Sunday, November 21, 2010
Saturday, November 20, 2010
LA Auto Show: Green Cars Are the New Dream Cars
Green is the buzz word for this year's LA Auto Show as the world's automakers invite Angelenos to come in and kick the tires on over 50 new electric, hybrid and alternative fuel vehicles on display at the show that opens today and runs through Sunday, Nov. 28 at the Los Angeles Convention Center. They'll even be open on Thanksgiving.
The car companies hope producing green cars will translate into piles of cold, green cash in their coffers. Or, at least be the bait luring customers into the showrooms where they can buy a shiny new auto powered by a traditional gasoline engine.
The big news was the official introduction of the Chevrolet Volt - which won the Green Car of the Year Award and was named Motor Trend's and Automobile Magazine's Car of the Year for 2011. Joel Ewanick, marketing VP for GM rolled out the Volt he drove 1100 miles from Michigan. This still dusty battery powered road warrior, which comes equipped with a gasoline engine for extended range, used less than a gallon of gas on the trip as Ewanick took the time to keep it charged.
Chevrolet has announced pricing at $41,000 (or $33,500 depending on the federal income tax credit, which ranges from $0 to $7,500). Lease payment on a 36-month lease can be as low as $350 per month with $2,500 down.
They plan to sell 500 Volts by the end of the year, ten thousand in 2011 and eventually ramp up to 220,000 a year.
NISSAN LEAF
The Nissan Leaf, the other much-anticipated electric auto lighting up the motoring firmament also makes its auto show debut. The Leaf is smaller than the Volt, somewhere between the Altima and the Versa, and is a battery only car. Nissan boasts its 100-mile range but there's no back up gas motor to keep you going if you forget to plug it in. Nissan says you can return the car to an 80% charge in only 30 minutes at public charging stations if you have an optional Quick Charge Port. Which is ten times as long as the average time at the gas pump for a full tank but better than the eight hours required for a full charge using your home's current.
The Leaf is priced at $32,780 and depending on the eligibility for the $7,500 federal tax credit it's likely to run you considerably less than a Volt. But you have to decide if the "range extender" comfort of a back up gasoline engine is worth the extra dollars. You can rent a car for those annual trips to see the proverbial "grandma" GM keeps mentioning in its pitch for the Volt's dual power sources.
The company has also said that monthly lease payments from as little as US$349 can also be arranged.
CHEVROLET CRUZE
You don't have to plug in to get great gas mileage. Chevrolet's new midsize car the Cruze offers 42 mpg with its turbocharged gasoline engine and six speed automatic transmission for about $19,000. The base Cruze comes in at just under $17,000.
The cars have been a hit in Europe and South Asia where they've been on the market for several years. GM offers a hatchback version of the Cruze in Europe but if you want a hatchback in similarly sized vehicle you'll have to look at GM's crosstown rival Ford.
FORD FOCUS
The new Ford Focus, like the Cruze, was first introduced in Europe but unlike Chevy, Ford decided to bring a hatchback and sedan version over here. Conventional wisdom in the Auto world holds Americans don't like hatchbacks but when Ford actually asked people they were told they definitely would buy a hatchback. So, the company changed course and added a hatchback for just under $19,000 to the mix that includes a four-door sedan that priced around $17,000. Each is designed to deliver about 40 mpg.
Ford's president for North America, Mark Fields, is bullish on the Focus because this segment of the market represents 20% of the cars sold in the US and 50% are sold to first time buyers. The streamlined styling proves that small can be beautiful or at least doesn't have to be dull.
PORSCHE 911 SPEEDSTER
All of the traditional piston powered autos, even the most sporty and high performance ones, are being given a new coat of fuel efficient, green wash to demonstrate their affinity for the survival of the planet as well as the ability to pin your skull to the headrest as they accelerate.
Porsche's new 911 Speedster takes you from 0 to 60 mph in 4.2 seconds and has a top speed of 190 mph but executives were quick to point out in the same breath that it delivers, "27 mpg on the highway." Of course, you won't get 27 mpg at 190 mph. When asked what kind of fuel economy to expect when driving flat out they said they'd have to check.
CAMARO CONVERTIBLE
Chevrolet wasn't averse to throwing a little red meat into the ring. The new Camaro Convertible, available in February, just in time for the Spring melt, has all the heart thumping horsepower and handling any self-respecting car guy or car gal craves. It's the perfect take me out, wind me up and go vehicle for those unafraid of emitting a little carbon or burning some rubber. As Kermit used to say, "It's hard being green" especially when a Camaro calls your name.
Chevrolet teamed up with Hot Wheels to create a Camaro model and they'll be giving those away at different times during the day. They advise visitors to the show to check with representatives on the Chevrolet stand for details.
DODGE CHARGER
The CEO and head of design for Chrysler's Dodge brand, Ralph Gilles, said he was showing only mid-life cycle, "interventions." But he's worked his team hard to update the interiors and banished what he called, "rat fur gray" textured trim. Confident at what he's been able to achieve he says the new interiors are "delicious."
His biggest challenge was trying to make the minivan cool. Chrysler invented this segment 27 years ago and has sold 13-million of the kid haulers but Gilles wants to make it "fun to drive."
Gilles really got excited when he talked about the revamped 5.7L HEMI V8 powered 2011 Charger. It has "more sex per pound" than other cars in its class and "is the type of vehicle that makes others wet their pants," he said. There's "finally a HEMI that justifies the Charger's looks." The starting price for power and speed is $25,995.
FIAT 500
Speed and green power are being challenged for popularity among buyers by the small, cute, nostalgia and value conscious wing of the automotive world with Fiat's introduction into the US of its 500 coupe. The diminutive 500 or, cinquecento, as it's called in Italy, is an updated throwback to the car that put that country on wheels after the Second World War. The 500, borrowing the playbook BMW used with its reinterpretation of the Mini, has helped to return Fiat back to profitability and CEO Sergio Machionne, who also runs Chrysler now, hopes it will do the same for the still lagging US automaker. The 500 will be built in Toluca, Mexico which will help Fiat service the US, Mexico and South America. Engines will be supplied by a Chrysler plant in Dundee, Michigan. Chrysler dealers will distribute three models of the 500 starting at $15,500.
