Watching Classic Movies

Pre-Code Essentials Authors Kim Luperi and Danny Reid

There is no period in film history quite like theso-called pre-Code era, where the new production code put in place to keep thefilm industry in line didn’t quite do what

Esther Bley of Queer Animation

My guest is Esther Bley, creator of the beautifully-curated Queer Animation database and writer for Cartoon Research. We talked about queer images in animation from the p

Bogart and Huston Author Nat Segaloff

The six films that Humphrey Bogart and director John Huston made together are some of the best of Hollywood’s golden age. These men are also complex and endlessly fascina

Hayley Mills' Young Adult Roles with Kate Gabrielle

Lately I’ve been fascinated by the roles Hayley Mills played in her early adult years. The parts she picked in an effort to shake off the Disney child-star image are a mi

Born in Flames Director Lizzie Borden

From the first rebellious strains of the title tune by the Red Crayola, I knew Born In Flames (1983) was going to be a special movie. It was anhonor to talk about this ti

Underseen Giallos with Kristina Dijan

My guest is Kristina Dijan, writer of the longtime blog Speakeasy and a senior writer at the Dark Pages film noir newsletter. Kristina and I met at the TCM Classic Film F

Single & Psycho: How Pop Culture Created the Unstable Single Woman Author Caroline Young

My guest is Caroline Young, author of Single & Psycho: How Pop Culture Created the Unstable Single Woman. We talked about the many ways unmarried women are represented in

Cesar Romero: The Joker Is Wild Author Samuel Garza Bernstein

Though he has appeared in over two hundred films and television shows for generations of fans, Cesar Romero will always be theJoker. While his series of guest appearances

TCM Classic Movie Festival Memories with Karen Burroughs Hannsberry and Aurora Bugallo

One of the best decisions I ever made was to attend the TCM Classic Film Festival and I’ve done that for several years. There are thousandsof movie fans who feel the same

Helen Morgan: The Original Torch Singer and Ziegfeld’s Last Star Author Christopher S. Connelly

My guest is Christopher S. Connelly, author of Helen Morgan: The Original Torch Singer and Ziegfeld’s Last Star. Morgan was a hugely popular singer and actress who set th

Talking Sudden Fear (1952) with Robert Bellissimo of Robert Bellissimo At the Movies

Robert Bellissimo has had me as his guest on his excellent Robert Bellissimo at the Movies video podcast two times: once to discuss the sci-fi/film noir Repeat Performanc

Corpses Fools and Monsters: The History and Future of Transness in Cinema co-author Willow Catelyn Maclay

It is rare to find a new film book that is destined to be a classic, but Corpses, Fools and Monsters: The History and Future of Transness in Cinema is just that. Co-writt

Save our Scarecrow: How to Help Preserve the 150K Archive of the World's Biggest Video Store

With a collection of nearly 150,000 titles, Scarecrow Video in Seattle, Washington is one of the largest, if not the largest publicly available archives of film in the wo

Not Even Nominated: 40 Overlooked Costars of Oscar-Winning Performances Author John DiLeo

My guest is John DiLeo, author of eight film books, including his latest, Not Even Nominated: 40 Overlooked Costars of Oscar-Winning Performances. We talked about the com

Nat Segaloff, Author of The Exorcist Legacy: 50 Years of Fear

My guest is Nat Segaloff, author of The Exorcist Legacy: 50 Years of Fear. Nat is uniquely qualified to write about this controversial classic. As a publicist working for

Talking Melodrama with Millie De Chirico

Melodrama, it’s much more than Douglas Sirk-directed mid-century dramas, I had a great talk with writer, film programmer, podcaster, and teacher Millie De Chirico about w

Robert Dance, Author of Ferocious Ambition: Joan Crawford's March Towards Stardom

There are few stars who have reached the heights that Joan Crawford did. In his book Ferocious Ambition: Joan Crawford’s March to Stardom my guest Robert Dance explores h

Nat Segaloff, Author of Say Hello to My Little Friend: A Century of Scarface

The two cinematic versions of Scarface were influential films which reflected their times, the thirties and eighties respectively. The prolific Nat Segaloff explores thei

Odie Henderson, Author of Black Caesars and Foxy Cleopatras: A History of Blaxploitation Cinema

Film critic Odie Henderson has applied his vast film knowledge and solid storytelling skills to the writing of an excellent new book Buy Odie's Book Check out Odie's B

Authors of Eleanor Powell: Born to Dance Paula Broussard and Lisa Royère

Eleanor Powell was Hollywood’s best female tapper, but she isn’t nearly as well known as screen hoofers like Fred Astaire and Gene Kelly. With their book Eleanor Powell: