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At this year’s Tony Awards “Suffs” managed to win prizes for Best Musical Book and Best Score, both of which went to Shaina Taub. Historically, winning those two accolades in particular would bode well for a show’s chances at Best Musical. Yet in a shocking turn of events, the top award went to “The Outsiders.” But this is not the first time something like this has happened.

SEETony Awards: Every winner (and nominee) in all 26 competitive categories

In 1978 “On the Twentieth Century” won Tonys for Best Score and Best Book (Comden and Green). It also won Best Actor in a Musical (John Cullum), Best Featured Actor in a Musical (Kevin Kline), and Best Scenic Design (Robin Wagner). Yet Best Musical that year went to Murray Horwitz and Richard Maltby Jr.‘s revue “Ain’t Misbehavin’.” A tribute to the music of Fats Waller, it also won Tonys for Best...

“Illinoise” is something of an anomaly for a Broadway show. It is competing in the Best Musical race at the 2024 Tony Awards, but the story is told entirely through modern dance as a trio of singers lead the audience through the music of Sufjan Stevens. It doesn’t fit any typical mold for Broadway. The production’s hopes of winning the coveted Best Musical prize at the Tonys hinge on “Illinoise” becoming yet another anomaly: it’s hoping to be the first tuner in 25 years to win Best Musical without nominations for Original Score and Book.

In addition to a nomination in the top category, “Illinoise” picked up bids for Choreography (Justin Peck), Orchestrations and Lighting Design of a Musical. Industry insiders who once believed the show’s unique storytelling would make it a slam dunk to take home the crown immediately changed their predictions because of the many places the dance piece fell short.

In the age of streaming, we’ve come to expect that every movie and TV series must be streaming somewhere; Of course, that’s not always the case as one beloved ’90s TV show just made its streaming debut for the first time ever. All six seasons of Northern Exposure are now streaming on Prime Video, marking the first time the series has streamed on any platform.

Northern Exposure starred Rob Morrow as Joel Fleischman, a recently graduated New York City physician who is sent to practice in Anchorage, Alaska, for several years to repay the state of Alaska for underwriting his medical education. He’s assigned to the remote town of Cicely, occupied by a variety of quirky and eccentric characters. The ensemble cast included Barry Corbin, Janine Turner, John Cullum, Cynthia Geary, John Corbett, Darren E. Burrows, Peg Phillips, Eliane Miles, Paul Provenza, and Teri Polo.

Morrow wound...

All six seasons of the classic multiple Emmy-winning dramedy Northern Exposure are currently streaming on Prime Video, the first time the series has streamed on any platform. Before the episodes were quietly uploaded to Prime, the series was only available for digital purchase or on DVD.

Northern Exposure starred Rob Morrow as Dr. Joel Fleischman, a recently graduated New York City physician, who is forced to practice in a small town in Alaska in order to repay the state for underwriting his medical education.

Created by Joshua Brand and John Falsey, the series ran on CBS from 1990-1995. Over the course of its run, it received 39 Emmy nominations, winning seven, including the 1992 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Drama Series and Outstanding Supporting Actress for Valerie Mahaffrey, as well as four Creative Arts Emmy Awards, and two Golden Globes.

The ensemble cast also included Barry Corbin, Janine Turner, John Cullum, Darren E. Burrows,...

Prime Video has quietly uploaded all six seasons of the beloved 1990s show Northern Exposure, allowing viewers to stream it for the first time. The show, which followed a New York City physician moving to a small Alaskan town, became more focused on the ensemble and citizens of Alaska as it went on. Northern Exposure was an awards juggernaut, winning 27 out of 57 nominations and even the Emmy for Outstanding Drama Series in 1992.

A beloved 1990s show, Northern Exposure, is streaming for the first time ever. Co-created by Joshua Brand and John Falsey, who also created shows like St. Elsewhere and I’ll Fly Away, the dramedy ran for six seasons and 110 episodes. It focused on a New York City physician as he moved to a small Alaskan town. Although it has been made available on DVD and Blu-ray, Northern Exposure hasn’t streamed anywhere because of rights issues.

That's now changed,...

Who’s ready for a return trip to Cicely, Alaska?

After years stuck in streaming limbo, early ’90s classic Northern Exposure — the fifth most sought-after, non-streaming show in a July TVLine poll — is now available to binge Stateside on Prime Video. All six seasons (110 episodes) have quietly been uploaded to the service in high definition and retain their original 4:3 aspect ratio.