HEIDI KLUM
Not every car maker had stunning news to share with the media and those that don't often resort to dangling distractions in front of the frumpy shutterbugs. Volkswagen talked up its cars but got attention from only model, an actual model, Heidi Klum.
The LA Auto Show has something for everyone and as the city completes its light rail system eventually you won't even have to drive downtown to attend. Wouldn't it be great to live in a world where we can choose to drive instead of being condemned to commute? Until then, we might as well make it as much fun and environmentally conscious as possible.
Location and Information:
Los Angeles Convention Center
1201 S. Figueroa Street
Los Angeles, CA 90015
(213) 741-1151, ext. 3
Monday, November 15, 2010
The Lion in the Kabul Zoo
After the US invasion of Afghanistan I discovered a story that I thought was perfect for Animal Planet -- about a one-eyed lion that had survived horrendous abuse during the Taliban's rule, including being shot. To me the zoo represented the plight and the hope of the country. To Animal Planet it sounded like a disturbing show that would upset their audience. Once again it was clear that cable was not the place for filmmakers to tell stories about anything. It was and is largely the home for distraction entertainment. I think this would have been a good show. Of course, my earlier pitch to Nat Geo about the destruction of the Buddha statues at Bamiyan by the Taliban would have been good too.
The Lion of the Kabul Zoo
Ravaged by war, the animals of the Kabul Zoo are starting to receive food, medicine and veterinary care from other zoos, animal lovers and international agencies.
After years of bullets and bombs, the Kabul Zoo in Afghanistan lies in ruins, its 40 remaining animals scarred by civil war and torment. The only elephant was killed by a rocket. The sole lion has one eye; its other was lost in a grenade attack. The Afghan bear has a blistering sore on its nose from an untreated knife wound. The zoo grounds, once well-maintained, are a mess: the bars of the cages are twisted; fresh water and electricity are rare commodities; and medical treatment for the creatures is all but nonexistent.
But help is on the way. American animal activists and zoo organizations have raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for the malnourished animals, marking the beginning of an international effort to save the war-battered facility and its inhabitants.
A team of animal experts who have the expertise and knowledge to work in these tough conditions will soon be on its way to begin the zoo rescue efforts. We propose to document this dramatic story and bring it to the public in a one-hour special presentation.
This is an enormous opportunity for Animal Planet to show how the zoo world and the public can work together to come to aid of animals in a time of great need.
“The response has been unbelievable," said Rod Hackney, spokesman for the North Carolina Zoo, which has received hundreds of e-mails from concerned patrons. "The story of these animals has really touched a chord in the hearts of many people." It’s a story that is certain to touch the hearts of Animal Planet viewers.
The zoo team will be led by Dr. Ehsan Arghandewal, former Dean of the Science Faculty at Kabul University. The University established the Kabul Zoo 30 years ago. Dr. Arghandewal, a zoologist, fled to Germany when the Taliban came to power. Another member of the team is Taufik Nuri, a native of Afghanistan who is currently working at the Cologne Zoo, Cologne, Germany. Nuri was formerly head keeper at the Kabul Zoo and is very familiar with the site. The third team member is Dr. John Lewis, a veterinarian with extensive experience in wild animal medicine. Lewis is a former veterinary officer at the London Zoo and has been in private specialist practice, connected with both wild and zoo animals for many years. He works frequently in difficult conditions, including work in central and southern Asia.
Our production team is uniquely qualified to create this important and timeless program. Since September 11, our field team has spent over 3 months in Afghanistan covering the conflict for Channel 4 in the UK and Japanese TV. We know how to get in and out of the country and have the confidence and support of the key power brokers we need in order to effectively and safely operate in this dangerous territory. From the military we can call on Deputy Defense Minister, General Dostum. We will have the support of the Foreign Minister, Dr. Abbudulah Abbudulah, the government’s spokesperson who speaks perfect English. In Kabul our media needs will be handled by the former head of public affairs for the Northern Alliance, S’diq Abede, who will soon be named the head of Kabul Television. We are experts in Central Asia and know how to translate that expertise into compelling storytelling.
We strongly urge a quick approval of this project so that we can document the teams’ first 8-10 days in the zoo. We will follow up during the course of the next several months with their ongoing efforts but feel the first impressions of the return of the exiled zoo director will be powerful television.
The rescue has three immediate goals that we will illustrate:
1) They will deal with the critical needs of the animals and staff, organizing essential repairs such as the establishment of running water and electricity. Dr. Lewis will also assess the health of the animals and provide any immediate veterinary care necessary in collaboration with a local veterinarian who has been on call at the Kabul Zoo for some time.
2) The team will make a full assessment of the zoo grounds, the animal enclosures and begin to devise plans to get equipment, food and other supplies to the Zoo on a regular basis. It is hoped that supplies can be bought locally, and local labor used, providing some stimulus to the local economy.
3) The team has been advised that considerable damage was done to some of the larger animal enclosures and the animals have been confined to some rather small spaces. The team will organize for repairs to the larger areas so the animals can have additional space.
While we witness this effort unfolding we’ll learn how the damage happened and find out how the rescue effort was organized.
Telling this story will take us back to North Carolina. We’ll meet Dr. David Jones, the director of the North Carolina Zoo, who heard about the plight of the animals and immediately offered his services, as well as those of the staff to aid the recovery plan for the Kabul Zoo. He’ll tell us how the whole international zoological community joined together to help a struggling zoo staff keep their animals alive and healthy. It will be clear that the response from the community and the animal-loving public has been overwhelming.
We’ll find out these efforts, under the banner of the American Zoo and Aquarium Assn. (AZA) and its European counterparts, raised more than $300,000 --far beyond organizers' initial expectations in just a few weeks. About 80% of the money came from individuals, the remainder from zoos. In fact, they raised so much money that they’ve started another fund to aid domestic and working animals in Afghanistan, many of which have been injured during ground combat or abandoned after their owners escaped to Pakistan, organizers said.
