 8:00 p.m. ET/PT to finish out its sophomore season and joins the ATX line-up alongside the network’s freshman hit “Good Trouble,” which was previously announced.

       FXX’s award-winning, long-running animated comedy “Archer” will host an advance screening of an episode from the series’ upcoming tenth season, “Archer: 1999.” This season finds Sterling Archer, Lana Kane and their crew of acid-tongued misfits onboard the M/V Seamus salvage ship as they explore deep space and try to outsmart giant aliens, intergalactic pirates and vicious bounty hunters. The screening will feature a once-in-a-lifetime, never-to-be-seen-again special version of an upcoming episode -- with an element added exclusively for the ATX audience. The screening will be followed by a conversation with the creative team behind “Archer,” including executive producer Matt Thompson, actor H. Jon Benjamin (“Sterling Archer”), producer/art director Chad Hurd, and lead storyboard artist Taylor Parrish. “Archer: 1999” premieres May 29th on FXX.

        Yara Shahidi. Photo source Popsugar UK.

    In addition, Stephen Falk, creator/executive producer/writer/director of FXX’s critically acclaimed comedy series “You’re the Worst,” will participate in a discussion with writers, producers, and advocates who are working to destigmatize the conversation around mental health and mental illness through story and visibility. Additional panelists will be announced at a later date.

        Actor Kevin Bacon will join the festival’s previously announced presentation of the never-picked-up “Tremors” pilot from writer/executive producer Andrew Miller based on the 1990 film of the same name, featuring a selection of clips, a partial script reading, and discussion with cast and producers. Bacon, who was set to reprise his starring role as Valentine McKee, joins Andrew Miller, executive producer Jessica Rhoades, and cast members Toks Olagundoye, P.J. Byrne, Haley Tju, and Emily Tremaine for the panel.

             ATX’s non-profit foundation, The Syndication Project, will host a programming track for the second year, with a focus on encouraging actionable advocacy through storytelling. "Making Criminal Justice Matter," presented by the ACLU, in which writers and producers, along with a criminal law expert from the ACLU, will discuss the importance of working together to ensure authentic representations of current issues surrounding criminal justice, and  television’s impact on viewer opinions with regard to issues of police practices, racial profiling, and governmental and police abuses of authority. Confirmed panelists include co-showrunner/executive producer Sunil Nayar (“The Red Line”), showrunner/executive producer Joanna Johnson (“Good Trouble”), and showrunner/executive producer Anthony Sparks (“Queen Sugar”), with Twyla Carter, Senior Staff Attorney with the National ACLU's Criminal Law Reform Project, moderating. Additional panelists will be announced at a later date.

           “Resistance, Inclusion, and Creating Authentic Muslim Narratives” presented by the Muslim Public Affairs Council’s (MPAC) Hollywood Bureau will examine the collaborative efforts among consultants at MPAC and creatives and executives in the industry to raise the quantity and quality of Muslim representation on and off-screen. Confirmed panelists include showrunner/executive producer Carina Adly MacKenzie (“Roswell, New Mexico”), actress Nikohl Boosheri (“The Bold Type”), and Sue Obeidi (Director, MPAC's Hollywood Bureau). Additional panelists will be announced at a later date.

         The Television Academy joins The Syndication Project track with “Power(ful) TV,”  a panel discussion with writers & producers on how series can rise above trends and token characters by weaving in storylines of gender, race, religion, aging, immigration, health care, and more — all with the belief that exposing audiences to a variety of people, experiences, and worlds they might never encounter will foster understanding, empathy, and community. The conversation will be moderated by Television Academy President and Chief Operating Officer, Maury McIntyre. Panelists will be announced at a later date.

        Television Academy President and Chief Operating Officer, Maury McIntyre.       