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At first glance, it appears two episodes were...

Ever since movies began, filmmakers have depicted the end of the world of the world on screen whether it be from floods, asteroids, comets, alien invasion and even Zombies. But cinema went nuclear after the dropping of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August, 1945. The arrival of the nuclear age heralded the introduction of a new sub-genre: destruction by atomic bomb. And with the release July 21 of Christopher Nolan’s lauded “Oppenheimer,” which domestically earned some $70 million in its opening weekend, let’s look at some of the vintage flicks of the genre.

Nuclear destruction of London is stopped at the last moment in the taut 1950 British film “Seven Days to Noon,” directed by John and Roy Boulting and winners of the original story Oscar, stars veteran character actor Barry Jones as a brilliant scientist working at an atomic research center in London who steals an A-bomb that...

It was a night of firsts, lasts and an upset win as TV’s finest gathered together to celebrate the 45th Primetime Emmy Awards on ABC on September 19, 1993. Even the host made history — in more ways than one. Read on for our Emmys flashback 30 years ago to 1993.

For the first time ever, the ceremony was hosted solely by a female — who was also, ironically, the unluckiest actress in Emmy history. Up for her 13th Emmy nomination that evening, Angela Lansbury guided the ceremony with her usual grace. Lansbury passed away in 2022, with the record of most Best Drama Actress bids as well as the record for most overall nominations without a win at 18. However, she wasn’t the only one nominated at this ceremony who has never won despite numerous nominations, or the only one to lay claim to an unfortunate record.

After a stellar year in 1992, reigning Best Drama...

This year’s Tonys will be held on June 11, so the American Theatre Wing will likely be announcing its lifetime achievement award recipient in the near future. Who do you think should take home this prestigious trophy, which honors an individual’s body of work? It has gone to veteran stage performers, directors, choreographers, playwrights, songwriters, producers, and designers. In some years we get multiple recipients.

Last year legendary five-time competitive Tony winner Angela Lansbury received this honor about four months before her death on October 11 at the age of 96. The following living performers have also already received this award and thus won’t be chosen again: Tommy Tune, James Earl Jones, Chita Rivera, and Rosemary Harris.

Here are the 10 possibilities featured in our poll below, all performers over the age of 65. Vote to let us know who you’d like to see honored.

SEEBrian d’Arcy James (‘Into the...

Exclusive: Gravitas Ventures has acquired North American right to Genevieve Adams’ dramedy Simchas and Sorrows, along with worldwide rights to Peter Curtis Pardini’s doc The Last Band on Stage, and North American rights to Jaclyn Bethany’s queer thriller, The Falling World. The Anthem Sports & Entertainment Company will release the former title at the Laemmle Noho in Los Angeles on September 16, and on all major digital and VOD platforms on the 20th. Pardini’s film will hit VOD and theaters in three cities on September 30, with Bethany’s indie unspooling on VOD on October 18.

Simchas and Sorrows tells the story of Agnes (Adams), an atheist actress who attempts to convert to Judaism to marry the love of her life, Levi (Thomas McDonnell). Adams directed the pic from her script, with Hari Nef, Luke Forbes, Julie Haltson, Greg Bello, Annelise Cepero, Billy Calder, Lucy Morris, Chip Zien and John Cullum rounding out the cast.

The 2021-2022 Broadway season has been quite a busy one for actor Brandon J. Dirden. First he appeared opposite Phylicia Rashad in Manhattan Theatre Club’s presentation of Dominique Morisseau‘s play “Skeleton Crew” this past winter. Now he can be seen in Second Stage Theater’s revival of Richard Greenberg‘s 2003 Tony-winning play “Take Me Out.” After having previously appeared in award-winning Broadway productions of “Clybourne Park” (2012), “All the Way” (2014), and “Jitney” (2017), will either of Dirden’s two main stem appearances from this past year make him a first-time Tony nominee?

In “Skeleton Crew,” Dirden played Reggie, the manager of one of the last auto stamping plants in Detroit. The company is on shaky ground and the workers have to make choices about how to move forward if their plant goes under. All the while Reggie is torn between doing right by his work family and the red tape in his office.

Charlie Hunnam is the most interesting of movie stars. His latest, Jungleland, stars the British thespian as one half of a brotherly duo that are a literal one-two punch.

Stanley (Hunnam) trains, manages, and does everything he can for his bare-knuckled boxing brother, known as Lion (Jack O’Connell).