But the zoo will remain the centerpiece of the association's efforts and the focus of our program. This story will use archival photos and video to help us track what happened under the Taliban regime. We’ll see that once they took control of Kabul in 1996, the zoo's 37 species were reduced to 19. Zookeepers were powerless to stop the Taliban fighters, who regularly teased and tortured and reportedly killed some of the animals--including deer and birds--for food. Under Taliban law, women were forbidden to visit. We’ll hear that they did visit and find out that the zoo became a sanctuary. The zoo was a place where they felt safe to be outside with their children.
Even though the zoo remained a popular oasis, there was not enough money to keep it running properly. During the recent conflict the situation continued to worsen. The zoo and its charges were on the verge of dying out.
Zoo workers had not been paid since July and the head zookeeper reportedly has not received his $20 monthly allowance to run the zoo. Somehow he bought food for the animals on credit, and his seven children reportedly pitched in even though they too were going hungry. The children in our audience will relate to this example of sacrifice and learn something about selfless acts of kindness and courage.
We’ll find out that this is not the first time zoo workers and animal lovers have aided animals during war. Animals historically have been among war's forgotten casualties.
During World War II, Allied bombs destroyed much of the Berlin Zoo, which at one time housed 14,000 animals. By the war's end, only 1,200 malnourished animals remained. U.S. airplanes dropped food and medical rations not only for the civilians of the war-torn city but also for the zoo animals.
After Iraq invaded Kuwait in 1990, soldiers set up camp in the Kuwait Zoo, teasing and shooting many of the animals. At the time, Jones was director of the London Zoo, and he, along with various animal welfare agencies in the United Kingdom, organized a relief effort, sending in a team of veterinarians to nurse the injured animals back to health.
One of the most touching stories we’ll bring to light is that of Afghanistan's one-eyed lion, Marjan. This poignant tale will show how Marjan’s wonderful life turned to tragedy. He was a gift to the Kabul Zoo from the Germans in the late 1970s. He immediately became a star attraction, running regally in a compound along the Kabul River and drawing bigger crowds than the Australian kangaroos, the Indian elephant and the American raccoons.
Today, his face is lopsided, and he can barely walk. He is almost blind in his remaining eye. His injuries came from a grenade attack that is said to be the work of an Afghan seeking revenge because the lion reportedly killed a friend of his who had entered the compound to tease the lion.
Such tales prompted the outpouring of support from people across the country.
More importantly, we believe that the rescue of the Kabul Zoo is an important effort that will show that the recovery of the whole city and country is possible.
We are ready to embark on this important project and are seeking your support for a co-production. We have budgeted this program at $250,00 US and are requesting $130,000 (for US rights) from Animal Planet. We are able to tap into a tax fund in the UK and can cash flow this project. Once the project is approved by Animal Planet, 100% of the funds will be released for this production. Animal Planet will not be asked to disburse any funds until April 2003, long after the program has premiered and paid its way through advertising revenues.
We look forward to discussing this with you and embarking on this urgent program.
The response --- the show would disturb our audience.
Tuesday, November 9, 2010
Public Television -- A Separate Reality
Public Television: Introduction to a panel I moderated at Westdocs September 13, 2011 -- Navigating PBS
I’m Michael Rose – your moderator for this session. Like many of you, I’m an independent producer, sounds like an AA meeting. And in some ways it should. I can’t help myself. This is what I do. And like many of you, I’ve become increasingly concerned about the decline of the media landscape starting with America’s newspapers, including the LA Times that was taken over by a real estate shark who looted the employee’s pensions in order to buy the paper and then ended up firing many of them because the paper was saddled with an enormous debt. Paper’s like the Times were once seen as a public trust. Now many are struggling to survive. And the public interest isn’t being served.
Local TV news – with its emphasis on celebrities, crime, sports and the weather doesn’t fill the gap. It’s distraction not news. Infotainment, not information.
National cable outlets aren’t doing the job to cultivate a well-informed electorate. Fox News is a propaganda outlet for the Republican party and MSNBC has joined the partisan shout fest on the other side with a sagging CNN offering breathy headlines somewhere in between. Analysis is left to faux news pundits, Jon Stewart and his counterpart Stephen Colbert.
Perspective we might have once thought could come from The History Channel has vanished as it shifts its focus from Hitler to tree cutters and crab fishermen. The Discovery Channel loves its sharks and MTV’s Snooki isn’t exactly Rock the Vote or rock the boat. A few meaningful efforts sneak through these outlets every year but making programming that matters is not what the shareholders demand. Then there’s HBO that provides support for half a dozen to a dozen high minded docs a year and airs several more it acquires. And a few other potential outlets like the Sundance Channel, LinkTV and the documentary channel do aspire to offering a platform for serious work.
This bleak landscape exists in a world where a wacky preacher whose congregation is smaller than the number of people in this room diverts the scant resources of the national networks news outlets while we’re embroiled in endless wars that have cost the country nearly a Trillion dollars as the economy stays stuck in neutral. It’s a landscape where reports of gas natural leaks in a community in Northern California go unheeded for years until a town erupts. Where aging electrical transmission lines that the local utility no longer maintains come tumbling down setting 85 homes a blaze in Detroit. We are not wanting for stories that need to be told. But how to fund those efforts and where can your work be seen?
Saturday, November 6, 2010
That's Celebritainment!: Paparazzi Are the Stars in Two New Docs
I remember growing up in Malibu--well, I don't remember all of those years; it was the '60s. We'd see stars at the supermarket, gas station, post office, out walking on the beach or at a community meeting discussing whether or not we should have sewers. No one was bugging them. No one chased them. They were our neighbors.
When it was Academy Awards time, these neighbors would be picked up in a limo and whisked away to the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium, where they'd walk the red carpet and smile to the cameras. The next day, they were home weeding the garden.
This was an era before the Internet, TMZ and the 24-hour news cycle. Even though the studio system had collapsed, the tabloids hadn't completely taken over the supermarket aisles, and the culture wasn't completely obsessed with the comings and goings of anyone with the vaguest claim to being a celebrity.
Sure, there were faux stars and minor celebrities. The Monkees come to mind, as well as all the occupants sitting in the guest boxes on Hollywood Squares--the original B-, C- and D-list. There were flash-in-the-pan, one-hit wonders who came and went, and publicists who tried to get their clients some ink (remember ink?) or pictures in the papers. Or keep their pictures out of the paper--something that was much easier to do then. Speaking from my own experience, the LA County Sheriffs assigned to Malibu were known to drive inebriated locals home instead of locking them up. Most wouldn't have dreamed of giving some newshound a picture or a story. Even if they did, the editors could be dissuaded from running some stories.
