Ask Me a Question: First Blood w/ Ted Kotcheff

The American Cinematheque's Aero Theatre hosted a retrospective of writer and director Ted Kotcheff, concluding with 1982's classic First Blood. While Sylvester Stallone's John Rambo would go on to be remembered for the muscles, red head band, machine guns and mayhem, it's easy to forget just how solid First Blood is. Based on David Morrell's novel, the film takes place in Hope, a small northwestern town surrounded by mountains and forest. Vietnam veteran John Rambo comes to town looking for an old friend but gets harassed by local police chief Teasle (Brian Dennehy). After being mistreated by an overzealous deputy, Rambo escapes and soon a manhunt and war you won't believe besieges Hope. I've always defended First Blood as a drama as that's exactly what it is. There's some great action in it but it's not simply an action film.

Watching it on the big screen a few thoughts ran though my head. First off, the production is beautiful. In an age when a film can arguably be deemed "good" by the fact it was shot in nature and was a hard shoot, First Blood highlights British Columbia's majestic beauty as well as Mother Nature's harsh conditions. I mean Leo got to wear a giant bear rug while he was in the snow and water but here's Stallone in jeans and a tank top in the cold, riding a motorcycle, climbing mountain faces and running through frigid water. Second, this was my first time viewing the film on the big screen and the character parts really stood out. Teasle isn't a bad guy per se, he's just trying to protect his town, gets in over his head, messes up but now can't stand back and has to go all in. His deputies played by the likes of Jack Starett, Chris Mulkey and David Caruso add another layer of humanity and surprisingly effective light comedy to the shebang. Third, Stallone is and always has been an excellent actor. I didn't realize he only speaks in about three sections of the film, each of them haunting and sincere. His end monologue about losing his friends in Vietnam and coming home to a country that rejected him makes you want to shed a tear while applauding the performance. Like Spartacus or The Great Escape, I don't find the ending sad as there's beauty in the struggle of personal glory, even if that means sacrifice.

After the film, director Kotcheff took to the stage to a standing ovation. He was intelligent, passionate and a very interesting guy:

- Grew up a musician and compares all art to music. Generally aims for sonata where everything builds up and climaxes into a big finish.
- Warner Brothers hired him to work on the project, went off and rewrote in 3 months then WB said there was no audience for Vietnam movies.
- Kotcheff was very vocal about how poorly Vietnam vets were treated. They didn't ask to go, they were drafted. Whereas World War II and Korean War veterans were hailed as conquering heroes, Vietnam vets were protested, spit on and called baby killers upon return.
- Into the 1980's, 300 Vietnam Veterans committed suicide a month.
- One story of a young man who did his two years and on his penultimate day of duty, base attacked, he was only survivor and then sent home next day. No time to readjust or deal with emotional trauma.
- Knew producers Andrew Vajna and Mario Kassar causally and when pair kick started Carolco, asked Kotcheff what he wanted to direct, who said First Blood. Producers spent a year getting the rights from Warner Brothers.
- Stallone was always first choice even though the Rocky star had suffered failure after failure outside of the boxing franchise. But Kotcheff liked his inner and outer strength and knew he'd do a good job.
- Went to see Kirk Douglas in San Francisco where the acting legend was doing a play with Burt Lancaster. Douglas loved the script and reported to set. But once there, wanted multiple script changes that Kotcheff and crew tried to appease but ultimately gave him a final script. Douglas soon took a flight back to Los Angeles and Richard Crenna was brought in over a weekend.
- Enormous respect for Sylvester, who impacted two major parts of the story and character. One was having Rambo not kill any of the lesser trained weekend warriors and second, not dying at the end after having character go through so much and show death being only way out.
- Dubbed the film a "suicide mission", as when Rambo is on the bridge, he turns back as he has nothing to lose, no friends left and going head on with the Sheriff.
- No reservations on doing Uncommon Valor as next film and revisiting Vietnam War. Says veterans groups have thanked him profusely for making the films.
- Considered having Rambo be silent through film but realized he needed to speak at key moments.
- Loved composer Jerry Goldsmith and did several films together.
- Stallone was being paid millions and Kotcheff made him earn it by dumping live rats on him.