When Stanley gets into a bit of gambling trouble, he is given a task by the man holding the debt, Pepper (Jonathan Majors of Lovecraft Country). Lion and his older brother must take Sky, who they believe may be a prostitute, to Reno.

In the Nevada city awaits Yates (John Cullum), who believes Sky is his property. Yeah, not the nicest guy.

Not only do Lion and Stanley have the opportunity to erase the latter’s debt, but Pepper has promised Lion a spot on the card of an epic (and titular) Oakland-based boxing tourney after they drop off Sky in the...

Director Max Winkler (who co-wrote with Theodore Bressman and David Branson Smith) opens his latest film Jungleland with a great reveal. We meet Stanley (Charlie Hunnam) as he wakes his younger brother Lion (Jack O’Connell) up, staring out the window with a huge grin on his face. He’s talking about the future and how it’s paved with gold. California is in sights, boxing stardom is in reach, and all they have to do is win this fight. So Lion gets out of bed, does some training, and readies to make their dreams come true with his fists. But instead of watching them exit their home, hotel room, or wherever, Winkler moves the camera outside a repossessed building’s door so the Kaminsky siblings can lower themselves out a window.

Lion isn’t therefore a professional fighter. He’s a once promising prospect now relegated to bare-knuckle tickets organized...

"We got one option – we fight." Paramount has released a trailer for an emotional and gritty drama about brothers titled Jungleland, the latest from talented filmmaker Max Winkler (of Ceremony and Flower). A reluctant bare-knuckle boxer and his manager / brother must travel across the country for one last fight to pay off a debt to a mob boss, but an unexpected travel companion exposes the cracks in their bond along the way. Charlie Hunnam and Jack O'Connell star as the brothers Stan and Lion, with an exquisite cast featuring Jonathan Majors, Jessica Barden, Fran Kranz, John Cullum, Owen Burke, as well as Meredith Holzman. This is one hell of a trailer, also a showcase for the stunning cinematography by Dp Damián García. A strong reminder that Winkler is a very good filmmaker and I hope he keeps making more. Here's the first official trailer (+ poster) for Max Winkler's Jungleland, from...

“The Acolyte” Doomsday Comedy Rewards Kickstarter Backers In Toilet Paper Drops New Trailer Is there hope for the modern world? Or are we beyond the point of no return? Griffin Newman and Tony-winner John Cullum star in the story of an …

The post Doomsday Comedy from Mooney Suzuki Frontman Offers Toilet Paper to Kickstarter Backers appeared first on Hnn | Horrornews.net.

Ann Crumb, the stage’s Aspects of Love star who became the first American actress chosen by Andrew Lloyd Webber to originate a starring role, died yesterday of ovarian cancer at her parents’ home in Pennsylvania. She was 69.

Her death, which followed a nearly five-year battle with the disease, was announced by her press spokesman Kevin McAnarney.

The musical theater actress and singer created numerous leading roles on Broadway and London’s West End, including roles in The Goodbye Girl, Nine, Les Miserables, Chess, and, in a 1992 Broadway performance that earned her a Best Actress Tony Award nomination, Anna Karenina.

Lloyd Webber had personally chosen Crumb, born in Charleston, West Virginia, to originate the lead role of Rose Vibert when his musical Aspects of Love opened in London in 1989 and on Broadway a year later. She would also star opposite John Cullum in the National tour of Man Of La Mancha...

In Max Winkler’s “Jungleland,” Jack O’Connell and Charlie Hunnam have a very familiar movie-sibling dynamic, playing brothers respectively “good” and ne’er-do-well, tough guys in the brutal business of boxing who’ve been knocked around a bit too much by life in general. This may inevitably recall the fairly recent likes of “The Fighter” and “Warrior,” excellent movies with other fine lead actors that likewise tipped hat to the gritty ’70s cinema of “Fat City” and “Rocky” — which in turn cast a critical yet longing gaze back to palooka dramas from Hollywood’s golden age.

“Jungleland” isn’t as good as any of those above-named films, but it’s good enough to make you wish it weren’t just so incredibly redolent of them. It’s the kind of enterprise that has everything but a single fresh idea, or even moment. It’s a very serious film in...

Broadway’s Waitress will close Jan. 5, 2020, the show’s producers announced today. The Sara Bareilles musical, directed by Diane Paulus, began previews at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre on March 25, 2016, opened on April 24, and will have played 33 previews and 1,544 regular performances by closing night.

The announcement was made by lead producers Barry and Fran Weissler.