Triggering these thought bubbles was the opportunity to view two recent documentaries on the paparazzi phenomenon. One, Teenage Paparazzo, a film about a prodigy of sorts, a 14-year-old "pap," is directed by Adrian Grenier, who plays Vince in the HBO series Entourage. Teenage Paparazzo gives Grenier an opportunity to see the world from the point of view of those who prey on him as a celebrity.
The other documentary, Smash His Camera by Leon Gast (known for When We Were Kings, the Oscar-winning documentary about the 1974 heavyweight championship fight between Muhammad Ali and George Foreman) traces the career of one of the earliest practitioners of the black arts of the paparazzi, Ron Galella.
Watching these films in the wake of Andrew Breitbart's video assault on Shirley Sherrod, the Chelsea Clinton wedding clamor and the nail-biting drama of Lindsey Lohan's time in the slammer, I wondered if we should see Teenage Paparazzo and Smash His Camera in a wider context--the tabloidization of the media. Not an original thought, but it made me feel I was doing a public service watching these two highly enjoyable, yet provocative, films.
Galella was at the forefront of this media transformation, and now it's something that even a kid can do. But when Galella first got out of the military service and turned his sights on New York's glitterati in the early '60s, he had the field to himself. This hard-working everyman from New Jersey was probably a difficult child who rebelled against coloring in the lines; as an adult, he decided not to stay behind the rope lines at events. He wanted to capture those candid, unscripted moments that to him were more real. Like a good beat reporter, he developed sources among limo drivers, doormen and nannies who tipped him off about the whereabouts of such stars as Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton and Marlon Brando. Galella had a system that would involve faking invites and credentials and knowing all the entry points in every New York hotel--especially the kitchen, which he recommends. No one ever seemed to stop him. His hours-long stakeouts produced millions of black-and-white photos, some iconic, that newspapers and magazines snapped up. This allowed him to build a home in New Jersey decorated in a style that Tony Soprano would love.
Gast was drawn to Galella's attitude. "He had a drive. He's a workaholic--as Muhammad Ali was." Galella's dogged persistence appears harmless in the film, but he got under people's skin. Tracking Brando, who was out for a nighttime walk with talk show host Dick Cavett, caused the mumbling actor to lose it. As Galella got in his face, Brando cold-cocked him, breaking his jaw and knocking out five teeth. Galella decided to wear a football helmet the next time he saw the actor.
Brando broke Galella's jaw, but it was Jackie O who broke his heart. His fixation with Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis between 1967 and 1982 resulted in a harassment suit and a countersuit, spurring debate about the limits of a free press that still stirs heated emotions. Galella's obsession also produced a number of memorable images, including his most famous shot of Jackie walking across the street. Mid-stride she turns her head and smiles as the wind tousles her hair. Galella got her to turn towards him by having the cab driver honk his horn. It was magic.
"Jackie is his Mona Lisa," says Gast. "What you have here is a love story. It's ‘Beauty and the Beast.'" It didn't work out for Galella, but the vitriol of Richard Burton, who "threatened to kill him," or Elaine Kaufman, owner of the once trendy restaurant Elaine's, "who threw a garbage can at him" (which made a good photo), seems misplaced. "Ron said you have to be thick-skinned," Gast notes.
Flash-forward from tramping the sidewalks of New York with the 77-year-old Galella to keeping up with 14-year-old Austin Visschedyk as he skateboards around Hollywood bagging shots of Lindsey Lohan, Paris Hilton and Britney Spears. Entourage star Grenier saw Austin in the "Pap pack" and was struck not only by his tenacity but its subtext: "He was being taught at such an early age some of the base and animal things practiced by the tabloid media." This came at a time when Grenier was looking at his "own role in the media and taking a hard look at myself and what I wanted to put out in my work," he says.
Focusing on the world of "celebritainment," as practiced by the hungry hordes who make a living capturing the comings and goings of Hollywood's latest heartthrobs, seemed like a good way for Grenier to explore the media's "world of mirrors." He'd been thinking about these questions while reading anthropologist Thomas De Zengotita's book Mediated: How the Media Shapes Your World and the Way You Live in It.
Zengotita looks at the impact of media saturation and how it can be navigated and understood. "He talks about our modern mediated experience like it's the Blob (from the 1958 sci-fi horror film)," Grenier notes. "You can't kill it, and anything you do just makes it bigger." In Grenier's film, we see the Pap pack, or Blob, swarm around a beach house as he and Paris Hilton wait inside, curtains closed. Like the frightened citizens in fictional Phoenixville, Pennsylvania, who were menaced in the film, Grenier and Hilton can't make it go away, so they go out to confront the inevitable.
Neither Gast nor Grenier have seen the other's film--something they plan to do when they get together in New York--but Teenage Paparazzo premieres September 27 on HBO. Smash His Camera, which aired on HBO and in theaters through Magnolia Pictures this past summer, comes out on DVD this fall, and will include bonus material of Galella talking about his experiences.
Asked if we'll see another movie about paparazzi in the future, Grenier observes, "Now that there is an explosion of celebrity, and everybody has a camera, the money's gone, but it's evolving."
Originally published in Documentary Magazine.
When it was Academy Awards time, these neighbors would be picked up in a limo and whisked away to the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium, where they'd walk the red carpet and smile to the cameras. The next day, they were home weeding the garden.
This was an era before the Internet, TMZ and the 24-hour news cycle. Even though the studio system had collapsed, the tabloids hadn't completely taken over the supermarket aisles, and the culture wasn't completely obsessed with the comings and goings of anyone with the vaguest claim to being a celebrity.
Sure, there were faux stars and minor celebrities. The Monkees come to mind, as well as all the occupants sitting in the guest boxes on Hollywood Squares--the original B-, C- and D-list. There were flash-in-the-pan, one-hit wonders who came and went, and publicists who tried to get their clients some ink (remember ink?) or pictures in the papers. Or keep their pictures out of the paper--something that was much easier to do then. Speaking from my own experience, the LA County Sheriffs assigned to Malibu were known to drive inebriated locals home instead of locking them up. Most wouldn't have dreamed of giving some newshound a picture or a story. Even if they did, the editors could be dissuaded from running some stories.
