Thursday, February 25, 2016

Arts Express: Famke Janssen Talks From Bond Girl To Girl Bonding; She's Beautfiul When She's Angry; Policing The Police; Post-Traunatic Unemployment Disorder

      '...I know what love is, and I know what the loss of love is.'

**Famke Janssen: From Bond Girl To Girl Bonding. The actress is on the line to Arts Express to talk about her latest film, the unconventional family drama, Jack Of The Red Hearts. In which youth in social and economic crisis today converges with autism, and struggling to come of age in this troubled world. Based on the challenges of Jack Of The Red Hearts director Janet Grillo, raising her own autistic child. Additional topics on the table include losing the sex crazed femme fatale assassin in kick butt, toe to toe mode against James Bond in Goldeneye; embracing the dark side of life as creative inspiration; and her upcoming game show sinister satire This Is Your Life, directed by and co-starring Giancarlo Esposito.

**Peace Officer: Or maybe not. An explosive investigative documentary about the deadly militarization of police in this country. And one of its victims - ironically a Utah sheriff who first introduced SWAT teams into the state - phones in. An emotionally shattering revelation and extraordinary case of reverse rage literally policing the police. A March DVD release.

LISTEN TO THE SHOW HERE

**She's Beautiful When She's Angry. A look at this March DVD release for Women's History Month, delving into the historic struggles of the Women's Movement of the last century. Where did the basic rights females young and old enjoy today come from, and what fierce struggles in the 20th century made them possible, and still relevant today.

**Writers Corner: Miguel Gardel reads from his short story, All The Books In The Library.
Exploring life after the army as a Latino, and what might be termed post-traumatic unemployment disorder; the revolving door inner city existence of rooming houses, recruiting stations, landlords, unemployment lines, and armies addicted to young men. And formulating rebellion and giving it shape through poetry, and a novel's flush of eloquent words. Accompanied by the sounds of the late legend Louie Ramirez and his Latin Jazz Ensemble.

Prairie Miller

Arts Express: Airing on WBAI Radio in NY and the Pacifica National Radio Network and Affiliate Stations.

Monday, February 15, 2016

Arts Express: Jesse Owens, James Baldwin, And Fifteen Men Who Decide What Movies You See


**Aloe Blacc Talks Race: The Story Of Jesse Owens. Phoning in to the show from LA is soul artist, vocalist, songwriter, actor and performer Aloe Blacc, who wrote music for the Race soundtrack. Blacc describes in our conversation how he saw his contribution of the song, 'Let The Games Begin,' as an opportunity to be part of the Owens legacy. And the outstanding athlete who met the challenge, not only as a track and field legend, but in a faceoff historically, however fleeting, with Jim Crow at home and Hitler's Nazi Germany abroad at the 1936 Olympics. Blacc, the composer as well when finding himself jobless of  'I Need A Dollar' - which went on to become the theme song of the HBO series, 'How To Make It In America,' also contemplates how the sports icon has informed his own life as a Black man in this country.

LISTEN TO THE SHOW HERE

**Danny Glover Weighs In On Bias Controversy At The Oscars: The actor and activist during a Sundance sitdown, traces the contentious racial exclusion issue to a much deeper dilemma plaguing the films themselves being made. And compound by "15 men who decide what you're going to see."

**The Last Interview And Other Conversations: Dennis Johnson of Melville House Books discusses his unique instant classic series highlighting the works of late iconic groundbreaker, edgy, offbeat and outsider writers who have passed on - from James Baldwin, Hemingway, Marquez and Vonnegut to Bradbury, Dick, Lou Reed, and others; the struggle of independent literary houses marginalized by corporate publishing takeover conglomerates; and the process of Johnson's intense labor of love in the journey tracking down and gathering the final works honoring the memory of these writing legends.


Arts Express: Airing on WBAI Radio in NY and the Pacifica National Radio Network and Affiliate Stations.

Thursday, February 11, 2016

Arts Express: The Political Power Of Music; PTSD Fueled Psychological Crime Thriller Faceoff


**Thomas Jane Talks Standoff: And the Laurence Fishburne faceoff of damaged souls in this PTSD psychological crime thriller. As one struggles against his inner demons, and the other succumbs to the mental ravages of war. Jane, best known on screen as a different sort of madman, The Punisher, is on the line from LA to mull as well T.S. Eliot, Mickey Mantle, Neal Cassady, WWII atom bombs, Jaws, sci-fi and genetic engineering, Knocking On Heaven's Door - and why passersby gave him spare change to not sing it on the streets of Hollywood when he was homeless and begging, and living out of his car. And, his gig on Hung as an economic hard times call guy in the small screen sex for sale satire series - and that concerning Hung, he is actually not.


**Writers Corner: Chilean New Song - The Political Power Of Music: A Conversation With Professor J. Patrice McSherry. The author's musical memory lane recollections of the fleeting triumph, ensuing terror and tragedy of the creative component to mass uprising illuminating Allende's Chile back then. While reflecting on popular aspirations, towards a creation of new forms of community and political solidarity arising spontaneously and organically from that generation of musicians. Pete Seeger performs from the work of one of those brutalized victims of the subsequent Pinochet dictatorship, Victor Jara. Chris Butters Reports.

**Poetry Corner: Jack Kerouac vintage reading, Sounds Of The Universe Coming In My Window, set to jazz.

Arts Express: Airing on WBAI Radio in NY and the Pacifica National Radio Network and Affiliate Stations.

Tuesday, February 2, 2016

Arts Express: Prescription Thugs, Native American Jim Crow; Workplace Satire On The Small Screen



**Prescription Thugs: A Conversation With Director Chris Bell. So what exactly is going on with the deadly prescription drug epidemic in this country. And the filling of overflowing prisons with the incarcerated serving draconian sentences for illegal drugs, seemingly to make way for the legal prescription thug peddlers - pharmaceutical corporations in league with doctors and drugstores - moving in and taking over the business. And raking in billions in the process. Filmmaker Chris Bell talks Prescription Thugs, taking it personally as well as publicly in this documentary, with the related tragic death of his own brother. Welcome to 'The United States of Addiction.'

LISTEN TO THE SHOW HERE


**Mark McKinney Talks Superstore, Saturday Night Live: The Canadian born actor, writer and comedian, best known for SNL and Kids In The Hall, is on the line from LA to talk about the working stiff audience appeal of stinging workplace comedy after hours, in Superstore. And a small screen satire in which he stars as a befuddled boss along with America Ferrara's department store drudge, and touching on hot topics including race, gender and labor unions. Also, terror and fear on SNL; differences between the American and Canadian sense of humor linked to geography The Sopranos and what led McKinney into acting; and depression in comedians connected to a broken world and possibly fascism.

**Nicholas Sparks Discusses The Choice: The popular novelist phones in to Arts Express to talk about the page to screen, latest adaptation of one of his books. Sparks also fields questions about his First Nation surrogate father, how that relationship has informed his life journey, and what he learned from him about Native American Jim Crow in this country. Also, why writing the last page of a book is always the most fulfilling moment of writing for him.

Prairie Miller

Arts Express: Airing on WBAI Radio in NY and the Pacifica National Radio Network and Affiliate Stations.