With a book by Jessie Nelson, music and lyrics by Bareilles and choreography by Lorin Latarro, Waitress was based on the 2007 film written and directed by Adrienne Shelly starring Keri Russell.

The musical adaptation premiered at Boston’s American Repertory Theatre in summer 2015 before moving to Broadway.

Broadway’s Waitress originally starred Jessie Mueller as Jenna, the pie-maker stuck in an abusive marriage. In its nearly four-year run, the production has featured cast members Adam Shapiro, Al Roker, Betsy Wolfe, Christopher Fitzgerald, Colleen Ballinger, Dakin Matthews, Drew Gehling, Eddie Jemison, Erich Bergen, Gavin Creel, Jason Mraz,...

Six random things that happened on this day (June 11th) in showbiz history

1966 On a Clear Day You Can See Forever starring the great Barbara Harris and John Cullum closes on Broadway shortly before the Tony Awards, where it will lose all three of its nominations. It was snubbed in Best Musical where Man of La Mancha won and Mame, Skyscraper, and Sweet Charity were all nominated. Nevertheless it was quicker than all but Sweet Charity in getting a big screen adaptation. Barbra Streisand starred.

1969 Peter Dinklage is born (Happy 50th!). Do you think he's headed for a fourth Emmy win for Game of Thrones? Do you remember the first time you saw him? For us it was The Station Agent (2003), such a gem from the early Aughts...

1968: Dark Shadows' Joe & Guthrie tried to break into Laura's tomb.

1984: Guiding Light's Mindy considered an abortion.

1990: General Hospital's Julian pulled a gun on Paget ("Duke").

1992: Days of our Lives' Vivian arrived in Salem."History speaks to artists. It changes the artist's thinking and is constantly reshaping it into d ifferent and unexpected images."

― Anselm Kiefer

"Today in Soap Opera History" is a collection of the most memorable, interesting and influential events in the history of scripted, serialized programs. From birthdays and anniversaries to scandals and controversies, every day this column celebrates the soap opera in American culture.

On this date in...

1952: Radio serial Whispering Sheets premiered. The show was a "serial with a twist." Each new episode presented the story from one character's perspective, and the character that was being focused on changed each day. The fictional narrator--and principal expositor--for the program was "Hope Winslow,...

Are you a big fan of Northern Exposure? Deadline reports CBS is developing a revival with the TV show's original cast and creators.

The ’90s dramedy followed Dr. Joel Fleischman (Rob Morrow), a New York City physician who is sent to the small town of Cicely, Alaska. The cast also includes Barry Corbin, Janine Turner, John Cullum, Cynthia Geary, and John Corbett. The show originally ran on CBS for six seasons between 1990 and 1995.

Read More…...

You feel that chill in the air? Yep, CBS is developing a revival of the quirky Emmy-winning dramedy Northern Exposure, according to a report from our sister site Variety.

Rob Morrow, who starred in the original 1990-95 series as Dr. Joel Fleischman, will reprise his role in the revival, with original creators Josh Brand and John Falsey on board as executive producers. (Brand will pen the revival.) John Corbett, who played local radio DJ Chris Stevens in the original series, will also serve as an producer, but is not confirmed to reprise his on-screen role as of yet.

The new...

A revival of “Northern Exposure” is currently in development at CBS, Variety has learned.

Original series star Rob Morrow will reprise his role as Dr. Joel Fleischman, who returns to Cicely, Alaska, for the funeral of an old friend. Once there, he finds a new set of quirky characters and reunites with old ones.

Morrow will also executive produce in addition to starring. Fellow original series star John Corbett is attached as a producer, though he is not set to appear in the revival at this time.

Josh Brand will write and executive produce, with Morrow, John Falsey, and Ben Silverman executive producing. Universal Television will produce. Brand and Falsey co-created the original series. The duo also co-created the medical drama “St. Elsewhere” as well as shows like “A Year in the Life,” “Going to Extremes,” and “I’ll Fly Away.”

“Northern Exposure” ran for six seasons and over 100 episodes...

While the Drama Desk Awards nominate a slew of off-Broadway fare, almost all of the winners come from Broadway, even when there are only one or two of these bigger budget shows in the running in a race. That was once again the case on Sunday when 10 of the 12 of the winners in the play categories were Broadway productions. On the musical front, it was 14 for 16, with only the off-Broadway tuner “Desperate Measures” breaking through with wins for both lyrics and music. (Read the full report on the 2018 Drama Desk Awards and see the full list of Drama Desk Awards winners.)