It was a great night and gave me a deeper appreciation of the film, Stallone, Kotcheff, the Vietnam War and it's veterans who went through so much for so little acknowledgement.

(Pre)miere! The Nice Guys

Besides Captain America: Civil War, Shane Black's 70's set buddy action-comedy The Nice Guys is my most anticipated summer flick. Now thanks to our friends at The American Cinematheque and Alamo Drafthouse, you can win tickets to a sneak preview of the film this Wednesday, May 4th at The Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood! Writer/director Shane Black along with co-star Ryan Gosling are scheduled to attend for Q&A! Co-written by Anthony Bagarozzi, The Nice Guys finds Ryan Gosling as down on his luck Hollywood private eye Holland March as he teams up with hired enforcer Jackson Healy (Russell Crowe) to investigate a missing persons case and death of a porn star before uncovering a wide reaching conspiracy. The trailers are terrific with a mix of laughs and violence while Gosling and Crowe's chemistry looks like a winner. The duo have been participating in a series of hilarious couples therapy skits to promote the film which hits theaters on Friday, May 20th.

This is a members screening with no tickets being sold. The Cinematheque holds exclusive early screenings frequently so sign up and support cinema on the big screen as it's meant to be seen.

*All tickets have been claimed, thank you for the enthusiastic response* For your chance to win tickets to Wednesday's 7:00 PM show, e-mail Dammaged Goods, winners will be notified by Wednesday morning with tickets left at the box office.

Shane Black burst onto the 80's cinematic scene scripting 1987's classic Lethal Weapon and co-starring with Arnold Schwarzenegger in Predator the same year. From there Black became Hollywood's highest paid screenwriter for the likes of The Last Boy Scout and The Long Kiss Goodnight. In 2005, he wrote and directed Kiss Kiss Bang Bang co-starring Robert Downey Jr., who drafted Black to do some uncredited work on 2008's Iron Man before taking the reins for part III in 2013. Ryan Gosling has been performing for the camera since childhood, starting as a Mouseketeer before seguing into stints on Breaker High and Young Hercules. 2001's The Believer put him on the map as an actor before The Notebook made him into a meme and heartthrob. Subsequent roles in edgier and quirky fare like Half Nelson, Lars and the Real Girl, Blue Valentine, personal favorite Drive and recent awards contender The Big Short have provided both critical and box office success. Plus he seems like a funny guy so should be a good Q&A.

Cinematic Roundup: Dolemite, Robocop, The Terminator, The Rock, Raiders & More!

There are a lot of great frigging movies playing in Los Angeles this week. And I'm not talking about new releases The Boss, Hardcore Henry or Demolition. I'm talking repertory screenings across town, retrospectives and one killer triple feature. Starting last week, UCLA has been honoring prolific producer Jerry Bruckheimer with a month-long film festival, The Heat Is On, with screenings of Top Gun, Enemy of the State and Pirates of the Caribbean. This Saturday you can catch testosterone fueled 90's classics from Bruckheimer and director Michael Bay with The Rock and Armageddon. The Rock was one of my favorite movies growing up but I've never seen it on the big screen. Sean Connery, Nic Cage, Ed Harris and Michael Biehn all shine in the violent roller coaster ride that was a hit in '96. A supposed sequel featuring Cage's bio-chemist turned man of action was announced but never produced.

Over in West Hollywood, you can catch cinematic O.G. Harrison Ford in his prime at The New Beverly for Raiders of the Lost Ark, playing Friday and Saturday night along with a Saturday matinee. Matinees at The New Bev are fun, they're only $6.00 and you get a free popcorn! Dick Tracy is playing later in April as well so I'll be sure to check that out. In Hollywood proper, our friends at The American Cinematheque's Egyptian Theatre and Cinematic Void are premiering a new 2K restoration of grindhouse classic Dolemite! Packed with 70's kung-fu, open collars, music and rhymes, stay tuned after the film as cast and crew are scheduled for Q&A. Saturday night at The Egyptian, prepare for a killer 80's triple feature of tech-noir classics Robocop, The Terminator and R.O.T.O.R.?! Robo and Term are two of my favorite flicks of all time, making me life long fans of Peter Weller, Paul Verhoeven, James Cameron and Michael Biehn among others in two fell swoops.

