David Letterman: A Life on Television (2015)
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A documentary that follows the former Tonight Show. Filmed during Conanâs âLegally Prohibited From Being Funny on Televisionâ comedy tour, after his departure from the Tonight Show, takes viewers into an intimate journey of OâBrienâs life.
Over fifty very famous American and Canadian funny people (filmmakers, writers, actors and comedians) share life and professional journeys and insights, in an effort to shed light on the thesis: Do you have to be miserable to be funny?
I'm from Hollywood is about the adventures of late performance artist Andy Kaufman in the world of professional wrestling. This film includes interviews with Taxi co-stars Marilu Henner and Tony Danza and interviews with comedian Robin Williams, wrestler Jerry Lawler, wrestling commentator Lance Russell, and Kaufman's best friend, Bob Zmuda. Other people seen in the film include TV host David Letterman and Jimmy Hart of Continental Wrestling Association. The film's title refers to a phrase spoken by Kaufman to the Memphis wrestling audience.
Short documentary / tribute to the late, truly great American stand-up comedian Bill Hicks, included as an extra in several box sets. Bill Hicks passed away in 1994, taken tragically young aged only 32. His legend and reputation, however, continue to grow. "It's Just a Ride" is a celebration of his life and work, featuring numerous clips of Bill's many recorded stand-up performances, along with trbutes from Sean Hughes, Eric Bogosian, David Letterman and Eddie Izzard, amongst others.
American: The Bill Hicks Story is a biographical documentary film on the life of comedian Bill Hicks. The film was produced by Matt Harlock and Paul Thomas, and features archival footage and interviews with family and friends, including Kevin Booth. The filmmakers used a cut-and-paste animation technique to add movement to a large collection of still pictures used to document events in Hicks' life. The film made its North American premiere at the 2010 South by Southwest Film Festival. The film was nominated for a 2010 Grierson British Documentary Award for the "Most Entertaining Documentary" category. It was also nominated for Best Graphics and Animation category in the 2011 Cinema Eye Awards. Awards won include The Dallas Film Festivals Texas Filmmaker Award, at Little Rock The Oxford American's Best Southern Film Award, and Best Documentary at the Downtown LA Film Festival. On Rotten Tomatoes, 81% of the first 47 reviews counted were rated positive.
The story of eccentric, avant-garde New York comic, Theodore Gottlieb. Known as Brother Theodore, this brilliant (some would say insane) comic made numerous films, several records, and multiple appearances on variety programs, such as Late Night with David Letterman. Though he never achieved commercial success, Brother Theodore influenced an entire generation of New York-based comics, many of whom pay homage to him in this fascinating documentary. J.R. Kinnard
"The Television Years" examines the events that took place in the years between 1956 and 1960, in which Elvis Presley excited a whole nation as the "King of Rock and Roll" in the big television shows of the time. One highlight of this time periode was Elvis' 1960 combeback hosted by Frank Sinatra, which marked his first appearance on televison after his two-year stay in the army.
Computer programmer/beekeeper Jacob gets a "television" implanted in his brain by a race of telekinetic bees, which causes him to experience severe hallucinations. (Includes: Mesopotamian bees, souls living inside weapons, the land of the dead in the Moon, Cain, the Trinity site, the tower of Babel, and a planet TV transmitting the dead of the future inside the Garden of Eden Cave which are giant bees, a Supranormal Film Society trying to capture the dead on film in the 1920's, the letter X, missiles turning into flying saucers, a beekeeper who is murdered by his own bees, and the cities of the dead)
The 135-minute DVD special from the 3 part miniseries that aired on The Hub in 2010. It combines performances from the smash hit tour with interviews and behind-the-scenes footage. Follow Taylor all the way from her early home videos to her 2010 gala performance.