What’s most disappointing about this continual shut-out of off-Broadway shows is that these kudos were created to do just the opposite. While the Tony Awards, which date back to 1947, celebrate the best of Broadway, the Drama Desk kudos were begun in 1955 to celebrate the rest of the New York theater world.

1968: Dark Shadows' Joe & Guthrie tried to break into Laura's tomb.

1984: Guiding Light's Mindy considered an abortion.

1990: General Hospital's Julian pulled a gun on Paget ("Duke").

1992: Days of our Lives' Vivian arrived in Salem."Whoever wishes to foresee the future must consult the past; for human events ever resemble those of preceding times. This arises from the fact that they are produced by men who ever have been, and ever shall be, animated by the same passions, and thus they necessarily have the same results."

― Machiavelli

"Today in Soap Opera History" is a collection of the most memorable, interesting and influential events in the history of scripted, serialized programs. From birthdays and anniversaries to scandals and controversies, every day this column celebrates the soap opera in American culture.

On this date in...

1952: Radio serial Whispering Sheets premiered. The show was a "serial with a twist.

Tonight, October 5, 2017, Tony Award winner John Cullum will join the Broadway musical Waitress in the role of Joe, the cantankerous owner of Joe's Pie Diner, home to the titular pie-maker's extraordinary confections.

The producers of the smash hit Waitress have announced that on October 5, 2017, Tony Award winner John Cullum will join the Broadway musical in the role of Joe, the cantankerous owner of Joe's Pie Diner, home to the titular pie-maker's extraordinary confections.

(See previous post: Fourth of July Movies: Escapism During a Weird Year.) On the evening of the Fourth of July, besides fireworks, fire hazards, and Yankee Doodle Dandy, if you're watching TCM in the U.S. and Canada, there's the following: Peter H. Hunt's 1776 (1972), a largely forgotten film musical based on the Broadway hit with music by Sherman Edwards. William Daniels, who was recently on TCM talking about 1776 and a couple of other movies (A Thousand Clowns, Dodsworth), has one of the key roles as John Adams. Howard Da Silva, blacklisted for over a decade after being named a communist during the House Un-American Committee hearings of the early 1950s (Robert Taylor was one who mentioned him in his testimony), plays Benjamin Franklin. Ken Howard is Thomas Jefferson, a role he would reprise in John Huston's 1976 short Independence. (In the short, Pat Hingle was cast as John Adams; Eli Wallach was Benjamin Franklin.) Warner...

Could there be a Northern Exposure revival? Recently, the cast of the CBS TV show told the Today show that "something is in the works," The Wrap reports.The '90s dramedy followed Dr. Joel Fleischman (Rob Morrow), a New York City physician who is sent to the small town of Cicely, Alaska. The cast also includes Barry Corbin, Janine Turner, John Cullum, Cynthia Geary, and John Corbett. The show originally ran for six seasons between 1990 and 1995.Read More…...

Convincing an arms dealer to negotiate a temporary peace treaty between two of his clients is nothing getting your kids into college.

Elizabeth took multitasking to a whole new level on Madam Secretary Season 3 Episode 19 as she managed to broker a deal to save thousand from starvation and still "be" with the family for the reveal of Ali's big news.

While the nitty-gritty of implementing a cease fire through back channels and arranging aid for thousands of people was interesting, and tracking terrorists provides high stakes, it was the McCord home life that stole the show. 

Henry and Elizabeth's relationship is clearly the bedrock of Madame Secretary, but I loved how this really broke down how they parent, and how they make their family work. It doesn't just happen. It's a coordinated effort, a deliberate exercise, not just a series of off the cuff reactions.

But I think the key...

Title: Christine Director: Antonio Campos Starring: Rebecca Hall, Michael C. Hall, Tracy Letts, Maria Dizzia, J. Smith-Cameron, Timothy Simons, Kim Shaw, John Cullum, Morgan Spectator and Jayson Warner Smith New York filmmaker Antonio Campos brings to the silver screen the story of Christine Chubbuck, the 1970s TV reporter who worked for Wtog and Wxlt-tv in Sarasota, and committed suicide during a live television broadcast. The frightful event was announced by Chubbuck with composure as she pulled the trigger, right after saying: “In keeping with Channel 40′s policy of bringing you the latest in ‘blood and guts’, and in living color, you are going to see another first — attempted suicide.” [ Read More ]

The post Turin Film Festival 2016 Movie Review: Christine appeared first on Shockya.com.