I've seen Robocop twice on the big screen, both with Weller attending now that I think of it...and Terminator at least 6 times with the likes of Cameron and producer Gale Ann Hurd on hand but sadly never with the real stars, Linda Hamilton and Michael Biehn. And yes, you're reading this right. You can see The Rock and The Terminator on the big screen this Saturday which means Michael Biehn on the big screen twice in one day! Throw in Aliens at the Ace Hotel later this month for LV-426/Alien Day and that equals a triple dose of The Biehn in 30 days! If only someone would screen Predator to give Los Angeles a near comprehensive 80's sci-fi/action buffet...

Ask Me a Question: Creed w/ Sylvester Stallone

After Monday's excellent outing for Mad Max: Fury Road, it was off to The American Cinematheque's Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood for a real treat, Rocky 7 aka Creed with a Q&A from Best Supporting Actor nominee Sylvester Stallone! A block of tickets came available and apparently a woman showed up at 11:00 AM looking to claim one when the box office opened at 6:00 PM. That's dedication! The shindig was sold out and Warner Brothers provided several displays for lobby and courtyard photos. I caught up with oh so many Dammaged Goods allies and talked the #ActionMovieBro hardships as I lined up Sheldon Lettich for Q&A at Laemmle's NoHo7 Bloodsport happening at the same time. DG even got an unsolicited shout out during the introduction since I lined up Dolph Lundgren then Carl Weathers to appear at the historic venue. Already a box office and critical hit, Creed is the story of Apollo's (Carl Weathers) child from an affair who grows up to be the angry and hungry Adonis (Michael B. Jordan). Young Doni seeks out unofficial uncle Rocky Balboa (Stallone, come on) and makes a run at creating his own legacy. The film was better the second time around, flowing much smoother and displaying director and co-writer Ryan Coogler's skills in front and behind the camera with great music, editing, tempo, inspiring training sequences and exciting fights. I was surprised at how much training and fighting were in the film as the first viewing came off as more of a drama like the original Rocky. But make no mistake, this is a boxing movie with drama.

After the film, the man himself, Mr. Sylvester Stallone, looking dapper and fit, came out for Q&A to a standing ovation:

- Thought doing a story of Rocky getting sick would be anti-climatic as audiences did not enjoy seeing the downside of success with part V.
- Pushed from all sides, dubbed a "coward" for being precious.
- Describes Michael B. Jordan as young, athletic and competitive. The two playfully sparred with Stallone delivering some cheap shots to the young leading man to remind him he still had teeth.
- Impressed with Jordan's physical transformation.
- Didn't think the one take fight scene would work and suggested a few cutaways just in case. They say it was the 11th take but Stallone felt it was 20 or something as he had nothing to do but yell.
- Approached the role with no vanity and avoided looking in a mirror during production.
- His friends were envious of the film's quality and success. Dolph Lundgren loved it. Carl Weathers did as well. Weathers' opinion was very important to Stallone as it's his character and performance that provided a film 40 years later.

- Describes Rocky I & II as one long, 4 hour movie, that's why they look and feel the same.
- Now a money making franchise, III & IV got away from the original intents to keep the story moving, as III became flashy and Rocky vain and protected, etc.
- Cher, Bette Midler and Carrie Snodgrass were in the running for Adrian before Talia Shire walked in and was instant fit, like Weathers.
- Wrote Rocky as "heroic" for the general audience, the people with potential who never got a shot.
- On Oscar night, was nervous after Burgess Meredith and Bill Conti lost and were going in behind Network and All The President's Men.
- Original Sound guy didn't care about the film, didn't run sound during a crucial scene and took his name off the picture. Irony was that film won for Best Sound and he wasn't credited. This is  interesting because I heard a story about Stallone on set lamenting, "I hate packing, unpacking and sound guys". So maybe that sheds a little light on why...
- What is most endearing to him is how much the film and character mean to people so many years later as the people who asked questions were hardcore fans.

With that, the place rushed the front and Sly coolly signed for a few minutes before being whisked off. It was a great night and inspiration to just keep punching.