Triggering these thought bubbles was the opportunity to view two recent documentaries on the paparazzi phenomenon. One, Teenage Paparazzo, a film about a prodigy of sorts, a 14-year-old "pap," is directed by Adrian Grenier, who plays Vince in the HBO series Entourage. Teenage Paparazzo gives Grenier an opportunity to see the world from the point of view of those who prey on him as a celebrity.
The other documentary, Smash His Camera by Leon Gast (known for When We Were Kings, the Oscar-winning documentary about the 1974 heavyweight championship fight between Muhammad Ali and George Foreman) traces the career of one of the earliest practitioners of the black arts of the paparazzi, Ron Galella.
Watching these films in the wake of Andrew Breitbart's video assault on Shirley Sherrod, the Chelsea Clinton wedding clamor and the nail-biting drama of Lindsey Lohan's time in the slammer, I wondered if we should see Teenage Paparazzo and Smash His Camera in a wider context--the tabloidization of the media. Not an original thought, but it made me feel I was doing a public service watching these two highly enjoyable, yet provocative, films.
Galella was at the forefront of this media transformation, and now it's something that even a kid can do. But when Galella first got out of the military service and turned his sights on New York's glitterati in the early '60s, he had the field to himself. This hard-working everyman from New Jersey was probably a difficult child who rebelled against coloring in the lines; as an adult, he decided not to stay behind the rope lines at events. He wanted to capture those candid, unscripted moments that to him were more real. Like a good beat reporter, he developed sources among limo drivers, doormen and nannies who tipped him off about the whereabouts of such stars as Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton and Marlon Brando. Galella had a system that would involve faking invites and credentials and knowing all the entry points in every New York hotel--especially the kitchen, which he recommends. No one ever seemed to stop him. His hours-long stakeouts produced millions of black-and-white photos, some iconic, that newspapers and magazines snapped up. This allowed him to build a home in New Jersey decorated in a style that Tony Soprano would love.
Gast was drawn to Galella's attitude. "He had a drive. He's a workaholic--as Muhammad Ali was." Galella's dogged persistence appears harmless in the film, but he got under people's skin. Tracking Brando, who was out for a nighttime walk with talk show host Dick Cavett, caused the mumbling actor to lose it. As Galella got in his face, Brando cold-cocked him, breaking his jaw and knocking out five teeth. Galella decided to wear a football helmet the next time he saw the actor.
Brando broke Galella's jaw, but it was Jackie O who broke his heart. His fixation with Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis between 1967 and 1982 resulted in a harassment suit and a countersuit, spurring debate about the limits of a free press that still stirs heated emotions. Galella's obsession also produced a number of memorable images, including his most famous shot of Jackie walking across the street. Mid-stride she turns her head and smiles as the wind tousles her hair. Galella got her to turn towards him by having the cab driver honk his horn. It was magic.
"Jackie is his Mona Lisa," says Gast. "What you have here is a love story. It's ‘Beauty and the Beast.'" It didn't work out for Galella, but the vitriol of Richard Burton, who "threatened to kill him," or Elaine Kaufman, owner of the once trendy restaurant Elaine's, "who threw a garbage can at him" (which made a good photo), seems misplaced. "Ron said you have to be thick-skinned," Gast notes.
Flash-forward from tramping the sidewalks of New York with the 77-year-old Galella to keeping up with 14-year-old Austin Visschedyk as he skateboards around Hollywood bagging shots of Lindsey Lohan, Paris Hilton and Britney Spears. Entourage star Grenier saw Austin in the "Pap pack" and was struck not only by his tenacity but its subtext: "He was being taught at such an early age some of the base and animal things practiced by the tabloid media." This came at a time when Grenier was looking at his "own role in the media and taking a hard look at myself and what I wanted to put out in my work," he says.
Focusing on the world of "celebritainment," as practiced by the hungry hordes who make a living capturing the comings and goings of Hollywood's latest heartthrobs, seemed like a good way for Grenier to explore the media's "world of mirrors." He'd been thinking about these questions while reading anthropologist Thomas De Zengotita's book Mediated: How the Media Shapes Your World and the Way You Live in It.
Zengotita looks at the impact of media saturation and how it can be navigated and understood. "He talks about our modern mediated experience like it's the Blob (from the 1958 sci-fi horror film)," Grenier notes. "You can't kill it, and anything you do just makes it bigger." In Grenier's film, we see the Pap pack, or Blob, swarm around a beach house as he and Paris Hilton wait inside, curtains closed. Like the frightened citizens in fictional Phoenixville, Pennsylvania, who were menaced in the film, Grenier and Hilton can't make it go away, so they go out to confront the inevitable.
Neither Gast nor Grenier have seen the other's film--something they plan to do when they get together in New York--but Teenage Paparazzo premieres September 27 on HBO. Smash His Camera, which aired on HBO and in theaters through Magnolia Pictures this past summer, comes out on DVD this fall, and will include bonus material of Galella talking about his experiences.
Asked if we'll see another movie about paparazzi in the future, Grenier observes, "Now that there is an explosion of celebrity, and everybody has a camera, the money's gone, but it's evolving."
Originally published in Documentary Magazine.
Monday, November 1, 2010
Ballot recommendations
A list compiled from Lila Garret --
CONNECT THE DOTS
Monday morning at 7 on KPFK we’re going through the ballot again….this time with Rick Jacobs, creator and leader of the very effective Courage Campaign. Last week we had Jackie Goldberg another brilliant progressive analyst. Yes, our side has these great people to counter the bad guys. And we’ll talk for a few minutes about the one office we neglected last week…the Superintendent of Education. Tom Torlakson will be with us. He has been endorsed by Congress people Barbara Lee and Bob Filner two of our favorites, many good groups including the the Ca. Nurses Assoc…one of the most progressive unions in the country. So have your ballots and pencils ready....tomorrow morning at 7 on KPFKfm I
Lila Garrett (Host of CONNECT THE DOTS)
KPFK 90.7 FM in LA; 98.7 Santa Barbara; 93.7 San Diego
Airs Mondays from 7AM to 8AM.
