Features

‘Twas the Night Before Pogo

Roger Ebert

Walt Kelly was the greatest daily comic strip artist in American history. His Pogo strip was an uncanny mixture of laughter, high spirits and swamp intrigue, mixed with pointed political satire. His thinly-veiled villain based on Sen. Joseph McCarthy was one of several characters with political overtones.

Before, during and after my days at The Daily Illini, Pogo was the only strip we carried.

I met Walt Kelly once. He invited a group of visiting editors of college newspapers to join him in the big round booth at the front of a bar very close to the New York Herald-Tribune, where Pogo was one of the mainstays, including Jimmy Breslin, Tom Wolfe, Judith Crist, Clay Felker and others. He was a very nice man.

This material is copyrighted by the Estate of Walt Kelly. It has been posted on the web.

Visit the official site at PogoPossum.com.

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Still Bill: The life and songs of Bill Withers

Roger Ebert

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Singer-songwriter Bill Withers had an unusual path to musical acclaim and he was born an asthmatic stutterer who was often told “you can’t do nuthin’.” He did not own a guitar until he was 32 years old, the same year he started his musical career–while keeping his job fabricating toilets for Weber Aircraft, just in case. His first album, 1971’s “Just as I Am”, came with a hit single, “Ain’t No Sunshine,” which hit No. 3 on the pop charts. He followed this auspicious start with a string of hits, including “Lean on Me,” “Use Me” and “Grandma’s Hands.” Nine Grammy nominations also rolled in
during the next 15 years, with three wins.

But in 1985, Bill Withers just stopped. He did not fade entirely from public view–he was inducted into the Songwriting Hall of Fame in 2005–but there were no more albums from this prolific artist. Still Bill, an intimate and engaging portrait of this music icon, takes its name from Withers’s second album, and also answers the questions about who Bill Withers is and where he has been since his music career ended. — From the Facets announcement.

“Still Bill,” a new documentary about Bill Withers, plays Feb. 12-18 at Facets Cinematheque, 1517 W. Fullerton. Here is an online concert:

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The trailer for the Coen Brothers’ “Inside Llewyn Davis” about the 1960s folk era in Greenwich Village

Roger Ebert

Anne Thompson writes on Indiewire: “While any Joel and Ethan Coen movie is worth waiting for, many of us are champing at the bit to see “Inside Llewyn Davis,” their portrait of the 60s Greenwich Village folk scene that spawned Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, Mimi and Richard Farina and the inspiration for this film, Dave Van Ronk. Some of us hoped to see the film loosely based on Van Ronk’s memoir “The Mayor of MacDougal Street” in time for the 2012 holiday season, but it’s more likely to turn up in Coen-friendly Cannes.”

Click here and to read her scoop with much more about the film.

The star is Oscar Issac (from “Drive”). The cast includes Coen favorite John Goodman, Carey Mulligan and F. Murray Abraham.

Remembering Bukowski

Roger Ebert

Charles Bukowski died on his day in 1994. His voice is open and fearless, romantic, honest. He probably has a whole generation of writers getting drunk and wondering why they can’t write like that.

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In Big Ed’s during the filming of “Barfly.” Left to right, Bukowski, Ebert, Faye Dunaway, visiting fireman Andre Konchalovsky.

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My story about a day on location with “Barfly.”

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Tom O’Bedlam reads Bukowski’s incomparable “Who in the Hell is Tom Jones?”

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Bukowski sits in the back set of a convertible and gives a running commentary along Hollywood Boulevard.

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Bukowski photos and a song by Johnny Cash

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Bono reads “Roll the Dice” by Bukowski

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Charles Bukowski Reads “The Fire Station”

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Tom Waits reads Bukowski’s “The Laughing Heart,” Hanks version of Ecclesiates 7, 3 -12:

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Helicopter crashes in our house!

Roger Ebert

I gave my grandson Taylor a remote-controlled helicopter for Christmas. Recalling the pathetic battery-controlled toy cars of my youth, I was impressed by this sleek and impressive little machine.

It really flies. It climbed to the top of a three-story atrium. The “pilot” uses something like a game console to control its flight. It goes up, down and sideways with impressive accuracy. To save the weight of batteries, it has a tiny engine you can charge.

Here he is demonstrating the clever little machine. All went splendidly until the final moments of the flight–when something, perhaps caused by terrorists on board–caused it to make a sudden dive for that portion of the male anotomy one least desires to be the target of a helicopter attack.

Taylor suspects the crash may have been caused by pilot error. Click on my photos to enlarge.

Attack of the Second-Rate Monsters

Roger Ebert

What a poignant fate, to terrorize the globe and yet be forgotten. But we must reserve our sympathy for the terrified humans fleeing in the foreground.

Found at Cover Browser, which claims to have 450,000 covers.

All my TwitterPages are linked in the right column.
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You can’t shut a good actor up

Roger Ebert

On St. Patrick’s Day I fell to thinking of Shay Duffin, who became a bit of a pal back in the 1970s when he came to Chicago with his one-man show, presenting an evening with Bendan Behan.

I found this online: A masterful example of an actor taking a routine red carpet interview and trying to run it all he way back for a touchdown. Look at the way he takes command of this interview, with a young woman who clearly hasn’t a clue how to deal with him. She forgets his name, she forgets he’s from Dublin, she cuts away, and still he’s singing.

On St. Patrick’s Day I fell to thinking of Shay Duffin, who became a bit ofa pal back in the19870s when he came rto Chcgowith his one-man show, presenting an evening with evening with Bendan Behan.

I found this online: A masterful example of an actor taking a routine red carpet interview and trying o run it all he way back foer a touchdown.

Look at the way he takes command of this interview, with a young woman who clearly hasn’t a clue how to deal with him. She forgets his name, she forgets he’s from Dublin, she cuts away, and still he’s singing.

Revenge on “Revenge of the Sith”

Roger Ebert

I was pretty much sure I didn’t have it with me to endure another review of this one. Mr. Plinkett demonstrates to me that I was mistaken.
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Amazon.com Widgets

“It’s a Black President Huey Freeman!” (nsfw)

Roger Ebert

I can hardly believe I didn’t know that Werner Herzog starred in an episode of “Boondocks.” This link was sent to me by a reader. Is that Herzog’s own voice.It sounds real to me. In any event, Herzog’s precise and implacable narration is essential here, and The Voice is the medium as well as The Message in his documentaries.

The only fatal flaw in my Oscar Predictions

Roger Ebert

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It’s about that time of year…

Roger Ebert

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Thanks to Peanuts and baseball fan and old pal Mike Jones, head of the Illinois State Lottery.

Esperanza Spalding. Yes.

Roger Ebert

Amazon.com Widgets

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