Ask Me a Question: Mad Max Fury Road w/ George Miller

Another Monday, another night with The American Cinematheque! This time it was to the much closer Aero Theatre in Santa Monica for Mad Max: Fury Road as part of their Oscar series. Director George Miller was on hand for Q&A for the sold out screening. We stopped off at Santa Monica staple The Daily Grill, a solid spot for happy hour with drinks and three kinds of pot pie but spotty service this time. Outside the theater was a Mad Max-ified Bug complete with fake gatling gun and scores of folks in cosplay from The Road Warrior and Fury Road. Caught up with #ActionMovieBro David J. Moore whose latest opus, The Good, the Tough & the Deadly: Action Movies & Stars, will be hitting shelves in a couple months and features a few reviews and an interview by yours truly. This would be my fourth time seeing Fury Road on the big screen and the extended car/truck/motorcycle chase still delivers. Refreshing with its use of practical f/x and physics layered on top of one another to create a gonzo and kinetic 2 hours while still finding time to add in some character bits.

After the film, Miller, in cargo pants and a tuxedo top, partook in a brief Q&A:

- Hadn't seen The Road Warrior with a crowd in 30 years before a SXSW screening and had a ball.
- Fury Road began not as a script, but 3,000+ storyboards hung up on the walls of a "Mad Max" room that depicted every moment and look in the story.
- Tom Hardy was about the only guy Miller saw as Max as he had the same nervous energy, likability and hint of volcanic temper like Mel Gibson.

- Miller joked how Hardy was only 6 weeks old when he started on Mad Max in the 70's.
- Talked current F/X to layer and add in landscape, sky and carnage. Removed tire tracks in the sand and lamented how old films you could tell how many takes they did by the number of skid marks.
- Safety has improved greatly since The Road Warrior where Guy Norris went tumbling through the air after a motorcycle crash and onto a field of cardboard boxes.
- Hardy is afraid of heights but did the polecat sequence and many stunts while Charlize Theron's background as a dancer helped her tackle many sequences as well.
- A former doctor, Miller acted as the on-set medic for the earlier films.
- On giving his characters dramatic moments, Miller spoke about needing the arc for each to keep things interesting and not just non-stop action. Was hard to direct as sometimes he'd be under the floorboards of the truck, talking through a speaker, it was loud, etc.

It was a brief affair with no audience questions but Miller hung out for a while signing for fans. The Road Warrior queued up next but being a Monday and already after 10:00 PM, it was time to go home to kick back with an Aqua Cola, shiny and chrome.

Gotta Party! American Cinematheque Award

Who would have thought starting a blog and hosting a Van Damme double feature would someday lead to getting invited to a black tie awards gala? Not this guy, that's for sure. But invited we were and attend we did The American Cinematheque Award gala celebrating Reese Witherspoon and Sid Grauman Award winner Jeffrey Katzenberg. Described as a mid-career award, the Cinematheque honor basically tells recipients, we like you so keep it up. Held at the same swanky Century City Hyatt where work had a conference a few years ago, we chilled in the lobby with a whiskey ginger watching many a black tuxedo clad man and formal evening gown lady arrive. Downstairs we partook in the open bar and caught up with friends while catching the likes of Jennifer Garner and Kate Hudson milling about. I spotted Nu Image/Millennium head and The Expendables producer Avi Lerner grabbing a drink and went to make a quick introduction. I had seen the guy on the streets of San Diego in 2012 after the Expendables II panel and he told me part IV is happening!

Inside it was a lovely three course meal of salad, fish and dessert and each seat came with a gift bag filled with snacks, quinoa vodka and movies from Witherspoon's filmography. In the center of the ballroom I spotted Matthew McConaughey and Jennifer Aniston among others visiting Reese's table. McConaughey is a pretty intense dude with laser focus in his eyes. As the evening progressed we heard from many a Hollywood big wig as they celebrated films on the big screen through non-profit The American Cinematheque and how they're still just dreamers doing what they love. Throughout the evening speakers like Laura Dern, Jennifer's Anison and Garner, Kate Hudson, Sofia Vergara and Alexander Payne shared Witherspoon's journey to stardom along with their experiences working with her. It was all very sweet and funny of course as Witherspoon was described as a fierce, funny, loyal and terrific human being who is there for her kids, doesn't BS and wants to do the best job possible. While I don't own a tuxedo or black suit, it was fun to throw on the ol' wedding suit and the entire evening was very casual and not stuffy at all. Congratulations to Witherspoon and Katzenberg but they don't need my support. See ya at the next one!