    Previously announced programming includes:

 ●        “Presidents of the Guilds” panel, featuring Gabrielle Carteris, president, SAG-AFTRA, David A. Goodman, president, WGAW, and Thomas Schlamme, president, DGA

●        ABC Family series “Greek” reunion

●        Hulu’s “Veronica Mars” revival

●        Screening and Conversation with “One Day at a Time” Creatives & Cast

●        Hulu and Blumhouse Television’s “Into the Dark: Culture Shock”

●        “Letterkenny” screening and Q&A

●        An interactive conversation with Beau Willimon

●        “A Playwright Walks Into a Writers Room…” panel conversation with playwrights turned TV writers

●         “The House that Horror Built: Inside Blumhouse Television”

●        “Inside the Writers Room” panel with Starz’s critically-acclaimed series “Vida”

●        Closing Night Screening of Showtime’s “City on a Hill”

●        A panel exploring the “Power of Female Partnerships”

●        “Cancelled Too Soon” panel with “Men In Trees”

●        Freeform’s “Good Trouble”

●         “Let’s Talk about Sex (Scenes),” an honest discussion about empowering both writers and actors, and improving safe “sex” practices behind the camera

●        A panel presented by the Casting Society of America, featuring some of TV’s top casting directors

●        A one-on-one conversation titled “Scene Partners & Roommates,” with actors Margo Martindale and Shane McRae

●        “Everyone Is Doing Great” screening and Q&A

●        Netflix’s series “Atypical” panel

●        EPIX’s new series “Perpetual Grace, LTD” panel

●        An inside look at the “Tremors” pilot

●         IFC’s musical variety comedy “Sherman’s Showcase”

●        Comedy Central’s new sketch series “Alternatino with Arturo Castro”

●        Individual panelists Beatrice Springborn, Vice President, Content

    Development, Hulu; Jessica Rhoades, EP, “Sharp Objects,” “The Affair,” and Principal, Pacesetter; ATX Advisory Board member Kyle Killen, EP/showrunner of Showtime’s upcoming “Halo” series; and Mauricio Mota and Katie Elmore Mota, EPs, “East Los High,” and Co-Presidents of Wise Entertainment. 

       For the latest developments and information on how to attend, visit the ATX Television Festival official site www.atxfestival.com and follow us on Facebook & Twitter.

       For co-promotion, please link to @ATXFestival #ATXTVs8 on Twitter.

[agneskollarfilm]

Only Lovers Left Alive (2013)

Only Lovers Left Alive (2013), är den första film jag ser av regissören Jim Jarmusch (som själv ser ut lite som en vampyr). Filmen handlar om vampyr-kärleksparet Eve (Tilda Swinton) och Adam (Tom Hiddleston -va!? trodde det var Jared Leto! sköönt!) som levt och älskat i decennier... Men Adam, som lever ett isolerat liv i ett ödeområde i Detroit, är mycket nedstämd, plågad över människornas ovärdiga sätt att leva och behandla varandra. Eve, som då lever i den exotiska staden Tanger, Marocko, bestämmer sig för att resa till honom.

Filmen är stämningsfull, atmosfärisk (bra musik!!), suggestiv, vemodig, lite pretentiös (som väl enkelt kommer med vampyrpaketet, inget fel med det!) och lite långsam. Den liksom lunkar på, vilket är ganska härligt. Storyn känns lite tunn emellanåt, men det är okej. Historien kan mer ses som ett kikhål, en exklusiv glimt av en vardag ur deras långa, långa liv, ett kort besök som sedan tar slut, men deras liv kommer att fortsätta rulla på.

Jag upplever att denna berättelse blir som en slags metafor för de problem vi alla ställs inför i ett vanligt, mänskligt liv, men hur de i en supernatural förpackning liksom förstärks, vilket också skapar viss komik. Metaforen går att likna vid den som tv-serien Buffy the vampire slayer ofta jobbar med. Serien behandlar vanliga problem som en tonåring ställs inför. Första kärleken, internetdejting, grupptryck mm. Rädslan för att killen plötsligt förändras och blir kylig efter att man låtit honom komma riktigt nära. Eller tänk om hen jag chattar med inte är vem den utger sig för att vara? I Buffy ges dessa frågor övernaturliga proportioner, då första kärleken faktiskt visar sig förvandlas till en själlös demon efter första ligget (s02e13), internetdejten visar sig på riktigt vara en ond ande (s01e08), grupptrycket från coola gänget är starkare än vanligt då de alla är förhäxade av en magi som får dem att bete sig som en blodstörstig hyena-flock (s01e06), bokstavligt talat alltså. 