To pod cast or download the broadcast just use this link:
http://archive.kpfk.org/parchive/index.php?shokey=ctd
Each show is on line for three months.
This brief note is from former Assembly woman Jackie Goldberg who sends out an excellent voter recommendation memo each election. I forwarded her complete list to you weeks ago. Now she has sent us reminders on three close, vital races. There's a very big difference between these recommended candidates and their right-wing opposition. Your vote on Tuesday is urgent. The ultra-right is determined to take over. Only our votes can stop them. See you at the polls. Lila Garrett
From Jackie Goldberg:
Remember to get other people to the polls and to get there yourself.
The insurance companies are pouring in dough to elect a "good friend of
theirs" over Dave Jones (Insurance Commissioner),
with whom I served. Dave Jones is great! and needs your support.
Insurance Commissioner is a critical position in California State government, as is
Attorney General of the State.
Kamala Harris, for Attorney General is in a dead heat with that "I love the
death penalty" guy Steve Cooley from L.A. County.
And finally, Gavin Newsom (Lieutenant Governor) is in a very, very close race
with the cute, friendly and VERY CONSERVATIVE Abel Maldonado.
Tell everyone, these races matter too. Thanks to all of you for doing your
part, now and again on Tuesday.
Here is the link to voting recommendations on the ballot propositions compiled by the Courage Campaign. Several organizations are represented. I am voting with the Courage Campaign itself except on Proposition 27. I am voting YES on 27. It’s all on one page, very attractively done. Even cheerful. In this hostile climate we need that. The Courage Campaign continues to prove it’s organizational excellence thanks to Rick Jacobs, it’s founder and leader and his excellent staff. Rick will be on my program, CONNECT THE DOTS, On Monday morning from 7 to 8 when we again will go through the ballot with our listeners. Info on the broadcast is below. Meanwhile, download this link and take it with you to the polls on Tuesday. It makes voting a pleasure. http://www.couragecampaign.org/2010VoterGuide <http://www.couragecampaign.org/2010VoterGuide>
Ballot Measures from Progressive Democrats
Version:1.0 StartHTML:0000000149 EndHTML:0000009237 StartFragment:0000000199 EndFragment:0000009203 StartSelection:0000000199 EndSelection:0000009203 CA NOVEMBER 2nd BALLOT PROPOSITIONS
Progressive Democrats of Los Angeles' Quick Reference Guide
Prop 19 (marijuana legalization) - YES
Prop 20 (congressional redistricting) - NO
Prop 21 (vehicle license surcharge for parks) - YES
Prop 22 (protection of local govt. funds) - YES
Prop 23 (suspend air pollution control) - NO
Prop 24 (repeals lower corporate taxes) - YES
Prop 25 (majority vote for state budget) YES
Prop 26 (2/3rds vote for levies/charges) - NO
Prop27(repeals redistricting commission) YES
To download the Sec. of State's Voter Information Guide, visit
www.sos.ca.gov <http://www.sos.ca.gov/> , or call 800-345-VOTE (8683) to order one.
Details on each ballot proposition below:
> PROPOSITION 19 -- MARIJUANA -- Allows people 21 or older to possess,
> cultivate, or transport marijuana for personal use, subject to regulation
> and taxation. Prohibits use in public or when minors are present.
> Prohibits providing marijuana to anyone under 21. Major funding support
> ($1.2 million) provided by S. K. Seymour, LLC (a medical cannabis provider),
> and Oaksterdam University.
Rationale for our YES recommendation: Stops wasting taxpayer dollars on
failed marijuana prohibition which disproportionately impacts communities of
color; weakens drug cartels.
>
> PROPOSITION 20 -- CONGRESSIONAL REDISTRICTING -- Transfers authority for
> redistricting congressional districts from the Legislature to the Citizens
> Redistricting Commission. The Commission, which was established by
> Proposition 11 (2008), already has redistricting authority for legislative
> seats and the board of equalization. Major funding support ($3 million)
> provided by Charles T. Munger, Jr., a physicist whose father, billionaire
> Charles T. Munger, is vice chairman of Berkshire Hathaway.
Rationale for our NO recommendation:
Removes accountability for redistricting from the electorate to a bureaucratic
commission, a Republican effort to seize 55 electoral votes.
>
> PROPOSITION 21 -- SURCHARGE FOR PARKS -- Establishes $18 annual state
> vehicle license surcharge to be used solely to operate, maintain, and repair
> the state park system, and protect wildlife and natural resources. Grants
> free admission to all state parks to vehicles paying the surcharge. Exempts
> commercial vehicles, trailers, and trailer coaches. Major funding support
> provided by Sempervirens Fund (redwoods protection group), Peninsula Open
> Space Trust, Conservation Action Fund, Save the Redwoods League, National
> Audubon Society, The Nature Conservancy, California State Parks Foundation,
> and Wildlands Support Fund.
Rationale for our YES position:
Surcharge revenue will be used to fund state parks that are under the budget axe.
>
> PROPOSITION 22 -- LOCAL GOVERNMENT -- Prohibits state from shifting, taking,
> borrowing, or restricting use of revenues dedicated to local government
> services, community redevelopment projects, and transportation projects and
> services. Prohibits the state from delaying distribution of tax revenues
> for these purposes. Major funding support provided by League of California
> Cities and California Alliance for Jobs (a group including Associated
> General Contractors, Operating Engineers, Carpenters Union, and Association
> of Engineering Construction Employers).
Rationale for our YES recommendation:
Protects local services: 911 emergency response, police, fire, libraries,
transit, road repairs.
>
>
> PROPOSITION 23 -- SUSPENSION OF AIR POLLUTION CONTROL LAWS -- Suspends the
> state's greenhouse gas reduction law until California's unemployment rate
> has been 5.5 percent or less for four consecutive quarters. Suspends
> requirements for increased renewable energy and cleaner fuel, as well as
> mandatory emission reporting and fee requirements for major polluters such
> as power plants and oil refineries. Major funding support provided by
> Valero (a Texas-based oil refiner and wholesaler), Howard Jarvis Taxpayers
> Association, World Oil Corp., Tower Energy Group, Tesoro Companies, Southern
> Counties Oil Co., and Jaco Oil Co.
