I’ve always been a big fan of Albert and David Maysles. The “direct cinema” documentatians went on to make Gimmie Shelter (1970) and Grey Gardens (1975). Before those films, the brothers captured lightning in a bottle with their black and white record of The Beatles first visit to America in February of 1964. Unlike The
I’m old enough to remember seeing The Beatles on The Ed Sullivan Show. That “really big shew” happened on February 9, 1964 – 60 years ago. I remember my dad going on about their long hair and those so-called Beatle wigs. I could not, however, take my eyes off them, and neither could a then-record
Maureen Donaldson would tell such outrageous stories you’d swear she was making it all up. Who packs all this into one life: a May-September affair with Cary Grant? A parrot that once belonged to Muhammad Ali? A first job with The Beatles? Word came via a Facebook posting this week from mutual friend Ray Bennett
The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour had a profound effect on this 10 to 12-year-old. You watched TV as a family back then, in front of the one screen in the house, in our case, a 25-inch Clairtone. “From Television City in Hollywood,” said announcer Roger Carroll. “Ladies and gentlemen, The Smothers Brothers.” Shot from above,
Everybody was talkin’ ’bout Bagism, Shagisn, Dragism and Toronto-ism-ism-ism 54 years ago this summer when the concert that almost wasn’t rocked the rock ‘n’ roll world. Back then, in August of 1969, I was gearing up for Grade Seven in the Toronto suburb of Etobicoke at Our Lady of Peace Catholic elementary. In a month
With Hollywood’s writers and actors still out on strike, and with no resolution in sight, you may be wondering when you’ll be getting new episodes of NCIS: Des Moines or Peoria Fire. Well, even if these shows existed, who really cares? As someone who watches exactly zero network drama series, I frankly don’t care when
Ronnie Hawkins, simply known as “The Hawk” when he tore up the Yonge Street strip in the late ’50s, early ’60s, died May 29 at 87. Remembered for his full-throated cover of Bo Diddley’s “Who Do You Love,” the Arkansas-born singer-songwriter jammed with rock and roll’s earliest pioneers. They included Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins,
We all know Anne Murray was an adult contemporary, pop and country music super star, selling more than 55 million records. Her impact on television, however, was also tremendous. As she relates in this special Christmas Week episode of brioux.tv the podcast, Murray got her TV start on CBC’s Singalong Jubilee. Spun off from the