Rebecca Hall as Christine Chubbuck in Christine. Courtesy of the Orchard Distribution ©

In Christine, Rebecca Hall gives a gripping performance as Christine Chubbuck, an ambitious 29-year-old TV reporter under pressure in her career and personal life, who committed suicide on a live news broadcast in 1974. The film is loosely based on Chubbuck and focuses on the last days of her life, as she faced enormous pressure at work while coping with an unraveling self, as her thirtieth birthday approached.

Rather than a grim march to a known conclusion, this fictionalized telling of Chubbuck’s story plays out almost like a thriller. The film’s story deviates in significant ways from Chubbuck’s actual life but the changes serve the narrative well, as the TV journalist bounces from a driven, intelligent, charismatic woman who is set on being the best at her job, in a time when gender discrimination was still the work place norm,...

"Do I not seem okay?" The Orchard has unveiled an official trailer for Antonio Campos' film Christine, the fictional version of the story about Christine Chubbuck, the Florida news reporter who shot herself on live TV in the 1970s. Rebecca Hall plays Chubbuck in this version of the story, which dramatizes her life and the events leading to her infamous suicide in 1974. This film is one of two that premiered at Sundance this year about Chubbuck, the other is the docu-drama Kate Plays Christine. In addition to Rebecca Hall, the cast of this includes Michael C. Hall, Tracy Letts, Timothy Simons, J. Smith-Cameron, Maria Dizzia and John Cullum. It's a very bleak drama that shows just how sad the state of news has become, with similar themes as Nightcrawler. The poster for this is also one of the best posters this year. See below. Here's the first official trailer...

The story of Christine Chubbuck, the Florida news reporter who shot herself to death on live TV in 1974, was recounted in two separate films which premiered earlier this year at Sundance. Kate Plays Christine, the performative documentary from Robert Greene, was released last month and now Christine, Antonio Campos’ fictional version, has its first trailer. In addition to Rebecca Hall, who stars as the titular character, the dark drama features Michael C. Hall, Tracy Letts, Timothy Simons, J. Smith-Cameron, Maria Dizzia and John Cullum. The Orchard will release Christine on October 14.

Today in 1989, the first Broadway revival of Shenandoah opened at the Virginia Theatre now the August Wilson Theatre, where it ran for 32 performances. Shenandoah is a musical that was written in 1975 with music by Gary Geld, lyrics by Peter Udell, and a book by Udell, Philip Rose and James Lee Barrett, based on Barrett's original screenplay for the 1965 film Shenandoah. The musical first opened at the Goodspeed Opera House in 1974 and then transferred to Broadway, opening on January 7, 1975. It ran on Broadway for a total of 1,050 performances, closing August 7, 1977. The production was nominated for six Tony Awards, including Best Musical, and won two, one for Best Actor in a Musical John Cullum and the other for Best Book of a Musical.

A review of tonight's The Americans coming up just as soon as I promise you it'll be better if you blink... "This is why we're here." -Elizabeth At 10, I was too young to watch The Day After when ABC aired it in the fall of 1983, but I knew all about it. The marketing for it was inescapable, making it into the kind of event that the Jennings and Beeman families would watch together (and that even the agents of the rezidentura would want to check out). I didn't even need to see the thing to have nightmares about it, and about the larger peril of global thermonuclear annihilation that hung over us every damn day back then. More than once as a kid, I had to ask one of my parents to reassure me at bedtime that the world wouldn't blow up while I was asleep, and we know from...

Today in 2007, the first Broadway revival of 110 in the Shade opened at Studio 54, where it ran for 94 performances. 110 in the Shade is a musical with a book by N. Richard Nash, lyrics by Tom Jones, and music by Harvey Schmidt. Based on Nash's 1954 play The Rainmaker, it focuses on Lizzie Curry, a spinster living on a ranch in the American southwest, and her relationships with local sheriff File, a cautious divorce who fears being hurt again, and charismatic con man Bill Starbuck, posing as a rainmaker who promises the locals he can bring relief to the drought-stricken area. The revival cast featured Audra McDonald as Lizzi and John Cullum as H.C. Curry.

After the formally rigorous character studies of Afterschool and Simon Killer, director Antonio Campos seems like the ideal fit for the unsettling drama of Christine. His first feature based on a true story, it follows the final weeks of the life of Christine Chubbuck (Rebecca Hall), a Florida-based news reporter who committed suicide live on air in the summer of 1974. Plagued by depression and fed up with the shifting exploitative nature of broadcast news, Craig Shilowich‘s script — the first time Campos hasn’t written his own — is a two-hander that digs into mental illness as well as the push for this brand of attention-grabbing stories, but both sides never fully gel.