Rationale for our NO recommendation:
Preserves California's clean air and water laws; will save a million jobs.
>
> > PROPOSITION 24 -- CORPORATE TAXES -- Repeals recent legislation which
> lowered corporate taxes by allowing businesses to shift operating losses to
> prior tax years; expanding the time in which losses can be shifted; allowing
> businesses to share tax credits with affiliated corporations; and allowing
> multi-state companies to use a sales-based income calculation rather than
> one based on property, payroll, and sales. Major funding support provided
> by California Teachers Association ($2.2 million). Major opposition funding
> provided by Fox Group, Time Warner, CBS, General Electric, Cisco Systems,
> Amgen, Walt Disney Company, and Genentech, Inc.
Rationale for our YES recommendation:
Stops $1.7 billion in new special tax breaks for wealthy multi-state corporations.
>
> PROPOSITION 25 -- MAJORITY VOTE FOR STATE BUDGET -- Lowers the legislative
> vote required for adopting a state budget from two-thirds to a simple
> majority. Major funding support provided by California Federation of
> Teachers, AFSCME, California School Employees Association, California
> Faculty Association, and California Professional Firefighters. Major
> opposition funding provided by California Chamber of Commerce, The Wine
> Institute, MillerCoors, California Beer & Beverage Distributors, Crown
> Imports LLC, and ConocoPhillips.
Rationale for our YES recommendation:
Reforms California's broken state budget process; prevents Republicans, the minority,
from holding Democrats, the majority, hostage by refusing to pass a budget or tax the oil companies.
> PROPOSITION 26 -- TWO-THIRDS VOTE FOR LEVIES AND CHARGES -- Increases to
> two-thirds, from a simple majority, the vote required for the Legislature to
> adopt state levies and charges, with limited exceptions. Requires
> two-thirds vote of the public for local levies and charges, with limited
> exceptions. Proponent: Allan Zaremberg, president of California Chamber of
> Commerce.
Rationale for our NO recommendation:
Makes it harder for California to climb out of debt because fees and charges not currently
considered taxes would be redefined as taxes, requiring a 2/3rds vote of the legislature.
>
>
> PROPOSITION 27 -- REPEAL OF REDISTRICTING COMMISSION -- Eliminates the
> Citizens Redistricting Commission that was established by Proposition 11
> (2008), and returns the job of drawing state legislative and board of
> equalization districts to the Legislature. Proponent: Daniel H.
> Lowenstein, UCLA professor of law, former chairman of California Fair
> Political Practices Commission.
Rationale for our YES recommendation:
Stop the Republican power grab; save taxpayer money; return the
responsibility to the state legislature.
CONNECT THE DOTS
Monday morning at 7 on KPFK we’re going through the ballot again….this time with Rick Jacobs, creator and leader of the very effective Courage Campaign. Last week we had Jackie Goldberg another brilliant progressive analyst. Yes, our side has these great people to counter the bad guys. And we’ll talk for a few minutes about the one office we neglected last week…the Superintendent of Education. Tom Torlakson will be with us. He has been endorsed by Congress people Barbara Lee and Bob Filner two of our favorites, many good groups including the the Ca. Nurses Assoc…one of the most progressive unions in the country. So have your ballots and pencils ready....tomorrow morning at 7 on KPFKfm I
Lila Garrett (Host of CONNECT THE DOTS)
KPFK 90.7 FM in LA; 98.7 Santa Barbara; 93.7 San Diego
Airs Mondays from 7AM to 8AM.
To pod cast or download the broadcast just use this link:
http://archive.kpfk.org/parchive/index.php?shokey=ctd
Each show is on line for three months.
This brief note is from former Assembly woman Jackie Goldberg who sends out an excellent voter recommendation memo each election. I forwarded her complete list to you weeks ago. Now she has sent us reminders on three close, vital races. There's a very big difference between these recommended candidates and their right-wing opposition. Your vote on Tuesday is urgent. The ultra-right is determined to take over. Only our votes can stop them. See you at the polls. Lila Garrett
From Jackie Goldberg:
Remember to get other people to the polls and to get there yourself.
The insurance companies are pouring in dough to elect a "good friend of
theirs" over Dave Jones (Insurance Commissioner),
with whom I served. Dave Jones is great! and needs your support.
Insurance Commissioner is a critical position in California State government, as is
Attorney General of the State.
Kamala Harris, for Attorney General is in a dead heat with that "I love the
death penalty" guy Steve Cooley from L.A. County.
And finally, Gavin Newsom (Lieutenant Governor) is in a very, very close race
with the cute, friendly and VERY CONSERVATIVE Abel Maldonado.
Tell everyone, these races matter too. Thanks to all of you for doing your
part, now and again on Tuesday.
Here is the link to voting recommendations on the ballot propositions compiled by the Courage Campaign. Several organizations are represented. I am voting with the Courage Campaign itself except on Proposition 27. I am voting YES on 27. It’s all on one page, very attractively done. Even cheerful. In this hostile climate we need that. The Courage Campaign continues to prove it’s organizational excellence thanks to Rick Jacobs, it’s founder and leader and his excellent staff. Rick will be on my program, CONNECT THE DOTS, On Monday morning from 7 to 8 when we again will go through the ballot with our listeners. Info on the broadcast is below. Meanwhile, download this link and take it with you to the polls on Tuesday. It makes voting a pleasure. http://www.couragecampaign.org/2010VoterGuide <http://www.couragecampaign.org/2010VoterGuide>
Ballot Measures from Progressive Democrats
Version:1.0 StartHTML:0000000149 EndHTML:0000009237 StartFragment:0000000199 EndFragment:0000009203 StartSelection:0000000199 EndSelection:0000009203 CA NOVEMBER 2nd BALLOT PROPOSITIONS
Progressive Democrats of Los Angeles' Quick Reference Guide
Prop 19 (marijuana legalization) - YES
Prop 20 (congressional redistricting) - NO
Prop 21 (vehicle license surcharge for parks) - YES
Prop 22 (protection of local govt. funds) - YES
Prop 23 (suspend air pollution control) - NO
Prop 24 (repeals lower corporate taxes) - YES
Prop 25 (majority vote for state budget) YES
Prop 26 (2/3rds vote for levies/charges) - NO
Prop27(repeals redistricting commission) YES
To download the Sec. of State's Voter Information Guide, visit
www.sos.ca.gov <http://www.sos.ca.gov/> , or call 800-345-VOTE (8683) to order one.
