So, in last Wednesday’s New York Times, Channing Joseph wrote a glowing piece on a community center for communists – a place called Brecht Forum, where, “Smiles abound.”

And when I mean a glowing piece, I mean, really glowing. Like a pregnant lady holding a nightlight made of kryptonite.

On the sun.

Anyway, Joseph describes these “revolutionaries” playing foosball, table tennis and even Marxist Monopoly.

Basically it’s a “Dave and Busters” built on mass graves.

I know, small fact: Communists killed like 50 million people.

But, as Joseph shows: it doesn’t mean its desciples can’t have a little fun!

And despite existing only to gloss over the horrors of a wicked ideology, it is a “surprisingly open and idealistic place.”

And – they play poker!

Now, I often judge writing not simply on an author’s clumsy biases – but what I call “barf” moments. These are moments that occur, while reading- in which you actually throw up. (more…)

So according to Maureen Dowd, we’re seeing a rising tide of vicious bullying this political season – the kind you might see in high school, when “teenage tormentors” would “spread rumors that you were pregnant.”

Oh how I hated that.

For Dowd, these new “Republican Mean Girls,” are angry, aggressive women who are angry and aggressive. And mean.

Why not just call them bitches?

Anyway, to the irony. Here Mo laments the evils of smearing women – right before doing essentially the same thing. In a way, she becomes that cliched head cheerleader who always supports the loutish jock. “You better leave him alone, or I’ll say you banged the gym teacher under the grandstands!”

Funny thing is – I did. I always did.

But Dowd’s biggest blind spot? She writes this column only a week after Meg Whitman was called a whore -and – after the California NOW chief said “whore” was an apt description. (more…)

Remember the shot heard ‘round the world?

Another shot was fired in the Middle East a year ago and the echoes to that shot are exploding like wildfire.

That intensely patriotic shot forced an extraordinary and extraordinarily  American Army officer to be entirely relieved of further duty.

This termination of his employment was, I believe, one of America’s greatest blessings in disguise.

It is now August of 2010, exactly one year after the incident, and Col. Allen West is just making his entrance on the political stage of Florida … but … well … we all know it won’t stop there.

Col. Allen West’s warning shot over the head of a profoundly suspect Iraqi police officer has been interpreted in many different ways.

The best interpretation so far, ironically and unexpectedly, can be found in the increasingly far Left NY Times, in an article by Deborah Sontag: (more…)

Last night, David “I’m No Longer a Brain-Dead Liberal” Mamet’s “Oleanna” opened on Broadway.  The production (a transfer from Los Angeles’ Mark Taper Forum) stars Bill Pullman and Julia Stiles.  As discussed on these pages Friday, this play was originally produced off-Broadway 18 years ago and is now receiving its first, official Broadway production. “Oleanna” and the upcoming “Race” are two opportunities for Mr. Mamet’s work to be evaluated by the heavily-left-leaning theatre critics.

The play received quite positive reviews.  Here are some interesting things I read in the reviews…

In Elysa Gardner’s positive review in USA Today, she refers to the contrasting times in which the play is now produced versus the original production:

When David Mamet’s Oleanna premiered in 1992, it was widely perceived as a response to the confirmation hearings for Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, in which Thomas was accused of sexual harassment by former assistant Anita Hill.  It has been 18 years since that real-life drama played out. But as the very different controversy now surrounding David Letterman reminds us, the debate over what constitutes an abuse of power between a male authority figure and a female subordinate isn’t going away. (more…)

“I took the liberal view for many decades, but I believe I have changed my mind.” – David Mamet

As I discussed in my very first post here at Big Hollywood, many in the theatre world were surprised to read David Mamet’s amazing article, “Why I am No Longer A Brain-Dead Liberal” in the Village Voice.  In my post, I used the play “Oleanna” as an example of a conservative lean that I recognized in Mamet’s work when it premiered off-Broadway in 1992.  I concluded with a couple of questions: (more…)

Playbill announced that the very successful Off-Broadway play “Next Fall” will be transferring from its home at the non-profit theatre “Naked Angels” to the Helen Hayes theatre in the Spring of 2010.  In many circles this is seen as a New York success story.  A small, non-profit produces a new American play, it sells well after a glowing NY Times review and backers finance a move to the big time.  So, let’s take this play as a “teachable moment,” if you will, and let’s discover what kind of plays get transferred to Broadway.  This way, many of my readers who happen to be playwrights can also figure out a way to get their plays produced.