Only lovers left alive tar även den upp vardagliga, mänskliga problem -funderingar kring livet och döden som vi alla brottas med. Hur Adam och Eve reflekterar kring dagens och historiens människor (som dom refererar till som zombies) och över tiden som går. Filmen visar också hur döden faktiskt kommer enkelt även till vampyrer på ålderns höst. Och ett ytterligare exempel på liknelsen vid mänskliga problem är när Adam och Eve diskuterar hennes lillasyster Ava. I mitt huvud byggs snabbt en bild av ett demoniskt vampyr-monster upp. “Hon borde ligga begravd i en kista med en påle genom bröstet” säger Adam. Sen när hon tillsist dyker upp går det småningom upp för mig som tittare att hon bara är en heeelt vanlig störig lillasyster.

...med den skillnaden att hon efter en utekväll med Adams kompis inte fuckar upp genom att typ ligga med honom, utan att faktiskt tömma honom helt på blod för att han såg så aptitlig ut (classic stöööriiig lillasyster, right?). 

Filmen avslutas på ett ganska abrupt och komiskt sätt, när Adam och Eve, efter att ha porträtterats som två sofistikerade (förvisso nattens) varelser med bekymmer och grubbleri som vilken människa som helst, tillsist ändå i nödens namn drar fram huggtänderna och således visar sina innersta väsen, som trots allt inte är annat än två blodtörstande monster.

Mer Jim Jarmusch-film, tack!

[hardentao-blog]

Buying Watercolor Paintings

I’ve been buying watercolor paintings for decorating jobs.  I’ve found some really nice pieces on eBay.  I recently bought a watercolor painting by an artist named Y. Gianni.  The painting was produced in 1890 and depicted an Italian village.  It was very vivid and pleasing to look at.  WHIRLPOOL kenmore 9930

I was trying to find just the right watercolor painting for a client when I came across one by an artist named William B. Gillette.  The colors were pastel, ranging from soft greens, browns, blues, purples and peach.  The scene was that of a pebble beach and crashing waves.  The hills on one side gave the beach a feeling of privacy.  It really spoke to me and my client loved it.

There was a cabin that I was decorating for a discerning client that needed one more piece of art to complete the look I was going for.  I found a wonderful watercolor painting that fit just right.  It had a lot of mossy green colors and there was a lake with a lake house.  The artist turned out to be Charles Dickens Wader.  He is a well known artist from New York. eptwfu01 refrigerator water filter

I have a client that collects art from Romeo Tabuena.  I was fortunate to find two watercolors that the owners had purchased directly from Tabuena in the fifties when they lived in San Miguel.  The owner settled with me for an even thousand dollars.  My client was thrilled.

A lawyer friend of mine hired me to redecorate his office.  I had a lot of fun putting in things that reflected his interests and tastes.  He loves polo and I found a wonderful watercolor painting of two polo players on horses.  My friend liked the paintings and they have become a conversation piece in the new office.

My friend’s dad liked the office I decorated so much that he commissioned me to redecorate his office.  He is a hunter and I found a really nice watercolor painting of several mallard ducks flying above a marsh.  The painting was done by Jim Killen and he has painted for Ducks Unlimited.  His work is well known and respected.  My friend’s father really liked the find and proudly hung it in his reception area. ULTRA II Water Filter

I was really unsure where I was going to find suitable art for the program director’s office at a local radio station.  When I went to visit with him for a consultation, his office was absolutely stark.  I like watercolor paintings and that is my first choice for buying art.  I found a fantastic watercolor painting of Bob Marley surrounded by sunflowers.  It was awesome and perfect for this job.

There is a musician that I was working for a couple of years ago that wanted their studio decorated with paintings from the artist Raoul Dufy.  Raoul Dufy made a whole series of paintings called Hommage to Mozart.  I was able to purchase three watercolor paintings in this series.  I have always been on the lookout for more paintings to purchase for this client. w10295370a refrigerator water filter

A friend of mine asked me to find a watercolor painting to give to her mother.  I found one by Henry H. Parker that was of cattle in landscape.  The frame was what caught my eye at first because it is heavy gilt.  It would never hang in my house, but it looked great at my friend’s mother’s house.

