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Fess “Davy Crockett” Parker Died Today

Black-and-white television devotees will be saddened to learn that Fort Worth-born Fess Parker died today at the age of 85. He played Davy Crockett and Daniel Boone in the early days of television.

For movie trivia lovers, he also was the man in the psych ward who claimed to have seen flying saucers in Them!

Following his days in Hollywood, Fess and his wife Marcella went into the real estate and winery businesses. Until today they lived happily ever after in Santa Barbara, Calif.

If you have a Davy Crockett lunch box, you might want to take it to work tomorrow.

Lauren Bacall Speaks her Mind on the Men in her Life

Screen legend Lauren Bacall (pictured) has no fear in discussing past and present celebs. She made that apparent at the recent Nasher Salon Series.

Hugh Jackman, rest easy.

Woody Harrelson. . . well, she says she likes you, but. . . .

W, don’t even read SweetCharity’s report.

Dallas International Film Festival Announces Lineup

Get thee to FrontRow and find the full schedule.

UPDATE: Some initial reactions to the lineup and programming.

Win Tickets to Joan Jett Flick

Time for another ticket giveaway boys and girls: this one is for tomorrow night’s preview screening of the movie The Runaways, a bio-pic about the brief-but-wild life of Joan Jett’s first band, at the Angelika Dallas. A pair of tickets go to the first two people who email me the Runaways’ first hit. Hint: ch-ch-ch

Leading Off (3/5/10)

1. Fire investigators have concluded that the Greenville Avenue fire that took out Terilli’s, as well as a handful of other area mainstays, was caused by an electrical short. For some reason, I wish they had found out it was arson. That way we could be mad at someone.

2. You know what’s sad? Not being able to dream anymore. That’s the position 15-year-old Christian Williams is in today because the “I Have A Dream” Foundation’s after-school center has been shut down. The program’s only backer has pulled out funding. I guess we could be mad at David Disiere, the millionaire philanthropist who single-handedly funded the program. But then again, for five years he has single-handedly funded the program.

3. The new one-day-a-week garbage / recycling pickup has kicked in, and some Dallas residents who used to get alley pickup now have to move their garbage cans to the curb. Guess what? They’re mad.

4. You know who should be mad? Johnny Depp. But he’s not. That’s one of the problems with Alice in Wonderland.

Ticket Giveaway: See The Green Zone Before it Hits Theaters

Director Paul Greengrass has been on a roll this decade. Since his 2002, he’s churned out Bloody Sunday, United 93, and two Jason Bourne movies, which, in my opinion, out-Bond Bond. That’s why I’m looking forward to his latest Matt Damon flick, The Green Zone, which opens March 12. But you don’t have to wait. We have two pairs of tickets to giveaway to an advanced screening on Tuesday, March 9. All you need to do is be the first person to email me with the name of the Irish civil rights leader who led the Derry march on that terrible January day. First two correct responses get the tickets.

UPDATE: The tickets are gone. I was fishing for Ivan Cooper, the subject of Greengrass’ film about Bloody Sunday, and the leader of the march on January 30, 1972. Some good Irish names popped up in my inbox (guesses and contestants).  Some included Bernadette Devlin, who didn’t lead the march, but clocked a British MP over it, and Eamonn McCann, the journalist, who was also there that Sunday.

Silent Bob Speaks Out Against Southwest Airlines

Film director Kevin Smith tweeted over the weekend about being booted from a Southwest Airlines flight because the captain determined he couldn’t safely fit into just one seat.

I’ve passed the stinkin’ arm-rest-test. And still, the lady asks me to get up and come with her off the plane. I get up without a fuss at all, quietly grab my bag, make eye contact with a fellow Fatty who was praying he’d pass, and leave.

Southwest Airlines apologized but stood by its “customer of size” policy.

Now it’s time for Kevin Smith to apologize to me for Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back.

Jason Priestly and Other Celebs To Star in Film Written by Carrollton Middle School Teachers

Budding screenwriters Bart D. Van Bemmel and Jason A. Wheeler may have done what no man has done before: gotten a Hollywood deal while teaching middle school in Carrollton. Their story, Butterscotch—a dark comedy about three people who meet in the waiting room of their suicide therapist and end up traveling together to plan their funerals—caught the eye of Academy Award nominee Jon Keeyes, who worked with Van Bemmel and Wheeler to create a short version of the film. The Butterscotch short has been selected by three film festivals so far, but the bigger news is that 90210 alum Jason Priestly, Corbin Bernsen, Lindy Booth, and Debra Jo Rupp have all signed on to do the feature-length version of the film. If all the financing comes through, the film is a go.