Ask Me a Question: Chopping Mall Reunion

Sunday marked the closing night of The American Cinematheque's Night of the Living '80s: A New Wave of Horror with the ridiculous and fun Chopping Mall along with Night of the Comet. The Egyptian Theatre teamed up with La-La Land Records and Creature Features for what would be a reunion of epic proportions. The two had produced a fantastic Used Cars reunion screening a few years ago we attended at The Arclight in Hollywood. Editor and horror fanatic James Branscomb got the packed crowd amped up for the evening and ready to have a good time. He even gave us a shout out for next month's He-Man event (check your local listings this week). We'd never seen Chopping Mall but the simple premise of teenagers locked in the Sherman Oaks Galleria and being hunted by killer robot security guards was too much to pass up even after all the fun of D23 Expo.

The Sherman Oaks Galleria has just deployed three state of the art robot sentries but a freak lighting storm turns them into nearly unstoppable Killbots. That's bad news for our young leads as we meet the nerdy and responsible Ferdy (Tony O'Dell), "fuck the fuchsia, it's Friday!" Greg (Nick Segal) and obnoxious, gum chewing sex machine Mike (John Terlesky). While at the local pizza shop we run into the innocent Alison (Kelli Maroney) and her partying co-worker Suzie (Barbara Crampton). Clothing store vixen Leslie (Suzee Slater) and mechanic couple Rick (Russell Todd) and Linda (Karrie Emerson) complete our sextet who party in the mall after work. The Killbots take out security and janitorial staff before zeroing on our kids. Locked in for the night, the six fight for their lives with propane tanks, machine guns, shotguns, paint and gasoline cocktails, trying to stop the out of control machines. Tits, stiff acting, a surprising amount of indoor pyrotechnics, exploding heads and an awesome synth soundtrack ensues.

At barely 80 minutes, Chopping Mall is a lot of fun that doesn't wear out it's unapologetic, non-highfalutin sense of mischief while making great use of an under $1 million dollar budget provided by Roger and Julie Corman. Jim Wynorski directs from a script co-authored by Steve Mitchell and we get a ridiculous romp of 80's proportions with big hair, mullets, high waisted jeans, popped collars and cameos from Dick Miller (Gremlins), Gerrit Graham (Used Cars) and Mary Woronov (Night of the Comet). The crowd was great, enthusiastic and cheering throughout. After the film, Blumhouse's Ryan Turek moderated a huge reunion panel that included Wynorski, Mitchell, composer Chuck Cirino, robot designer Robert Short and actors Maroney, O'Dell, Todd, Emerson, Crampton, Segal and Terlesky.

- Wynorski and Mitchell were old friends, asked by Vestron for a slasher flick in a mall. Didn't want to do typical boogeyman style that was rampant in theaters.
- Pitched story to Corman and had a greenlight in a matter of days.
- All actors were cast quite quickly and all reflected on the experience very fondly. Maroney and Crampton are still great friends to this day.
- Terlesky debated between chewing a match or gum to make Mike as obnoxious as possible.
- Wynorski saw Russell Todd on poster for Where the Boys Are and wanted to meet him.
- Wynorski saw Emerson acting silently in a commercial and thought she was gorgeous.
- Three robots were created, one fully functional, others towed by cables. Had an emergency kill switch on the back if they ever took off randomly, which actors didn't know.
- Robots designed to shoot at Beverly Center, measured aisle ways and escalators then BC upped price last minute so production moved to Galleria.
- Mitchell was a big fan of Used Cars and got Graham to come in for one night, while sick, to shoot his cameo. Years later, Mitchell thanked Graham who couldn't quite remember the night.
- Film was originally called Killbots which did not create buzz. Lighting tech in test theater suggested changing name to Chopping Mall and off they went.
- A random question about Wynorski and Terlesky's Deathstalker 2 where cast and crew arrived, movie was pushed back a week so they just sat watching TV in Spanish, took all random cues from cartoons and professional wrestling and added it to the movie.
- One Killbot was blown up on screen, blowed up real good, one is on display in a private collector's house in New York City and the third was left to rot in Corman's back lot in Venice.
- Cirino had been doing commercials but friend Wynorski and Mitchell suggested he try film, has composed the music for nearly 70 movies since.