[ranebowstitches]

We’ll Never See The Land (A Pirate Playlist) Listen on 8tracks: [xxx]

Drunken Sailor - Blaggards//Barrett's Privateers - Stan Rogers//Folk Medley - Richard Tognetti, Phillip Ayling, Eric Riegler, Jim Walker//Hansome Cabin Boy - Jolly Rogues//Gay Pirates - Cosmo Jarvis//This Ship's Going Down - Voltaire//Sea Fever - Kingston Trio//The Drunken Whaler - Copilot Strategic Sound//The Mariner's Revenge Song - The Decemberists//My Jolly Sailor Bold - Mermaid Song//Pirates and Mermaids - The Blue Sky Project//Old Polina - Great Big Sea//Rio Grande - Michael Stipe & Courtney Love with Jack Shit//Rocky Road To Dublin - Musical Blades//The Tempest - The Real McKenzies//Pirate Battle - Liquid Cinema//All for Me Grog - Louis Killen, Jeff and Gerret Warner, and Fud Benson//Home Boys Home - Quilty//Ocean Princess - Thomas Bergersen//Two Shots - Musical Blades

For all you pirates out there that wish to sail the seas singing sea shanties day in and day out~

[mjartsnet]

Great question to ask when you sense pain or discomfort. 1 min read the www.thedailyq.co (Image Sir Denis James “Jim” Killen oil on canvas by Robert Liddicoat www.mjarts.net) #askquestions #awakeatthewheel #accessconsciousness #thedailyq https://www.instagram.com/p/CB62oj8hKes/?igshid=1cpzwatmpxizc

[tachyonpub]

Nancy Springer’s intriguing THE ODDLING PRINCE is an absolute delight

Jim Killen for B&N SCI-FI & FANTASY BLOG includes Nancy Springer’s THE ODDLING PRINCE among The Best Science Fiction & Fantasy Books of May 2018.

Springer is the author of more than 50 books for children and adults; this one hits the sweet spot between them, a richly written story of two young men finding their true paths.

At TOE SIX PRESS, Sandra Ruttan praises the book.

THE ODDLING PRINCE is a quest, but if you are looking for a traditional quest you won’t find it here. It’s an intriguing story that has many twists and turns. Baldaric’s rejection of Albaric creates a gulf between Baldaric and Aric while Aric and Albaric bond. The fears and guilt that fester in the king’s soul are manifested throughout the land and although at one point Aric was concerned about saving his father the larger concern of saving the kingdom ultimately dominates everything. Can Aric, who has found true love as well as the love of a brother, find a way to unite his family so that they can live in peace? Or will sins of the past lead to a tragic future?

I do not want to give anything about this story away. It was an absolute delight to read.

SUBURBIA READS enjoys the novel.

What a wild ride I just took with this novel. THE ODDLING PRINCE was both a fast paced and intriguing tale about two brothers. Aric, the beloved heir to the throne, and Albaric, who is somewhat the oddball – or Oddling – in the family. Throughout this novel, we get to see both of these characters become close despite the difference in each of them

For more info on THE ODDLING PRINCE, visit the Tachyon page.

Cover art by Brian Giberson

Design by Elizabeth Story

[lyfestile]

My father knew James Chaney, Andrew Goodman and Mickey Schwerner were dead as soon as he got the call that they were missing. Their bodies weren’t found until 44 days later.

What happened between that phone call and the discovery of their bodies is a story that’s been bastardized by Hollywood, overlooked by those intent on ignoring America’s painful history and mired in misinformation. But anyone involved in the 1964 Freedom Summer in Mississippi knows one undeniable truth: Dick Gregory’s heroic battle with the FBI is the reason those bodies were found.

As Mississippi director for the Congress of Racial Equality, my dad, David Dennis, Sr., sent Goodman, Chaney and Schwerner to Longdale, MS to investigate a bombing at the Mount Zion church. What my father didn’t know at the time, but is sure of to this day, is that the KKK perpetrated the bombing to lure the three workers out and kill them. The Klan also prioritized Mickey Schwerner as a target. The young, fiery organizer was a dynamo at rallying black people to register to vote. Schwerner offended the Klan most of all because he was white. A traitor. And he was Jewish.

