Menemsha Films is in charge of the U.S. Theatrical Release of "The Outrageous Sophie Tucker," directed by Academy Award nominated documentary filmmaker William Gazecki, and produced and written by Susan and Lloyd Ecker. Sophie Tucker was the Opening Night film at the 2015 Los Angeles Jewish Film Festival and screened at many other film festivals.
The film is still playing in L.A. this weekend at the Laemmle's Royal Theater and in Encino at the Laemmle's Town Center 5.
"The Outrageous Sophie Tucker" is the rags to riches story of one of old time showbiz’s biggest personalities. From 1906 through the beginning of television, Sophie Tucker and her bawdy, brash, and risqué songs paved the way for performers such as Mae West, Marilyn Monroe, Bette Midler, Cher, Madonna, Lady Gaga, and Beyoncé.
After eight years spent reading hundreds of Tucker’s personal scrapbooks, visiting fourteen archives, and interviewing dozens of family, friends, and fellow icons of stage and screen, Susan and Lloyd Ecker have completed their comprehensive documentary about the Last of the Red Hot Mamas.
“Sophie was like the Forrest Gump of the first half of the 1900s,” says producer Susan Ecker. “She was close friends with seven U.S. presidents, King George VI, young Queen Elizabeth, Charlie Chaplin, J. Edgar Hoover, Al Capone, Judy Garland, Jerry Lewis, Frank Sinatra and every other notable of her era.”
“After immersing ourselves in Sophie's 400+ personal scrapbooks and meeting all of Tucker’s surviving friends and family,” says producer Lloyd Ecker, “this film biography is the complete uncensored tale of this vaudeville, Broadway, radio, television and Hollywood legend. Though she obsessively documented her life, Sophie loved to exaggerate for dramatic effect. Over the years, she told multiple versions of each important event. At the end, not even Sophie knew the difference between truth and tall tale".
The film is still playing in L.A. this weekend at the Laemmle's Royal Theater and in Encino at the Laemmle's Town Center 5.
"The Outrageous Sophie Tucker" is the rags to riches story of one of old time showbiz’s biggest personalities. From 1906 through the beginning of television, Sophie Tucker and her bawdy, brash, and risqué songs paved the way for performers such as Mae West, Marilyn Monroe, Bette Midler, Cher, Madonna, Lady Gaga, and Beyoncé.
After eight years spent reading hundreds of Tucker’s personal scrapbooks, visiting fourteen archives, and interviewing dozens of family, friends, and fellow icons of stage and screen, Susan and Lloyd Ecker have completed their comprehensive documentary about the Last of the Red Hot Mamas.
“Sophie was like the Forrest Gump of the first half of the 1900s,” says producer Susan Ecker. “She was close friends with seven U.S. presidents, King George VI, young Queen Elizabeth, Charlie Chaplin, J. Edgar Hoover, Al Capone, Judy Garland, Jerry Lewis, Frank Sinatra and every other notable of her era.”
“After immersing ourselves in Sophie's 400+ personal scrapbooks and meeting all of Tucker’s surviving friends and family,” says producer Lloyd Ecker, “this film biography is the complete uncensored tale of this vaudeville, Broadway, radio, television and Hollywood legend. Though she obsessively documented her life, Sophie loved to exaggerate for dramatic effect. Over the years, she told multiple versions of each important event. At the end, not even Sophie knew the difference between truth and tall tale".
- 8/8/2015
- by Peter Belsito
- Sydney's Buzz
This is the rags to riches story of Sophie Tucker, an iconic superstar who ruled vaudeville, Broadway, radio, television, and Hollywood throughout the 20th century. Before Beyoncé, Lady Gaga, Madonna, Bette Midler, Marilyn Monroe, and Mae West, Sophie Tucker was the first woman to infatuate her audiences with a bold, bawdy and brassy style unlike any other. Directed by William Gazecki and produced by Susan and Lloyd Ecker "The Outrageous Sophie Tucker" will open across south Florida starting November 7th.
Watch the trailer at the bottom of the page. Or watch this now:
Sophie Tucker: Musical Pioneer: http://youtu.be/FEAXdF2MQA4
Miami
Tower Theater Mdc
Aventura
AMC Aventura 24
Miami Beach
Regal South Beach 18
Fort Lauderdale
The Gateway Theatre
Tamarac
The Last Picture Show
Boca Raton
Living Room Theaters
Boca Raton
Regal Shadowood 16
Delray Beach
Movies of Delray
Lake Worth
Movies of Lake Worth
Palm Beach Gardens
Cobb Downtown 16...