It was a very fun night, low key and easy unlike the last time we came to Hollywood...Would have loved to stay for Night of the Comet but it was still a Sunday after all. Just too old to wait in line at conventions or see a double feature on a school night. If you have a problem with that, I'll send you a Rambo-gram!

Ask Me a Question: Jaws w/ Carl Gottlieb

I've never seen Jaws all the way through let alone on the big screen. A pristine print at The American Cinematheque's Aero Theatre rectified that this past July 4th. A decent sized crowd had gathered for the 30 year anniversary as co-screen writer Carl Gottlieb was slated for Q&A and signing his hit tie-in book, The Jaws Log. Touted as the first blockbuster, a young Steven Spielberg directs the tale of quaint island community Amity, a summer beach town where New Yorkers and mainlanders come to kick back and relax. A giant shark terrorizes the coast but the money and image conscious mayor instructs new Sheriff Brody (Roy Scheider) not to close down the beach. After a young boy becomes the next victim, Brody and the town go into panic mode. Local drunk and fisherman Quint (Robert Shaw) offers to hunt down the beast and kill it for $10,000 while ocean expert Hooper (Richard Dreyfuss) shows up to see what they're dealing with. The three men set out to catch the beast, risking their lives in the process.

30 years later, Jaws is still a classic. Production problems plagued the shooting as the mechanical shark didn't work, weather delays and the logistics of shooting on open water. However the slow burn horror mixed with memorable characters still resonates for a funny, frightening and fun 2 hours in the dark. The cast are all excellent in their roles with Scheider being the rational one who doesn't like water, Dreyfuss as the young hotshot leaning on science and history while Shaw is straight cool as the grumpy, shambolic, drunk ship captain not afraid of staring death in it's teeth filled mouth. John Williams' classic score lets you know whenever a shark attack is imminent yet somehow doesn't detract from the tension or shock value while Verna Fields' editing gives the shark and underwater scenes real impact.

After the film; actor, author and screen writer Carl Gottlieb took the stage for Q&A:

- Already knew Steven Spielberg, two were pitching scripts around town when Jaws came up.
- Novelist Peter Benchley negotiated writing the first draft to make more money but adaption was deemed underwhelming.
- Gottlieb sent his notes to Spielberg and producers who asked him to join them in Boston for pre-production to work on the script.
- Main production crew lived in same house during pre-production where Gottlieb's respect for Spielberg grew as he saw the real person waking up in the mornings and before going to bed.
- Most sub-plots from book were dropped, affair between Brody's wife and Hooper just didn't fit with the actors in the roles.
- Lots of adlib on the set, for decades Gottlieb thought Scheider improvised "You're gonna need a bigger boat" but it was actually in the script.
- Gottlieb co-wrote The Jerk with Steve Martin, who had a two picture deal with Paramount based on premise of Martin's staple joke of being born a black child.
- Had opportunity to work on what would become Saturday Night Live but passed.
- Started in TV but when got chance to work in film, pursued immediately.
- Scene with shark cage was shot with a little person and real shark in Australia but bars bent and actor freaked out, refusing to do scene again.
- Prop Master misspelled Coroner's Report as Corner's Report but no one ever noticed. 
- Verna Fields given much of the credit at young Spielberg's expense but Gottlieb defends director as an editor can't work without what the director shot.
- Jaws Log is most successful movie tie-in book with over one million copies sold.

So, are any of the sequels good? Doesn't one have Dennis Quaid and another has Michael Caine?