Goodman, Chaney and Schwerner never made it back home after going to investigate the bombing. They never stood a chance . Reports since have indicated the three were arrested for speeding and placed in Neshoba County Jail until 10 pm. The three men were then followed from the jail by a group of Klansmen, including Deputy Sheriff Cecil Ray Price.

The three activists were taken out of that station wagon and shot. Evidence indicates Andrew Goodman was buried alive next to the bodies of Chaney and Schwerner, in pre-prepared graves. There are also variations of the story that indicate that Schwerner and Goodman were shot once in the heart and died immediately and that James Chaney was tortured before being killed. The murders were a culmination of a thoroughly planned conspiracy that started with the burning down of Mt. Zion. A plan that went from the sheriff all the way down to local high school kids. This is what terrorism looks like. This is what war looks like.

My father planned to be with the three men when they took the trip to investigate the church bombing. He was supposed to be riding with them when they were murdered. However, his bronchitis got in the way and the three men convinced him to just go home and take care of it. So he reluctantly drove to Shreveport, LA to be with his mother and recover. That was the last time he saw them. My father awaited phone calls about the workers’ whereabouts as standard procedure any time he dispatched someone for an assignment. As soon as he learned the men hadn’t checked in, he knew they were dead. Everyone did. White and black.

However, the lynch mob that murdered the men hid the bodies under a dam built on the property of one of the Klansmen, turning the crime into a missing persons story. And since two of the missing men were white, it became national news.

For 44 days.

For 44 whole days, a country speculated on the whereabouts of the three slain workers. What haunts my father as much as anything else that happened with the three workers is the fact that during the search, more bodies turned up. Slain black men, lynched by the Klan. Local Klan members and even J. Edgar Hoover, who in May stated that “outsiders” coming to Mississippi for Freedom Summer would not be protected by the FBI, fanned the flames of conspiracy, insinuating the three men were Communists who were either killed by their own or fled to Cuba. It seemed likely that the bodies would never be found. If not for Dick Gregory.

Dick Gregory was on a tour for “Ban he Bar” disarmament efforts traveling through Europe and Asia, and was in Moscow when he heard the news that Goodman, Chaney and Schwerner were missing. He canceled the rest of his trip and was in Jackson, MS the same night. Once there, he immediately met with James Farmer, the head of CORE. Gregory, Farmer and a caravan of 16 cars headed to Philadelphia to try to find the men. Gregory, like everyone else, knew those men were dead.

“They knew without a shadow of a doubt that they had been killed,” Gregory said in a 1964 interview with Mississippi Eyewitness. Gregory’s caravan was stopped before being able to conduct a full search, but he was granted an audience with Sheriff Rainey. That’s what tipped Gregory off about the missing men.

“I thought it was kind of strange that they would even see us,” he continued to tell Mississippi Eyewitness. “Because no Mississippi law enforcement agency — no law enforcement agency in the world — would see anyone not connected with the case when they are in the middle of an investigation. So the fact that they would see us meant that they were afraid of something.”

Gregory noticed a nervousness in the meeting with the Neshoba County Sheriff Lawrence Rainey, who was a top conspirator to the murders, Deputy Sheriff Cecil Ray Price, who was part of the lynch mob, the Chief Investigator of the State Highway Police and a city attorney. Also, he noticed the city attorney would pipe in and answer all of the questions. Gregory cut the meeting short. He had all he needed. It became clear this was a government-sponsored lynching perpetrated by Neshoba County law enforcement.

Later, Gregory would say that he put his finger in Rainey’s face and said, “You know you did it. And we’re going to get you!” Gregory presented a singular problem for Rainey and his boys: he was a “nigger” they couldn’t make disappear.

Gregory knew that there wouldn’t be an investigation in earnest, so he had a plan.

I told Farmer, “Jim I’ve got the wildest idea.” He said, “ What?” I said, “You know, the only way we’re gonna get it out is with large sums of money. If you’ll put up $100,000, we’ll break this case in one week.”

The comedian wasn’t able to get the full $100,000 but he was able to get $25,000 thanks to a phone call to Hugh Hefner. “Hefner understood what those rednecks didn’t: that things had changed,” he told British GQ in 2011. That you could no longer argue that you’d ‘killed three Jews’. Or ‘killed three blacks’. What you’d done was, you’d killed three fellow human beings.”