Watch the trailer at the bottom of the page. Or watch this now:
Sophie Tucker: Musical Pioneer: http://youtu.be/FEAXdF2MQA4
Miami
Tower Theater Mdc
Aventura
AMC Aventura 24
Miami Beach
Regal South Beach 18
Fort Lauderdale
The Gateway Theatre
Tamarac
The Last Picture Show
Boca Raton
Living Room Theaters
Boca Raton
Regal Shadowood 16
Delray Beach
Movies of Delray
Lake Worth
Movies of Lake Worth
Palm Beach Gardens
Cobb Downtown 16...
- 10/1/2014
- by Sydney Levine
- Sydney's Buzz
SnagFilms has acquired domestic distribution rights to Eugene Jarecki’s documentary about the war on drugs “The House I Live In” and Jay Bulger’s Ginger Baker documentary “Beware of Mr. Baker.” Jarecki’s film won the grand jury prize at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival, and Bulger’s took the grand jury prize at SXSW in March. Abramorama is handling the theatrical release of both films, with "House I Live In" scheduled for an October opening. Read More: SnagFilms Acquires All U.S. Rights to Gotham Chopra's 'Decoding Deepak' In addition, SnagFilms has acquired six other documentaries: Barbara Kopple’s Oscar-winning films “Harlan County U.S.A.” (1976) and “American Dream” (1990); William Gazecki’s “Waco: The Rules of Engagement” (1997); Aviva Kempner’s “The Life and Times of Hank Greenberg” (1998) and “Yoo-Hoo, Mrs. Goldberg”...
- 8/21/2012
- by Indiewire Staff
- Indiewire
Yesterday came the yearly announcement from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences as it extended 134 invitations to several artists and executives "who have distinguished themselves by their contributions to theatrical motion pictures" read the press release. Of course all of them can decline, but I wouldn't necessarily expect that to happen as all who accept the invitation will be the only additions in 2009 to the Academy's roster of voting members. "These filmmakers have, over the course of their careers, captured the imagination of audiences around the world," said Academy President Sid Ganis. "It's this kind of talent and creativity that make up the Academy, and I welcome each of them to our ranks." The list follows below and reading around the best analysis I saw of it came from Nathaniel Rogers at The Film Experience who, among other things, pointed out the addition of longtime Darren Aronofsky's...
- 7/1/2009
- by Brad Brevet
- Rope of Silicon
On Tuesday, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences issued invitations to 134 members of the film community to join the group. There were a maximum of 166 open slots to fill this year, but the various branch committees endorsed fewer candidates than were proposed to them.
Hugh Jackman, who hosted the most recent Oscar show, has been invited to join. So have Anne Hathaway, Emily Blunt, James Franco and Michelle Williams. The list even includes a number of comic performers like Michael Cera, Seth Rogan and Paul Rudd.
Voting membership in the organization has held steady at just under 6,000 members since 2003.
New members will be welcomed into the Academy at an invitation-only reception at the Academy's Fairbanks Center for Motion Picture Study in Beverly Hills in September.
"These filmmakers have, over the course of their careers, captured the imagination of audiences around the world," Academy president Sid Ganis. Said. "It's...
Hugh Jackman, who hosted the most recent Oscar show, has been invited to join. So have Anne Hathaway, Emily Blunt, James Franco and Michelle Williams. The list even includes a number of comic performers like Michael Cera, Seth Rogan and Paul Rudd.
Voting membership in the organization has held steady at just under 6,000 members since 2003.
New members will be welcomed into the Academy at an invitation-only reception at the Academy's Fairbanks Center for Motion Picture Study in Beverly Hills in September.
"These filmmakers have, over the course of their careers, captured the imagination of audiences around the world," Academy president Sid Ganis. Said. "It's...
- 6/30/2009
- by By Gregg Kilday
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Elaborate hoax or cosmic graffiti?
For those left hungry for more after "Signs", "Crop Circles: Quest for Truth" serves up plenty to chew on -- especially for the believers.
A provocative if somewhat long-winded documentary by Academy Award-nominated filmmaker William Gazecki ("Waco: The Rules of Engagement"), the two-hour film goes a little heavy on the talking heads quotient, but it's the surprising amount of photographic evidence that ultimately speaks startling volumes.
Scheduled to go out in wide release this month, the documentary should piggyback handsomely off of the still-going-strong M. Night Shyamalan picture and subsequently make a mark in home video and education circles.
According to the film's statistics, some 250 crop formations appear throughout the world each year. Since 1980, 100-180 crop circles have been reported every summer in southern England. They can take varying forms, from simple circles to complex geometric patterns to odd pictograms.
More curious is the fact that there is usually little damage found in the fallen crops, which appear bent but not broken.