In 1959, Berry Gordy Jr. gathered the best musicians from Detroit's thriving jazz and blues scene to begin cutting songs for his new record company. Over a fourteen year period they were the heartbeat on every hit from Motown's Detroit era. By the end of their phenomenal run, this unheralded group of musicians had played on more number ones hits than the Beach Boys, the Rolling Stones, Elvis and the Beatles combined - which makes them the greatest hit machine in the history of popular music. They called themselves the Funk Brothers. Forty-one years after they played their first note on a Motown record and three decades since they were all together, the Funk Brothers reunited back in Detroit to play their music and tell their unforgettable story, with the help of archival footage, still photos, narration, interviews, re-creation scenes, 20 Motown master tracks, and twelve new live performances of Motown classics with the Brothers backing up contemporary performers.
âShowrunnersâ is the first ever feature length documentary film to explore the fascinating world of US television showrunners and the creative forces aligned around them. These are the people responsible for creating, writing and overseeing every element of production on one of the United Stateâs biggest exports â television drama and comedy series. Often described as the most complex job in the entertainment business, a showrunner is the chief writer / producer on a TV series and, in most instances, the showâs creator. Battling daily between art and commerce, showrunners manage every aspect of a TV showâs development and production: creative, financial and logistical.
In the spirit of the old west variety shows, Vaughn played host to the ensemble of comedians and performed improvisational sketches with surprise celebrity and musical guests. The film chronicles the journey of Vaughn and the comedians as travel over 6,000 miles and perform 30 shows in 30 consecutive nights in cities across the nation.
A documentary about the legendary series of nationally televised debates in 1968 between two great public intellectuals, the liberal Gore Vidal and the conservative William F. Buckley Jr. Intended as commentary on the issues of their day, these vitriolic and explosive encounters came to define the modern era of public discourse in the media, marking the big bang moment of our contemporary media landscape when spectacle trumped content and argument replaced substance. Best of Enemies delves into the entangled biographies of these two great thinkers and luxuriates in the language and the theater of their debates, begging the question, 'What has television done to the way we discuss politics in our democracy today?'
Long before O'Reilly and Beck, Morton Downey, Jr., was tearing up the talk-show format with his divisive populism. Between the fistfights, rabid audience, and Mort's cigarette smoke always "in your face," The Morton Downey Jr. Show was billed as "3-D television," "rock and roll without the music." Ãvocateur meditates on the hysteria that ended the '80s and ultimately its most notorious agitator.
Social status in a capitalistic society is a major factor in how people live their lives. This social status greatly revolves around a personâs financial status. This film examines how the quest to move up the social ladder has brought untold depression and anxieties about ones self.
Shannon Whisnant has a nose for a bargain. But when he bought a used grill at a North Carolina auction, the severed human foot he found among its ashes was not part of the deal. Soon the gruesome discovery becomes the toast of the infotainment world, and the new owner spies a golden opportunity to cash in on the media frenzy, until struggling addict and amputee John Wood recognizes his missing member and demands his own foot back. It is the stuff of documentary legend. Bizarre twists of fate with perfectly twisted characters take center stage in a courtroom battle with television's Judge Mathis, exploding this classic small-town feud to epic proportions as their 15 minutes of fame turns their lives upside-down and they find themselves basking under the heat lamps of the international talk-show circuit.
Born into Mexico's first family of sports-entertainment, Eddie Guerrero's career choice was only natural. In the ring, Eddie was unbeatable. He was part of the most popular tag team in Mexico. Fans worldwide were captivated with his high-flying style. Soon, he moved to Japan and experienced similar success. After returning to the United States, Eddie faced a challenge he was not prepared for - addiction. Surviving a car accident that almost killed him, Eddie felt he was bulletproof, resulting in reckless behavior that put his life, career and marriage in jeopardy. Then it all fell apart. The true test of any man is how he handles adversity. In one of the most inspiring stories in the history of sports-entertainment, Eddie Guerrero not only regained his life, he surpassed his wildest dreams. This is his story.