Gregory drove to Meridian and announced a $25,000 reward for any information on the location of Goodman, Chaney and Schwerner. The next day, the FBI put out their own $30,000 reward. However it was Gregory who would receive a tip. “I received a letter quite some time ago that practically pinpointed the spot where the bodies were found,” he continued to tell Mississippi Eyewitness shortly after the bodies were found. “I gave this letter to the FBI and the FBI denied that the letter was any good. But they never denied the location stated in the letter.”

As far as many civil rights activists are concerned, it was the pressure Dick Gregory put on the FBI that led to the discovery of the three workers’ bodies. Anyone in Mississippi, my father included, believe the FBI always knew where the bodies were and only revealed where the bodies were after finding out Gregory also had that information. The importance of the discovery of those three bodies can’t be overstated as it revealed, once again, the hellish hatred resting in the heart of Mississippi for black people simply trying to get access to vote. The discovery of the bodies killed conspiracy theories and propaganda that wanted to convince the public that the three men had fled or weren’t victims of racial violence. And the revelation that the men were murdered provided the final straw, creating enough fervor for the 1964 Civil Rights Act to pass Congress.

Eventually 19 men would be tried. The state of Mississippi refused to prosecute them for murder so they went to trial for violating the civil rights of the three men they killed. Only seven of the men were convicted with sentences ranging from three to 10 years. In 2005, Edgar Ray Killen, who was 80 at the time, was convicted of manslaughter.

If you want to piss off anyone who participated in the 1964 Freedom Summer all you have to do is bring up Mississippi Burning. The 1988 movie stars Gene Hackman and Willem Dafoe and is a white-centered flick about the investigation into the murders of Goodman, Chaney and Schwerner. The movie depicted the FBI as the heroes in the case and glossed over any black heroism that took place that summer. And it never once mentions Dick Gregory. When my father talks about the movie, he always goes back to one fact: those bodies would not have been found if not for Dick Gregory. And the placement of the FBI as heroes is nothing but propaganda. In fact, in 1964, Gregory had a message for the government organization:

It sort of looks like the FBI has been going out of its way to gather information to clear the FBI rather than to solve the crime…It’s not so much what more the FBI could do. It’s what they have not and are not doing. You know, this whole business is crazy. If these Mississippi white Klansmen, who do not know how to plan crimes, who are ignorant, illiterate bastards, can completely baffle our FBI, what are all those brilliant Communist spies doing to us? A plane crashes and two weeks later the FBI patches up that plane so good that United can damn near use it again. And know exactly how it happened, and who did it. Do you mean to tell me that the FBI can’t go into the South and make arrests for racial killings that were not planned, which were not done by clever people? Frankly, I think the FBI is lying and hiding…No one else on the face of the earth today is blowing up churches and getting away with it. We all know that if a Negro would blow up one church any place, the FBI would not sleep until they brought him in. So, this proves to me that the FBI is not only a very vicious group, but also shows that the FBI, as far as the Negro is concerned, is a second Klu Klux Klan.

Dick Gregory is a hero. It’s a fact my dad has instilled in me since my childhood I was a child. I met him once and thanked him for all he did but I didn’t thank him enough. He helped bring justice for three men — that could have been four if my dad were in that car. He was fearless, relentless and unstoppable. He’s deserved every bit of praise and reverence he’s received since his passing and more for this story. I wish more people knew the real story about James Chaney, Andrew Goodman and Mickey Schwerner. Their murders, along with Dick Gregory’s pursuit of justice and civil rights, should be repeated in every classroom across the country.

David Dennis, Jr. is a writer and editor based out of Atlanta (but it’s still WHO DAT all day). He’s an adjunct professor at Morehouse College. His writing has appeared in The Guardian, The Smoking Section, Playboy, CNN Money, The Source, Complex.com, ESPN’s The Undefeated and wherever people argue about things on the Internet. He’s a New Orleans Press Club award recipient and has been cited in Best Music Writing. He’s also a proud alum of Davidson College.

Please recommend the article if you enjoyed it. Be sure to follow us on Twitter and Facebook, username WeAreStillCrew.