Even though Gazecki and his film contend that the majority of the formations are in fact authentic -- alleging that since 1980, there has been a coordinated disinformation strategy at play designed to convince the public that they have simply been the work of resourceful pranksters -- it would have made for a better balance if he had spent a little time talking to some of those perpetrators rather than simply acknowledging their contributions in passing.
Boasting no shortage of eyewitness accounts and aerial footage of patterns, many of which rival those patented overhead shots from Busby Berkeley movies in terms of design intricacy, the handsomely assembled film certainly looks impressive.
Given that Gazecki is a former record producer and sound mixer who was also an Oscar nominee for his sound work on Bette Midler's "The Rose", it's not surprising that the digitally shot film is also pleasing to the ear, with a rich, comforting score composed by David Hamilton.
Whether you're willing to buy into the theory that the patterns are the basis of some kind of intergalactic road map for a future visitation by some distant planet looking to colonize (as some of Gazecki's more somber subjects prophesy) or maintain it's all just a load of crop, some of those formations sure are pretty -- no matter what the cause.
CROP CIRCLES: QUEST FOR TRUTH
OpenEdge Media
Credits:
Director-producer: William Gazecki
Executive producer: Suzanne Taylor
Co-executive producers: Diahann Hughes, Monte Zinn
Director of photography: Ariane Compagnone
Editor: Morgan Barnard
Music: David Hamilton
Running time -- 120 minutes
No MPAA rating...
For those left hungry for more after "Signs", "Crop Circles: Quest for Truth" serves up plenty to chew on -- especially for the believers.
A provocative if somewhat long-winded documentary by Academy Award-nominated filmmaker William Gazecki ("Waco: The Rules of Engagement"), the two-hour film goes a little heavy on the talking heads quotient, but it's the surprising amount of photographic evidence that ultimately speaks startling volumes.
Scheduled to go out in wide release this month, the documentary should piggyback handsomely off of the still-going-strong M. Night Shyamalan picture and subsequently make a mark in home video and education circles.
According to the film's statistics, some 250 crop formations appear throughout the world each year. Since 1980, 100-180 crop circles have been reported every summer in southern England. They can take varying forms, from simple circles to complex geometric patterns to odd pictograms.
More curious is the fact that there is usually little damage found in the fallen crops, which appear bent but not broken.
Even though Gazecki and his film contend that the majority of the formations are in fact authentic -- alleging that since 1980, there has been a coordinated disinformation strategy at play designed to convince the public that they have simply been the work of resourceful pranksters -- it would have made for a better balance if he had spent a little time talking to some of those perpetrators rather than simply acknowledging their contributions in passing.
Boasting no shortage of eyewitness accounts and aerial footage of patterns, many of which rival those patented overhead shots from Busby Berkeley movies in terms of design intricacy, the handsomely assembled film certainly looks impressive.
Given that Gazecki is a former record producer and sound mixer who was also an Oscar nominee for his sound work on Bette Midler's "The Rose", it's not surprising that the digitally shot film is also pleasing to the ear, with a rich, comforting score composed by David Hamilton.
Whether you're willing to buy into the theory that the patterns are the basis of some kind of intergalactic road map for a future visitation by some distant planet looking to colonize (as some of Gazecki's more somber subjects prophesy) or maintain it's all just a load of crop, some of those formations sure are pretty -- no matter what the cause.
CROP CIRCLES: QUEST FOR TRUTH
OpenEdge Media
Credits:
Director-producer: William Gazecki
Executive producer: Suzanne Taylor
Co-executive producers: Diahann Hughes, Monte Zinn
Director of photography: Ariane Compagnone
Editor: Morgan Barnard
Music: David Hamilton
Running time -- 120 minutes
No MPAA rating...
- 8/23/2002
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Opening today for a week's run at Laemmle's Monica 4 Plex, "Reckless Indifference" is a flawed but stimulating documentary that hits close to home. Like filmmaker William Gazecki's Oscar-nominated "Waco: The Rules of Engagement", "Reckless" follows a controversial news event and its murky legal aftermath. But the temptation to juice up the proceedings with re-
creations and an oppressively atmospheric score works against the film because the subject matter is so vital.
In 1995, four teenage boys from Agoura Hills (50 miles north of Los Angeles) were arrested for the murder of one youth and the wounding of another in a backyard brawl that got out of control. In what many consider a miscarriage of justice, three of the four accused boys were convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.
During and after the trial, many concerned parties -- not the least being the parents of those convicted -- tried to restore a sense of "proportionality," but it was to no avail.