“If it bleeds, it leads,” Wzrb station boss Michael (Tracy Letts) tells his team, which anchor George Peter Ryan (Michael C. Hall) and the rest of the group seem to have no problem with — except for Christine. A socially awkward,...

Stars: Miles Doleac, William Sadler, Colin Cunningham, John Cullum, Leticia Jimenez, Glynnis O’Connor, Michael Emery, Mike Mayhall, Scotty Whitehurst, David Simpson, Tamarah Murley, Jillian Taylor, Kristin Samuelson, Lindsay Anne Williams | Written and Directed by Miles Doleac

A troubled, young history professor tries to escape his past by taking a job at a new university, where he struggles with an entrenched and equally-troubled department chair, rampant student apathy, and new relationships that complicate and challenge his world-view.

The Historian is a film that took me a long time to get into. It knows that it is a drama film, and so piles on extra drama. The main problem I found was that it wanted you to feel sorry for its characters and it did this by showing you scene after scene of reasons why you should feel sorry for them. The result is a bunch of characters that are more...

Two-time Tony winner and TV veteran (notably as avuncular barkeep Holling on CBS’ Northern Exposure) John Cullum will soon have an off-Broadway house in the Theater District named in his honor. Producers The Araca Group and James Jennings, a.d. of the American Theatre for Actors on W. 54th Street, said that on October 16, the Chernuchin Theatre, one of the theaters housed in the Ata complex, will be re-named for Cullum. The theater was the original home of the satiracal…...

Two-time Tony winner and TV veteran (notably as avuncular barkeep Holling on CBS’ Northern Exposure) John Cullum will soon have an off-Broadway house in the Theater District named in his honor. Producers The Araca Group and James Jennings, a.d. of the American Theatre for Actors on W. 54th Street, said that on October 16, the Chernuchin Theatre, one of the theaters housed in the Ata complex, will be re-named for Cullum. The theater was the original home of the satiracal…...

Today in 1989, the first Broadway revival of Shenandoah opened at the Virginia Theatre now the August Wilson Theatre, where it ran for 32 performances. Shenandoah is a musical that was written in 1975 with music by Gary Geld, lyrics by Peter Udell, and a book by Udell, Philip Rose and James Lee Barrett, based on Barrett's original screenplay for the 1965 film Shenandoah. The musical first opened at the Goodspeed Opera House in 1974 and then transferred to Broadway, opening on January 7, 1975. It ran on Broadway for a total of 1,050 performances, closing August 7, 1977. The production was nominated for six Tony Awards, including Best Musical, and won two, one for Best Actor in a Musical John Cullum and the other for Best Book of a Musical.

A warm but never schmaltzy, perfectly formed family sitcom with no weak links in its cast, here's why you should watch The Middle...

Family sitcoms aren’t exactly thin on the ground, so finding a new spin on the format is always going to take some work. Originally intended as a vehicle for Ricki Lake, The Middle is a case in point. After several years in development, it finally aired in autumn 2009 with a new lead: Patricia Heaton, one of the stars of hugely popular show Everybody Loves Raymond. Writers Eileen Heisler and DeAnn Heline had previously been responsible for Roseanne, so the track records of all involved boded well for the series’ prospects. Six seasons later – with a seventh confirmed in May – expectations have well and truly been proved correct.

The Middle is a warm, beautifully performed and acutely observed portrait of a family struggling to cope with the...

Lenny Bruce: Dustin Hoffman in the 1974 Bob Fosse movie. Lenny Bruce movie review: Polemical stand-up comedian merited less timid biopic (Oscar Movie Series) Bob Fosse's 1974 biopic Lenny has two chief assets: the ever relevant free speech issues it raises and the riveting presence of Valerie Perrine. The film itself, however, is only sporadically thought-provoking or emotionally gripping; in fact, Lenny is a major artistic letdown, considering all the talent involved and the fertile material at hand. After all, much more should have come out of a joint effort between director Fosse, fresh off his Academy Award win for Cabaret; playwright-screenwriter Julian Barry, whose stage version of Lenny earned Cliff Gorman a Tony Award; two-time Best Actor Oscar nominee Dustin Hoffman (The Graduate, Midnight Cowboy); and cinematographer Bruce Surtees (Play Misty for Me, Blume in Love). Their larger-than-life subject? Lenny Bruce, the stand-up comedian who became one of the...

