SPRING 2012 EDITION OF NOIRCAST NEWS
February, March, and April 2012 have been busy months for Clute and Edwards. In addition to the recent publication of their new book, The Maltese Touch of Evil, Clute and Edwards have been on the road for a live taping of Out of the Past at the George Eastman House in Rochester, NY, a film conference and book signing in Boston, MA, and soon they will be in Los Angeles, CA for a panel at the TCM Classic Film Festival. Out of the Past is also getting radio airplay in Australia, and Clute and Edwards had an hour-long conversation about film noir on WXXI radio in Rochester, NY. Finally, they have posted other new episodes of Out of the Past, and a Noircast special in recent months. You can find those, and an archive of all their older episodes, by visiting the Out of the Past blog at http://outofthepast.libsyn.com. Read on for more exciting recent news.
Clute and Edwards to Present at the TCM Classic Film Festival in Hollywood
Clute and Edwards to Present at the TCM Classic Film Festival in Hollywood:
One of the programming themes at this year's TCM Classic Film Festival is "Noir Style," and two official Club TCM presentations will be dedicated to the topic: On Thursday, April 12, Clute and Edwards will discuss the hard-boiled literary roots and self-conscious visual style of noir with TCM senior writer/producer Scott McGee (a former guest on Out of the Past: Investigating Film Noir) and sign copies of their new book, The Maltese Touch of Evil: Film Noir and Potential Criticism (http://amzn.to/Hp2npN); on Friday, April 13, Founder and President of the Film Noir Foundation Eddie Muller will join actress Rose McGowan to select the cast and crew of their dream movie—the perfect film noir. For more information on these presentations and the TCM Classic Film Festival, click here: http://www.tcm.com/festival/programs/general/457417/club-tcm.html#1
Clute Contributes to Mulholland Books Blog
Clute Contributes to Mulholland Books Blog:
Clute was recently invited by Mullholland Books, the suspense and crime imprint of Little, Brown and Company, to contribute a short article on hard-boiled writer extraordinaire Jim Thompson—in honor of Mulholland's new ebook releases of Thompson's novels. For Clute's thoughts on THE GRIFTERS, and the power of Thompson's prose, click here:
http://www.mulhollandbooks.com/2012/03/08/a-few-thoughts-on-jim-thompson-and-the-grifters/
Clute and Edwards Meet Retro Renaissance Man Frank DeBlase
Clute and Edwards Meet Retro Renaissance Man Frank DeBlase:
While in Rochester, Clute and Edwards were introduced, by their friend Charles Benoit (http://www.charlesbenoit.com/), to pin-up photographer, hard-boiled writer, former rockabilly musician, and local radio DJ Frank DeBlase. A retro renaissance man and a heck of a nice guy, Frank shared his many projects with Clute and Edwards, including this hard-boiled story, "Busted Valentine Part 1", beautifully illustrated by Rochester artist David Cowles:
Clute and Edwards on Public Radio
Clute and Edwards on Public Radio:
During their visit to the George Eastman House in Rochester, NY (see previous post) Clute and Edwards were invited to appear on Public Radio WXXI. With host Bob Smith, they spent the noon hour discussing all things noir: the great actors and directors of the genre; the hard-boiled literary and German Expressionistic visual origins of noir; the greatest films of the classic period of noir (1941-1958) and the many neo-noir styles that continue to inspire filmmakers in Hollywood and abroad; noir's influence on television; and much more. Clute and Edwards also tackled questions from callers and their WXXI host in this wide-ranging conversation that serves a fun introduction to noir for all movie fans. To hear the show, click here:
http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/wxxi/local-wxxi-1006033.mp3
Clute and Edwards Visit the George Eastman House
Clute and Edwards Visit the George Eastman House in Rochester, New York:
(Photo caption: Edwards (l.) and Clute (r.) prepare to view a rare 1921 3D test in the George Eastman House film archive.)