Welcome “FrontRow” to the D Fold: A Daily Review of the Dallas Arts

We have been hinting for some time about plans brewing for increased arts coverage on D Magazine.com. Now we are proud to announce the launch of that coverage: FrontRow. You could say FrontRow is the latest edition to the D blog family, but we like to think it is a little more than that. The site is a source for reviews and criticism, previews and suggestions, interviews and conversation about what is worth taking note of in the arts in North Texas. We hope to grow it into an ongoing conversation about what is happening in the Dallas arts and what it means for our city. And we hope you will contribute. Twitter about your latest concert experience. Contribute your own reviews to our comments and win free tickets to upcoming events. Tell our critics how utterly wrong you think they are. Check-in and stay tuned as we grow this thing out. In the near future, look for the launch of our band performance series, as well as hosted events, like film screenings and lectures. We hope you find FrontRow useful and engaging. So go ahead – check out the little guy.

See Trailer for Slasher Flick Shot Inside Booker T.

An alert FBvian tells us that the interior scenes (except for the cafeteria) for this movie were shot inside Booker T.

Dallas International Film Festival PR Director Stops Hyping Movies to Make One of His Own

That would be John Wildman, and he’s set to make his directorial debut (from a script he co-wrote with Justina Walford) with Stripped, a “post-feminist horror” film. Shooting begins in Dallas in May. Release after the jump. (more…)

Welcome to Dallywood

It’s hard out there for a Dallas actor. So local actors Jeff Hoferer and Bryan Massey decided to cope by making a web sit-com about the struggles and petty annoyances of striking out as an actor in a place not called Los Angeles or New York. Their series is called “Dallywood,” and you can watch the six mini-episodes here. Hoferer calls it a “poor man’s Entourage with a Southern twist.” I just can’t decide whether I prefer episode five, in which Massey gets into a real/stage fight with his alter-self who claims he is the “number one actor in Texas” whose imdb “STARmeter” is “on fire,” or episode six, in which Hoferer finally lands a role as the cuckold boyfriend in an episode of “Cheated.” Funny stuff.

Actor Duvall Questions True Grit Remake And Brad Pitt’s Control Issue

During his Dallas appearance for the Nasher Salon Series last Thursday, 79-year old Robert Duvall (pictured) was greeted like a rock star. Regaling Booker T. Washington students and Salon patrons with tales of film greats past and present, SweetCharity reports it all including his concerns about the Cohen brothers’ remaking of True Grit and Brad Pitt’s “controlling” The Hatfields and McCoys “beautiful script.”

USA Film Festival KidFilm Preview

As promised, here’s a rundown of what to look for at this weekend’s USA Film Festival’s KidFilm. (The full schedule can be found here.) A few of the movies are no brainers – children’s classics like The Wild Stalion, The Muppet Movie, and The Wizard of Oz. KidFilm offers the opportunity to see these on the big screen. But the highlights of the fest come in the form of less-common offerings, which I previewed with my two- and four-year olds. Jump for our review.

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USA Film Festival Must Join the 21st Century, ctd.

What’s sad about the lack of info on the USA Film Festival’s website is that this weekend’s KidFilm fest is actually packed with some really great stuff (they kind of bury the schedule, but you can find it here). The people at KidFest were kind enough to forward along some screeners, which I took in with my four- and two-year-olds. Their thoughts – as well as my own – will be found on this blog tomorrow. So stay tuned, as they say. Sneak peak: if you have kiddos – especially in the two to four range – make room on your weekend calendar for the Mo Willems tribute, which is on Saturday at 3 p.m.

USA Film Festival Must Join the 21st Century

Or even just the late 20th century, for that matter. I have some affection for the USA Film Festival, which has roots at SMU and used to be the only full-service, year-round movie organization in Dallas. I have that affection because my wife used to work there.

I was concerned that they wouldn’t be able to survive when AFI Dallas (now minus the AFI) stepped up and launched its efforts with what had been USA’s turf: a spring movie festival. I was worried for USA’s future when I saw that this new “Dallas Film Society” was recruiting its own membership, and felt even more so with news of the recent hiring of Tanya Foster, which signals that they’re targeting the same Park Cities/North Dallas fund-raising base that’s long supported USA.

But when I get an e-mail from the Angelika Film Center today touting USA’s 26th annual KidFilm program (this Saturday and Sunday), and when that e-mail says I can log on to USAfilmfestival.com for a full schedule of the screenings, and when I check out the USA site and see that it’s the same rudimentary set-up they’ve had for years, my sympathies fail me.

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Mark McGwire Apologizes to Don Hooton

Just before publicly making his unsurprising admission on Monday that he had used steroids during his playing career, former Oakland Athletics and St. Louis Cardinals slugger Mark McGwire called Don Hooton, of Plano, to apologize.

Hooton’s teenage son, Taylor, was a baseball player at Plano West Senior High School, and he committed suicide in 2003. At the time of his death he was using steroids, and Mr. Hooton has been crusading against the drugs ever since, through the Taylor Hooton Foundation.