Starsuckers is the most controversial documentary of the year, and was released in British cinemas in November 2009 to critical acclaim. It's a darkly humourous and shocking exposé of the celebrity obsessed media, that uncovers the real reasons behind our addiction to fame and blows the lid on the corporations and individuals who profit from it.
Chronological look at the life and career of Johnny Carson (1925-2005), with commentary from an ex-wife and more than 30 fellow comedians, friends, employees, and biographers. The biography defines why Carson was an enduring star (his cool, his timing, his genuine laugh, his breadth of knowledge) and pursues his motivations and inner self (a loner with a drinking problem, a decent Midwesterner whose mother withheld approval, a quiet person who loved to entertain). The key to understanding him, argues the biography, is his love of magic.
A documentary on the Z Channel, one of the first pay cable stations in the US, and its programming chief, Jerry Harvey. Debuting in 1974, the LA-based channel's eclectic slate of movies became a prime example of the untapped power of cable television.
Attorney and Radio Talk-Show host Larry Elder spends a year and a half attempting to interview Michael Moore in response to Moore's assertions about guns made in Bowling for Columbine.
Meeting People Is Easy takes place during the promotion of Radiohead's 1997 release OK Computer, containing a collage of video clips, sound bites, and dialogue going behind the scenes with the band on their world tour, showing the eventual burn-out of the group as the world tour progresses. The inaugural show of the OK Computer tour began on 22 May 1997 in Barcelona, Spain.
Offbeat documentarian Chris Smith provides a behind-the-scenes look at how Jim Carrey adopted the persona of idiosyncratic comedian Andy Kaufman on the set of Man on the Moon.
Mike Fleiss, the producer of such reality television shows as The Bachelor and The Bachelorette, makes his feature film debut with The Quest, a reality-film that follows seven Colorado college students as they travel south of the border to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, for a week of spring-break debauchery. The title refers to the various sexual conquests of the young men as they immerse themselves in alcohol and bikini-clad women for seven days.
The life and career of renowned magician and sleight of hand artist Ricky Jay.
A documentary on the life and career of Joan Rivers, made as the comedienne turns 75 years old.
A film profiling the unusual cross-demographic fandom of the ostensibly girl oriented television series "My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic"
FOREIGNERS OUT! SCHLINGENSIEFS CONTAINER is a thrilling, insightful, funny chronicle and reflection of one of he biggest public pranks and acts of art terrorism ever committed. Austria 2000: Right after the FPà under Jörg Haider had become part of the government, the first time an extreme right wing party became state officials after WW2, infamous German shock director Christoph Schlingensief showed a very unique form of protest. Realising public xenophobia and the new hate politics in the most drastic ways possible, he installed a public concentration camp right in the middle of Vienna's touristic heart, right beside the picturesque opera where hundreds of tourists and locals pass by daily. And it was no concentration camp you had ever feared to return from the old times, but one that cynically reflected our new multimedia culture. Satirising reality TV shows, "Big Brother" especially, a dozen asylum seekers were surveilled by a multitude of cameras, could be fed and watched by.
Various actors, presenters, directors and other staff who have worked at the iconic BBC Television Centre at Shepherd's Bush in London reminisce about their time there.
This documentary on the effect the talent competition "Afghan Star" has on the incredibly diverse inhabitants of Afghanistan affords a glimpse into a country rarely seen. Contestants risk their lives to appear on the television show that is a raging success with the public and also monitored closely by the government.
In a country where bella figura is a national pastime, Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi is the maestro of media manipulation. Having risen to political primacy with the aid of his Mediaset empire, he now controls 90% of the bel paeseâs television channels including the state-run RAI network. Quantity, it seems, does not equal quality. Fed on a diet of semi-naked dancing girls, inane competitions and rickety reality shows built around the most ridiculous of premises, is it any wonder that Italians are becoming a nation of fame-hungry wannabes?