Today in 2007, the first Broadway revival of 110 in the Shade opened at Studio 54, where it ran for 94 performances. 110 in the Shade is a musical with a book by N. Richard Nash, lyrics by Tom Jones, and music by Harvey Schmidt. Based on Nash's 1954 play The Rainmaker, it focuses on Lizzie Curry, a spinster living on a ranch in the American southwest, and her relationships with local sheriff File, a cautious divorce who fears being hurt again, and charismatic con man Bill Starbuck, posing as a rainmaker who promises the locals he can bring relief to the drought-stricken area. The revival cast featured Audra McDonald as Lizzi and John Cullum as H.C. Curry.

Chicago – It is a time, and the time is now. Leave it to filmmaker Ira Sachs to break a barrier simply by having the right timing. Exploring a long time gay couple, right at the cusp of their now-legal marriage, opens the door to an odd series of ordinary circumstances in “Love is Strange.”

Rating: 4.0/5.0

The karma of what the marriage does is the main theme of the film, as employment, family relationships and housing are affected by the opening of the nuptial Pandora’s box. That is not to say the event itself is controversial, but what happens when one thing leads to another afterward, is so simple and human. The acting in the film – led by Alfred Molina and John Lithgow as the couple – expresses a truth about how all can seem well when everything is aligned, and how discombobulated our souls become when that normalcy is challenged.

Chicago – One of the notable films to kick off the autumn film season is writer/director Ira Sach’s “Love is Strange.” The story of two men in a longtime gay relationship, who finally can marry – but whose lives go off track unexpectedly – features brilliant performances from veterans John LIthgow and Alfred Molina.

Ira Sachs is a veteran writer and director himself, on his sixth feature film. He first got noticed with “Forty Shades of Blue” in 2005 and “Married Life” two years later. The latter film featured Chris Cooper, Patricia Clarkson and Pierce Brosnan. After some great reviews for his fifth film “Keep the Lights On” (2012), he is back with “Love is Strange,” a personal and subtle character driven story.

Ira Sachs (center) with Leading Men Alfred Molina and John Lithgow of ‘Love is Strange’

Photo credit: Sony Pictures Classics

HollywoodChicago.com sat down to interview Ira Sachs, as his...

‘Love Is Strange’ movie review: Gay romantic drama is ‘beautiful in every way’ (photo: John Lithgow and Alfred Molina in ‘Love Is Strange’) Love Is Strange is beautiful in every way that a film can be beautiful, and unabashedly so. Yet, despite its willingness to gild the lily for love of ethereal, aesthetic beauty in all its forms, it is a film that reaches for the truth — the deepest truths of what we often call “the human condition.” For all these reasons I love Ira Sachs’ movie as much as it wishes we would love each other. I love the artistry of it. I love what it has to say and that it’s something seldom said. I love that it is forgiving. Without hyperbole, I tell you that Love Is Strange is the stuff of Jean-Luc Godard (Notre Musique and In Praise of Love), Vittorio De Sica (Umberto D....

Today in 1989, the first Broadway revival of Shenandoah opened at the Virginia Theatre now the August Wilson Theatre, where it ran for 32 performances. Shenandoah is a musical that was written in 1975 with music by Gary Geld, lyrics by Peter Udell, and a book by Udell, Philip Rose and James Lee Barrett, based on Barrett's original screenplay for the 1965 film Shenandoah. The musical first opened at the Goodspeed Opera House in 1974 and then transferred to Broadway, opening on January 7, 1975. It ran on Broadway for a total of 1,050 performances, closing August 7, 1977. The production was nominated for six Tony Awards, including Best Musical, and won two, one for Best Actor in a Musical John Cullum and the other for Best Book of a Musical.

Title: Love is Strange Sony Pictures Classics Reviewed for Shockya by Harvey Karten. Data-based on Rotten Tomatoes Grade: B+ Director: Ira Sachs Screenplay: Ira Sachs, Mauricio Zacharias Cast: Alfred Molina, John Lithgow, Marisa Tomei, Darren Burrows, Cheyenne Jackson, John Cullum Screened at: Sony, NYC, 6/23/14 Opens: August 22, 2014 The recession brought on by the bankers and Wall Street may be over, but tell that to the hundreds of thousands of newly minted college grads who must remain living with their parents because they can’t find jobs. But what about the millions of people who have been laid off from their jobs, have gone through unemployment benefits, and are still [ Read More ]

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