Though it was certainly a thoughtful gesture on behalf of McGwire to reach out to Hooton, I was reminded that it’s less than clear cut that Taylor Hooton’s suicide was a result of his steroids use. It’s a possibility, but in an appearance in the eye-opening 2008 documentary Bigger, Stronger, Faster*, Hooton seemed not even to care to consider the other factors at work. After the jump, what I wrote in a review of the film for People Newspapers.

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Turnover at AFI

AFI Fest is the Los Angeles version of what used to be AFI Dallas. When AFI Dallas went bye-bye after last year’s festival, it felt at first like we were being dogged. Something seemed awry. No, no, we were told. A contract had just expired. Everything was fine. (And now we’ve got the Dallas International Film Festival in its stead.)

Well, it looks like something was awry. AFI Fest’s artistic director, its producer, and its head of PR have all stepped down. The official release leaves a lot of room between the lines into which one can read.

More North Texas Film Critics Pick Up in the Air

Last month the Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Association named Up in the Air the best film of 2009. This weekend the North Texas Film Critics Association followed suit. Having now seen the movie myself, my response is “eh.” It’s pleasant enough to watch, but it ends up telling a story of rather conventional ideas. Why can’t George Clooney just happily go on and on with his empty backpack?

As others have noted, American Airlines is like another character in the movie. I figured they paid a pretty penny for that privilege, but apparently the Fort Worth-based carrier provided access rather than money.

Time Waste of the Day: Netflix Rentals by ZIP Code

Over the weekend, several alert FBvians sent me a link to this NYT database showing which Netflix rentals were popular in which Dallas ZIPs in 2009. Try not scrolling through all 100 movies to see where they were the most popular. My research has revealed the following about South Dallas: folks in that part of town did rent Tyler Perry’s The Family That Prays — while they did not rent W.

Bye-Bye, AFI. Hello, Dallas International Film Festival.

Remember AFI Dallas? Had some funding issues last year? Was still a success? But AFI’s contract with the folks in Dallas expired? Right. That thing. Well, now it’ll be called the Dallas International Film Festival, it’ll be held in April, and its executive director will be Tanya Foster. But what about Michael Cain, you ask? He’ll become the chairman of the board of the Dallas Film Society, the overlords of the new DIFF (NB: no “A”). Jump for the full release.

Update: Still waiting for Fingers of Fury to get this up on Unfair Park. I remember when they used to break news. Shame.

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Landmark, Please Let the Inwood Be the Inwood

My wife has a beef with Mark Cuban. She’s never met him, but she doesn’t care for the man. She holds him personally responsible for what’s happened to the Inwood Theatre over the last several years because his company, 2929 Entertainment, owns Landmark Theatres, which owns the Inwood (and the Magnolia).

She can’t stand flat-screen TVs used unnecessarily as menus at the snack bar. She hates that they don’t issue tickets anymore; they hand you part of a paper receipt as your ticket. (She conveniently ignores that even she likes most of the major renovations that have been made, to the auditoriums and the restrooms.) But the biggest problem, of course, is that what was once the premier art-house in town now more frequently features “family-friendly” dreck. She loves the Inwood, so she hates to see how it has changed.

Well, recently she called the box office to ask what would be playing (she doesn’t have an iPhone), and she had the following exchange with an Inwood employee. I present their conversation in its entirety. Keep in mind that this employee has no previous knowledge of my wife’s thoughts about the Inwood or Mark Cuban: (more…)

Destruction of the HP Village Theater

The Park Cities People blog, Overheard, has photos of the demolition of the insides of the Village Theater in progress at Highland Park Village.

Landmark, which runs the Magnolia and the Inwood, is taking over the theater. They’re going to add a cafe that will have seating right up on top of the marquee.

They did a great job with the redo of the Inwood, so I’m looking forward to the new look, which will open in May.  I say that even though I once opined that HP Village could have made better use of the space when Regent Entertainment left.

Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Pick 2009’s Best, Ctd.

Jason, as a former Angelika snack peddler (and projectionist, and ticket peddler – ah, those were the days), let me come to their defense: that’s how we got paid. Tickets may (may) cover print costs, high-dollar popcorn and soda keeps the doors open. It burns, but think of it as a donation towards being able to see these picks on the big screen.

Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Pick 2009’s Best

The Dallas-Fort Worth Critics Association released its list of the Top 10 films of the year today, and they picked Up in the Air as the best of the best. I’ve not seen it yet. Nor have I seen five of the others on the complete list.

But I have seen The Hurt Locker, Inglourious Basterds, Up, and A Serious Man. All four would make my imaginary list. If you haven’t seen A Serious Man, run out today and do it, before it leaves the Angelika.

Which brings me to the real reason I decided to post this: So that I can shake my fist like a grumpy old man. The Angelika recently raised their snack bar prices. $6 for a tiny bag of popcorn, Angelika? Really?

If I hadn’t had my coupon for a free bag, available each and every week in People Newspapers, I’d have been really mad.

For the full DFW critics release, (more…)