Thanks to a recent remarkable discovery in the BBC's Film Vaults, the best of David Attenborough's early Zoo Quest adventures can now be seen as never before - in colour - and with it the remarkable story of how this pioneering television series was made. First broadcast in December 1954, Zoo Quest was one of the most popular television series of its time and launched the career of the young David Attenborough as a wildlife presenter. Zoo Quest completely changed how viewers saw the world - revealing wildlife and tribal communities that had never been filmed or even seen before.
Producer Mel Wexler is putting together "Manhattan," a night-time soap opera that will definitely be the toast of the town. He puts together a stellar cast, however, each member of this cast has his own little secret: Zach is a Hollywood leading man apparently being blackmailed by 2 mysterious women; Jane was a former daytime soap star who had to abruptly leave her popular role due to problems at home; Bill is a male model whose marital status would rather be kept secret by his agent; Gaby is a struggling actress determined to make it on her own; and Sabina is a legendary film star who must now take a role on a television series due to a serious "involvement" in San Francisco. One by one, their secrets unfold in this television movie based on the bestseller by Danielle Steel. (Summary Written by Phil Fernando)
This movie deals with a television network hoping to draw the biggest ratings ever while televising an execution live into the home of every American family.
A woman is being watched in her apartment by a stranger, who also calls and torments her. A cat-and-mouse game begins.
Soviet television movie adaptation of the J.R.R. Tolkien fantasy novel "The Hobbit".
UN agents Mike Graham and Sabrina Carver are sent by their director Nick Caldwell to investigate the theft of Rembrandt's painting, "The Night Watch". The trail takes them from Amsterdam to Hong Kong and involves them in not only art theft and forgery, but the high-tech schemes of Martin Schraeder and his Korean cohort Mao Yixin
Frenemies is a 2012 television film and anthology based on the novel of the same name by Alexa Young premiered on Disney Channel.[1] It features an ensemble cast of Bella Thorne, Zendaya Coleman, Stefanie Scott, Nick Robinson, and Mary Mouser. The film follows three pairs of friends that go from friends to enemies and back again. The film is to be directed by Daisy Mayer and written by Dava Savel, Wendy Weiner, and Jim Krieg. The Disney Channel Original Movie will premiere in May 2012 in the UK and premiered on January 13, 2012 in the United States and Canada.
A fantastical re-imagining of the events of 1979, when Monty Python made Life of Brian and the debate about what is an acceptable subject for comedy was blown wide open.
For three years after being forced from office, Nixon remained silent. But in summer 1977, the steely, cunning former commander-in-chief agreed to sit for one all-inclusive interview to confront the questions of his time in office and the Watergate scandal that ended his presidency. Nixon surprised everyone in selecting Frost as his televised confessor, intending to easily outfox the breezy British showman and secure a place in the hearts and minds of Americans. Likewise, Frost's team harboured doubts about their boss's ability to hold his own. But as the cameras rolled, a charged battle of wits resulted.
Birdee Pruitt has been humiliated on live television by her best friend, Connie, who's been sleeping with Birdee's husband, Bill. Birdee tries starting over with her daughter, Bernice, by returning to her small Texas hometown, but she's faced with petty old acquaintances who are thrilled to see Birdee unhappy -- except for her friend Justin. As he helps Birdee get back on her feet, love begins to blossom.
A sleazy cable-TV programmer begins to see his life and the future of media spin out of control in a very unusual fashion when he acquires a new kind of programming for his station.
David Letterman vies with Jay Leno and his manager to succeed Johnny Carson, retiring from "The Tonight Show."
Tells the true story of a 60 Minutes television series exposé of the tobacco industry, as seen through the eyes of a real tobacco executive, Jeffrey Wigand
Rachel is a girl, adopted by an upper middle class family, who rebelled at 17 and left her family and studies at a traditional college in Sao Paulo to become a call girl. Shortly after starting work, she decided to write a blog about her experiences. Since some clients thought she looked like a surfer she adopted the name "Surfistinha" which means little surfer girl.