I always find it instructive to examine the press agent’s description of the play because the language is always carefully thought out.  The thought process is always “don’t give away too much about the play so that we reveal key plot points, and also, make sure we don’t make the theme come across as too controversial so as not to alienate potential ticket buyers.” (more…)

Somewhat fresh off the trail from despicable attempts to distort the events and facts surrounding Columbine, 9/11 and the American health care system, filmmaker Michael Moore is back to perpetuate new mis-truths and to face off with a new “villain” – capitalism. In case of shear irony, in his new film entitled, “Capitalism: A Love Story,” Moore sets out to unravel the very system that gives him notoriety, fame and, no doubt, opulence.

Fortunately for Moore, we live in a free society. Despite the fact that his films are comprised of antics and obnoxious absurdities that only small-minded Americans would believe in their totality, he has every right to continue his idiocy. It is the coverage of Moore and his half-witted films that cause one to question the media’s promotional motives.

Mainstream outlets can’t seem to get enough of Moore, as they offer him positive coverage galore and provide him with valuable air time to push his insidious projects. Meanwhile, conservative film projects receive little to no praise – or even attention, for that matter. (more…)

Hollywood is at it again, pulling out all the stops on a genre and twisting it to promote their backwards value system of unbridled debauchery while at the same time taking a swipe at conservatives and more importantly, people of faith.

In this NY Times article titled “Necks Overflowing With Rivers of Metaphor,” the argument is gleefully made that the vampire genre is the perfect platform to expose the idiocy of the right and our strange repulsion against poor vampires who merely want to fuck all night and sleep all day.

You want to see an accurate portrayal of the modern day leftist liberal, using the vampire genre correctly? Watch my very first short film that I wrote, produced, directed and edited back in 2005 on pocket change, in 5 days in rural New Jersey using a digital camera and all unknown actors.

It is based on a short story by Richard Matheson titled “Drink My Red Blood” and what compelled me to make it was one scene in particular where the lead character, Jules, shares his composition in school called “My Ambition.” The movie is 15 minutes long. I broke it into two parts and uploaded it to YouTube for you to watch (NSFW). (more…)

The NY International Fringe Festival is in full swing in New York.  The festival runs now through August 30th.  What is the Fringe Festival?  Well, their web page helpfully describes themselves this way:

…the largest multi-arts festival in North America, with more than 200 companies from all over the world performing for 16 days in more than 20 venues – that’s a total of more than 1300 performances! FringeNYC generates an atmosphere of extreme excitement, and our energy is contagious!

That explains things, right?

Here is Stage Right’s description: (more…)

So Rocco Landesman is the new chairman of the NEA. The gregarious and outspoken producer and theatre executive has long been known for his bold risk-taking, his penchant for publicity and his leftward lean.

As it is no big surprise that the Obama administration would select a liberal to head up the endowment, the fact is it could have been a lot worse. And, his first interview with the NY Times (natch) he spoke of the arts as an economic engine and how he will implement his new “Our Town” program which would subsidize artists and institutions when they move into a downtown area:

“When you bring artists into a town, it changes the character, attracts economic development, makes it more attractive to live in and renews the economics of that town,” he said. “There are ways to draw artists into the center of things that will attract other people.”

If you close your eyes you can almost hear Jack Kemp cheering this supply-sider on! (more…)