Details on each ballot proposition below:
> PROPOSITION 19 -- MARIJUANA -- Allows people 21 or older to possess,
> cultivate, or transport marijuana for personal use, subject to regulation
> and taxation. Prohibits use in public or when minors are present.
> Prohibits providing marijuana to anyone under 21. Major funding support
> ($1.2 million) provided by S. K. Seymour, LLC (a medical cannabis provider),
> and Oaksterdam University.
Rationale for our YES recommendation: Stops wasting taxpayer dollars on
failed marijuana prohibition which disproportionately impacts communities of
color; weakens drug cartels.
>
> PROPOSITION 20 -- CONGRESSIONAL REDISTRICTING -- Transfers authority for
> redistricting congressional districts from the Legislature to the Citizens
> Redistricting Commission. The Commission, which was established by
> Proposition 11 (2008), already has redistricting authority for legislative
> seats and the board of equalization. Major funding support ($3 million)
> provided by Charles T. Munger, Jr., a physicist whose father, billionaire
> Charles T. Munger, is vice chairman of Berkshire Hathaway.
Rationale for our NO recommendation:
Removes accountability for redistricting from the electorate to a bureaucratic
commission, a Republican effort to seize 55 electoral votes.
>
> PROPOSITION 21 -- SURCHARGE FOR PARKS -- Establishes $18 annual state
> vehicle license surcharge to be used solely to operate, maintain, and repair
> the state park system, and protect wildlife and natural resources. Grants
> free admission to all state parks to vehicles paying the surcharge. Exempts
> commercial vehicles, trailers, and trailer coaches. Major funding support
> provided by Sempervirens Fund (redwoods protection group), Peninsula Open
> Space Trust, Conservation Action Fund, Save the Redwoods League, National
> Audubon Society, The Nature Conservancy, California State Parks Foundation,
> and Wildlands Support Fund.
Rationale for our YES position:
Surcharge revenue will be used to fund state parks that are under the budget axe.
>
> PROPOSITION 22 -- LOCAL GOVERNMENT -- Prohibits state from shifting, taking,
> borrowing, or restricting use of revenues dedicated to local government
> services, community redevelopment projects, and transportation projects and
> services. Prohibits the state from delaying distribution of tax revenues
> for these purposes. Major funding support provided by League of California
> Cities and California Alliance for Jobs (a group including Associated
> General Contractors, Operating Engineers, Carpenters Union, and Association
> of Engineering Construction Employers).
Rationale for our YES recommendation:
Protects local services: 911 emergency response, police, fire, libraries,
transit, road repairs.
>
>
> PROPOSITION 23 -- SUSPENSION OF AIR POLLUTION CONTROL LAWS -- Suspends the
> state's greenhouse gas reduction law until California's unemployment rate
> has been 5.5 percent or less for four consecutive quarters. Suspends
> requirements for increased renewable energy and cleaner fuel, as well as
> mandatory emission reporting and fee requirements for major polluters such
> as power plants and oil refineries. Major funding support provided by
> Valero (a Texas-based oil refiner and wholesaler), Howard Jarvis Taxpayers
> Association, World Oil Corp., Tower Energy Group, Tesoro Companies, Southern
> Counties Oil Co., and Jaco Oil Co.
Rationale for our NO recommendation:
Preserves California's clean air and water laws; will save a million jobs.
>
> > PROPOSITION 24 -- CORPORATE TAXES -- Repeals recent legislation which
> lowered corporate taxes by allowing businesses to shift operating losses to
> prior tax years; expanding the time in which losses can be shifted; allowing
> businesses to share tax credits with affiliated corporations; and allowing
> multi-state companies to use a sales-based income calculation rather than
> one based on property, payroll, and sales. Major funding support provided
> by California Teachers Association ($2.2 million). Major opposition funding
> provided by Fox Group, Time Warner, CBS, General Electric, Cisco Systems,
> Amgen, Walt Disney Company, and Genentech, Inc.
Rationale for our YES recommendation:
Stops $1.7 billion in new special tax breaks for wealthy multi-state corporations.
>
> PROPOSITION 25 -- MAJORITY VOTE FOR STATE BUDGET -- Lowers the legislative
> vote required for adopting a state budget from two-thirds to a simple
> majority. Major funding support provided by California Federation of
> Teachers, AFSCME, California School Employees Association, California
> Faculty Association, and California Professional Firefighters. Major
> opposition funding provided by California Chamber of Commerce, The Wine
> Institute, MillerCoors, California Beer & Beverage Distributors, Crown
> Imports LLC, and ConocoPhillips.
Rationale for our YES recommendation:
Reforms California's broken state budget process; prevents Republicans, the minority,
from holding Democrats, the majority, hostage by refusing to pass a budget or tax the oil companies.
> PROPOSITION 26 -- TWO-THIRDS VOTE FOR LEVIES AND CHARGES -- Increases to
> two-thirds, from a simple majority, the vote required for the Legislature to
> adopt state levies and charges, with limited exceptions. Requires
> two-thirds vote of the public for local levies and charges, with limited
> exceptions. Proponent: Allan Zaremberg, president of California Chamber of
> Commerce.
Rationale for our NO recommendation:
Makes it harder for California to climb out of debt because fees and charges not currently
considered taxes would be redefined as taxes, requiring a 2/3rds vote of the legislature.
>
>
> PROPOSITION 27 -- REPEAL OF REDISTRICTING COMMISSION -- Eliminates the
> Citizens Redistricting Commission that was established by Proposition 11
> (2008), and returns the job of drawing state legislative and board of
> equalization districts to the Legislature. Proponent: Daniel H.
> Lowenstein, UCLA professor of law, former chairman of California Fair
> Political Practices Commission.
Rationale for our YES recommendation:
Stop the Republican power grab; save taxpayer money; return the
responsibility to the state legislature.
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