March 6-8, 2012: Clute and Edwards visited the incredible George Eastman House motion picture collection (http://www.eastmanhouse.org/), where their host Jared Case treated them to some of the treasures in the Eastman archive, including a 1921 3D test by Crespinel using a blue/green technique, a 1926 two-strip Technicolor short featuring Martha Graham and her dance troop, entitiled THE FLUTE OF KRISHNA (at a time when film and theater director Rouben Mamoulian was Head of the Drama Department at the Eastman School of Design), and several other rarities. They also toured the Stills Archive, where the collection maintained by archivist Nancy Kauffman sparked what may be Clute and Edwards's next book project. Their visit culminated with the opportunity to introduce a screening in the Dryden Theatre of a beautiful print of the 1947 Humphrey Bogart, Lizabeth Scott noir DEAD RECKONING, and record a post-screening podcast about the film with Jared Case before a live audience. Check back soon for links to the video and audio recordings of that conversation.
Listen Now: Noircast Special 5: L.A. Noire The Collected Stories: A Conversation with Jonathan Santlofer
In our latest podcast, Clute and Edwards are joined by L.A. Noire: The Collected Stories editor Jonathan Santlofer, a hard-boiled writer and artist extraordinaire. Santlofer discusses the particular challenges and rewards of bringing together a short story collection for a video game production company from tight deadlines to restrictions on spoilers and the need for publishers of all media to put story first in this brave new era when the medium and the target audience grow ever harder to define. A fascinating conversation for all fans of videogames, hard-boiled fiction and things noir.
Click here to listen to the podcast: LISTEN NOW
Click here to get a copy of L.A. Noire The Collected Stories for the Kindle for $0.99: http://www.amazon.com/L-Noire-Collected-Stories-ebook/dp/B004YYWHAY
The Maltese Touch of Evil Now Available!
Grab a copy of Clute and Edwards' new book today!
Buy it at UPNE website: http://www.upne.com/1611680478.html
Buy it at Amazon.com: http://amzn.to/jCePwG
Buy it at BN.com: http://bit.ly/zLN7B6
Dartmouth College Press (University Press of New England) has published Clute and Edwards' new study of film noir, The Maltese Touch of Evil: Film Noir and Potential Criticism. This exciting book builds on crucial insights from the Out of the Past: Investigating Film Noir podcasts, and draws on the work of the experimental literary group Oulipo (an acronym for "Ouvroir de Littérature Potentielle," or "Workshop of Potential Literature") to investigate the extreme self-consciousness and high degree of visual punning exhibited by noir. In the process, the book proposes—and serves as a sustained demonstration of—an OuFiNoPo, or Workshop of Potential Film Noir. Part thinking-man’s fan crush, part crazily inspired remix of the most beloved of film genres, this study will help scholars and film fans alike to view film noir afresh, and achieve new insights into even the best known movies. See the full press release from Dartmouth College Press here.
Listen Now: Episode 53: Out of the Past Act II (with Jonathan Santlofer, author of Anatomy of Fear)
OUT OF THE PAST is perhaps the most carefully structured of all films noir—a narrative divided (like protagonist Jeff Markum/Bailey) between an inescapable past and an impossible future, teetering on the slimmest hope for the present such that any action taken by its poor players tips them down into the abyss. Director Jacques Tourneur, cinematographer Nicholas Musuraca and screenwriter Daniel Mainwaring perfectly synchronized their efforts on this film, creating a narrative masterpiece where every image perfectly accompanies or contrasts every line of dialogue, where the whole is so self-conscious that it forces us to view each moment through every other, creating a true mise-en-abyme. It would be as impossible for the viewer to enter into such a story as it is for the characters to escape it, if it weren't for the decision to create a "Meta" narration at exactly the halfway point of the film, allowing the viewer to sort past from present in a film that constantly blurs that distinction in order to show how lives are always lived in servitude to what comes out of the past. For all of these reasons, the film is a constant source of inspiration, and a constant obsession, for those who watch it carefully. Artist and novelist Jonathan Santlofer joins Clute and Edwards to discuss how the film has repeatedly inspired his work, and Clute and Edwards consider how the case they would make for this movie is reframed each time they reopen their investigation into its means and motives. Click here to listen to this episode
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