Gazecki interviews district attorneys, defense lawyers, parents, journalists and neighbors. He includes footage and transcripts of interviews that took place in prison, when such heavyweights as state Sen. Tom Hayden, D-Los Angeles, got involved.
The viewer can't help but make up his or her mind about the facts as presented, though Gazecki tries to give all sides their due. The multiple tragedies resulting from the crime and punishment say a great deal about our society.
Indeed, "Reckless" originally started as a fictional film account of the events, but it's now a much more valuable experience because it throws a harsh light on the manipulative processes of the law. In short, the "felony/murder" law says that if one kills another person in the process of committing a felony, the charge is much harsher than manslaughter. In the case portrayed in the film, prosecutors had a tough time satisfactorily proving the intent of the four defendants and providing evidence to show that each one was guilty as charged.
Interviewee Alan Dershowitz says a "fiction" was created to railroad the accused. The prosecution portrayed the boys as members of a gang named the Gumbys, who earlier in the day stole a wallet from a vehicle and confronted the car's owner and her two young children. The homicide apparently centered on drugs, and the surviving victim had a backyard clubhouse where he allegedly sold dope. The dead boy was the son of an LAPD officer, which some believe upped the stakes in the wake of the O.J. Simpson criminal trial.
In the dimly lit clubhouse where the scuffle broke out, a swift stab to a boy's heart by one youth armed with a pocket knife turned into an tragic "accident" that would have warranted much less severe sentencing if the events took place in the inner city, one participant said. The tension surrounding the case caused the jury to request special safety procedures out of the fear of reprisals and led to arguably "reckless indifference" on the part of prosecutors. With appeals in the process, this film may or may not make a difference for those involved, but it raises issues everyone should be aware of.
RECKLESS INDIFFERENCE
Utopia Films/Open Edge Media
Director: William Gazecki
Producers: Dale Rosenbloom, William Gazecki
Executive producers: Henry Bloomstein,
Gene Schwam
Director of photography: Eric Reiner
Editor: William Gazecki
Music: Ashley Witt
Color/stereo
Running time - 93 minutes
No MPAA rating...
creations and an oppressively atmospheric score works against the film because the subject matter is so vital.
In 1995, four teenage boys from Agoura Hills (50 miles north of Los Angeles) were arrested for the murder of one youth and the wounding of another in a backyard brawl that got out of control. In what many consider a miscarriage of justice, three of the four accused boys were convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.
During and after the trial, many concerned parties -- not the least being the parents of those convicted -- tried to restore a sense of "proportionality," but it was to no avail.
Gazecki interviews district attorneys, defense lawyers, parents, journalists and neighbors. He includes footage and transcripts of interviews that took place in prison, when such heavyweights as state Sen. Tom Hayden, D-Los Angeles, got involved.
The viewer can't help but make up his or her mind about the facts as presented, though Gazecki tries to give all sides their due. The multiple tragedies resulting from the crime and punishment say a great deal about our society.
Indeed, "Reckless" originally started as a fictional film account of the events, but it's now a much more valuable experience because it throws a harsh light on the manipulative processes of the law. In short, the "felony/murder" law says that if one kills another person in the process of committing a felony, the charge is much harsher than manslaughter. In the case portrayed in the film, prosecutors had a tough time satisfactorily proving the intent of the four defendants and providing evidence to show that each one was guilty as charged.
Interviewee Alan Dershowitz says a "fiction" was created to railroad the accused. The prosecution portrayed the boys as members of a gang named the Gumbys, who earlier in the day stole a wallet from a vehicle and confronted the car's owner and her two young children. The homicide apparently centered on drugs, and the surviving victim had a backyard clubhouse where he allegedly sold dope. The dead boy was the son of an LAPD officer, which some believe upped the stakes in the wake of the O.J. Simpson criminal trial.
In the dimly lit clubhouse where the scuffle broke out, a swift stab to a boy's heart by one youth armed with a pocket knife turned into an tragic "accident" that would have warranted much less severe sentencing if the events took place in the inner city, one participant said. The tension surrounding the case caused the jury to request special safety procedures out of the fear of reprisals and led to arguably "reckless indifference" on the part of prosecutors. With appeals in the process, this film may or may not make a difference for those involved, but it raises issues everyone should be aware of.
RECKLESS INDIFFERENCE
Utopia Films/Open Edge Media
Director: William Gazecki
Producers: Dale Rosenbloom, William Gazecki
Executive producers: Henry Bloomstein,
Gene Schwam
Director of photography: Eric Reiner
Editor: William Gazecki
Music: Ashley Witt
Color/stereo
Running time - 93 minutes
No MPAA rating...
- 10/23/2000
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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