The new season of "American Dreamz," the wildly popular television singing contest, has captured the country's attention, as the competition looks to be between a young Midwestern gal (Moore) and a showtunes-loving young man from Orange County (Golzari). Recently awakened President Staton (Quaid) even wants in on the craze, as he signs up for the potential explosive season finale.
The story of the film centres around urban housewife Beverly Boyer (Doris Day) and her husband, a successful gynaecologist and devoted family man, Gerald (James Garner). Beverly is offered the opportunity to star for a television commercial advertising soap. After a shaky start, she gets a contract for $80,000 per year to appear on the weekly TV commercials.
The irreverent host of a political satire talk show decides to run for president. But his stunt to expose Washington corruption goes further than he expects when he actually wins the election. Meanwhile, a software engineer suspects that a computer glitch is responsible for his surprising victory ⦠but will she speak up?
Susan wants to work in television and will therefore do anything it takes, even if it means killing her husband. A very dark comedy from independent director Gus Van Sant with a brilliant Nicole Kidman in the leading role.
A TV talk-show host who may have killed his wife finds himself being pursued by both the police and a gang of hoods.
Norman Bates is again released from the mental hospital he was placed in at the end of Psycho III after serving another few years and is apparently rehabiliated for the second time. Norman is now married to a young nurse named Connie and is expecting a child. However, Norman fears that the child will inherit his mental illness. Meanwhile, Fran Ambrose is a radio talk show host who is discussing the topic of matricide with guest Dr. Richmond, Norman's former psychologist. The radio station receives a call from Norman, who uses the alias "Ed" to tell his story.
Amelia and Pippo are reunited after several decades to perform their old music-hall act (imitating Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers) on a TV variety show. It's both a touchingly nostalgic journey into the past, and a viciously satirical attack on television in general and Italian TV in particular, portraying it as a mindless freakshow aimed at morons.
Police assitant Boyle along with tomatologist Kennedi Johnson look into investigations about Killer Tomato attacks, and discover Gangrene plans to brainwash people via TV talk shows to take over the world! Will Gangrene be stopped? Will Johnson become part of a Bacon, Lettuce and Human sandwich?
A foul-mouthed finishing school graduate mistakenly winds up on an ill-fated fishing boat, and faces the wrath of a crew that considers him bad luck.
A scientist invents a television device called the Iconoscope. Foreign agents hear about it and try to steal it.
Radio talk show therapist Sonny Blake (Rose McGowan) moves back to her childhood home on seemingly idyllic Rosewood Lane after her alcoholic father dies. But upon arrival in the old neighborhood, Sonny discovers her neighbors are terrified of the local paperboy (Daniel Ross Owens). She thinks this is ridiculous, until she encounters the boy himself. It turns out that he is a cunning and dangerous sociopath, one who may have gruesomely killed her father - and others.
Wilder and Wallace are brothers and pyrokinetics. Ever since childhood they've been able to start fires with their minds but following a tragedy in which they accidentally killed a man, the brothers have grown up very differently. Wilder has become a regular 9-5 workaday joe but Wallace performs his feats with a traveling circus. When the circus comes to Wilder's home town Wallace starts coming on strong to Wilder's wife, Vida who, ironically, is a slight pyromaniac.
An inventor looking for backing for his television invention gets involved with a crooked businessman and gangsters who try to steal his invention.
Martin Lawrence leads an all-star cast, including Cedric the Entertainer, Mo'Nique, and Mike Epps, in the hit comedy "Welcome Home Roscoe Jenkins." When a celebrated TV show host (Lawrence) returns to his hometown in the South, his family is there to remind him that going home is no vacation! It's one outrageous predicament after another when big-city attitude and small-town values collide in this hysterical comedy critics are praising for its "over-the-top hilarity!" (Roger Moore, Orlando Sentinel).
A television producer with a penchant for drinking and gambling is sent to Las Vegas to convince his troubled niece to enter rehab.
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