[huntinggearsuperstores]

Gills N Game Labrador Retriever Mesh Back Jim Killen Art Sportsman Hat

https://huntinggearsuperstore.com/product/gills-n-game-labrador-retriever-mesh-back-jim-killen-art-sportsman-hat/

One Size Fits Most Hat featuring art from Jim Killen Gills N Game Labrador Retriever Mesh Back Sportsman Hat

[goddesstv]

The Wizard Oz from Animal on Vimeo.

Oberon Zell-Ravenheart, known simply as "OZ”, is a self-described wizard who created a life for himself that is truly stranger than fiction. His tale conjures stories of unicorns, mermaids, a serial killer and the most cryptic magic of all, love.

'The Wizard Oz' is this week's Staff Pick Premiere. Read more about it here: vimeo.com/blog/post/staff-pick-premiere-the-remarkable-life-of-the-wiz

Production Company - Animal (animalstudio.com) Director/Producer - Danny Yourd Cinematography - John Pope Editor - Mike LaHood Writer - Danny Yourd & Mike LaHood Executive Producer - Michael Killen, Kathy Dziubek, Jim Kreitzburg Additional Writing - Fil Velgach Assistant Camera - Mike Bacanu Color Grade - Curtis Abbott Intro Sequence Art Direction - Kellan Andersen Title Design - Gavin Kosko Audio Post Facility - Defacto Sound (defactosound.com) Re-Recording Mixer - Colin DeVarney Supervising Sound Editor - Dallas Taylor, MPSE Sound Designers - Colin DeVarney, Nick Spradlin, Kenneth Gilbert Dialog Editors - Colin DeVarney & Nick Spradlin Audio Post Producer - Samantha Schneble Special thanks to Yvonne Leach

[designerd]

WATCH THE NEW SHOW BASED ON THIS WEB SERIES STARTING WEDNESDAY MAY 17 9:30|8:30c ON ABC : http://ift.tt/2nnE3vc 00:00 - Episode 1: Friendship 01:17 - Episode 2: Walking 02:32 - Episode 3: Aging 03:51 - Episode 4: Animal Instincts 05:22 - Episode 5: Special Time 07:06 - Episode 6: Driving 08:36 - Episode 7: One Good Thing Created by Michael Killen and Samm Hodges, and produced by the team at Animal (www.animalstudio.com), “Downward Dog” is the original web series that provided the inspiration for the upcoming ABC comedy of the same name. ABC’s “Downward Dog” follows the day-to-day life of Nan (played by Emmy and Golden Globe-nominated Allison Tolman, "Fargo"), as told by her increasingly lonely and philosophical dog, Martin. The broadcast series is created and written by Samm Hodges and Michael Killen, who will executive produce with Mosaic Media Group’s Jimmy Miller and Sam Hansen, Animal’s Kathy Dziubek, and showrunners Kat Likkel and John Hoberg. It stars Tolman, Lucas Neff as Jason, Kirby Howell-Baptiste as Jenn, and Barry Rothbart as Kevin. The series, from Legendary Television and ABC Studios, premieres on ABC in May. Production Company: Animal (www.animalstudio.com) Creators: Michael Killen & Samm Hodges Director: Michael Killen Writer: Samm Hodges Director of Photography: Stephen Hunter Executive Producer: Michael Killen, Kathy Dziubek, Jim Kreitzburg, Danny Yourd Producer: Amy Kersnick, Nancy Richert Associate Producer: Ally Oleynik Editor: Elisabeth Voltz Post Producer: Nathan Voltz VFX: Animal Color & Finishing: Allan Stallard Title & Credit Design: Idil Gozde, Joe Oak Composer: Danny Bracken Sound Design: Defacto Sound (www.defactosound.com) Additional Music: Dr. Dog “The Breeze” STARRING Sadie Torles, Martin Rachel Vallozzi, Nan Samm Hodges, Martin's Voice Jack Horovitz, Tony Mousse, Herself Myra Oleynik, Mousse Owner Dr. Joanna Rubin, Veterinarian Matt Dobbins, Veterinarian Assistant Hazel, Pepper Marilyn Hesemann, Pepper Owner