(Pre)Ask Me a Question: Conan the Barbarian Double Feature

You like fantasy movies? You know the kind filled with swords and sorcery, wizards and wonder, creatures and curses? Of course you do. Before there was Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings or the Harry Potter series, flicks like Legend, Labyrinth, Conan and Dragonslayer lit up the imaginations of 80's kids around the world. Equal parts fairy tale and nightmare, these movies are exciting, otherworldly and visually stunning adventures. After their hugely successful Space Invaders: Sci-Fi in the Arcade Age programming that included Alien, Blade Runner, Tron and The Last Starfighter, The American Cinematheque is back with another crowd pleasing line up; Dungeons, Dragons and Demons: '80's Fantasy Favorites. Yours truly is hosting a Conan the Barbarian and Destroyer double feature in a co-presentation with The Cinematheque and premiere Arnold Schwarzenegger fansite, The Arnold Fans!

Check out the incredible line up starting on Thursday, June 18th at the Egyptian Theatre:

The Beastmaster and The Sword and the Sorcerer | Thursday, June 18th
Return to Oz and The Company of Wolves | Friday, June 19th
The Dark Crystal | Saturday, June 20th
The Last Unicorn and The Flight of Dragons | Saturday, June 20th
Clash of the Titans and Hercules, Sunday | Sunday, June 21st
Legend and Labryinth | Friday, June 26th
Conan the Barbarian and Conan the Destroyer | Saturday, June 27th
Ladyhawke and Dragonslayer | Sunday, June 28th

All shows except The Dark Crystal are being shown at The Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood and start at 7:30 PM. Dark Crystal is a Family Matinee at The Aero in Santa Monica and starts at 3:00 PM.

If you're keeping track, the program harnesses the power of Marc Singer, Don Coscarelli, Albert Pyun, Fariza Bulk, Walter Murch, Neil Jordan, Arthur Rankin, Jr., Jules Bass, Jeff Bridges, Christopher Lee, John Ritter, James Earl Jones, Ray Harryhausen, Laurence Olivier, Lou Ferrigno, Tom Cruise, Mia Sara, Ridley Scott, Jim Henson, David Bowie, Jennifer Connelly *swoon*, John Milius, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Mako, Rutger Hauer, Richard Donner and Matthew Robbins!

Special guests are still being announced but Mia Sara (Timecop, Ferris Bueller's Day Off) and Brian Henson (Farscape, The Muppets) will attend Legend and Labyrinth.

For Conan the Barbarian and Destroyer I'm excited to share that legendary comic book artist, author and production designer William Stout (First Blood, Masters of the Universe, Pan's Labyrinth) and Golden Globe winning actress Sandahl Bergman (Conan's Valeria, All That Jazz, Hell Comes to Frogtown) will be joining us for Q&A!

In typical Dammaged Goods fashion, more guests and special events will be announced soon. Until then, pray to Crom and pick up your TICKETS!

Ask Me a Question: The Last Starfighter

Space Invaders: Sci-Fi in the Arcade Age blasted off this past Thursday at The Egyptian in Hollywood with a double feature of alien filled adventure with 1984 and 83' awesomeness; The Last Starfighter and Krull. Starfighter is the story of one Alex Rogan (Lance Guest), a smart yet frustrated teen living in a small trailer park in California mountain country. His mom manages the park and works as a waiter.  He's too busy fixing outdated electrical grids and antennas to hang out with his friends at the beach or have fun. Aspirations to attend non-community college are dashed when a loan isn't approved, his sweet ladyfriend Maggie (Catherine Mary Stewart) tries to cheer him up but Alex finds solace in the one thing he's really good at; flying/shooting arcade game Starfighter. One night Alex breaks the record and is soon visited by Centauri (Robert Preston), a recruiter for the inter-galactic defense network The Star League. You see, Star League is under attack by the evil Rylons and it's up to Alex and his co-pilot Grig (Dan O'Herlihy) to take out the armada. The video game was an elaborate plan by Centauri to find Starfighters to which he collects a referral fee.

The Last Starfighter is pure 80's goodness. You've got the put upon lead who just wants to do something more with his life but looks doomed to small town mediocrity (Luke in Star Wars, Marty in Back to the Future and Kevin from Masters of the Universe). You've got the quaint community filled with interesting and zany characters then an the opportunity for otherworldly adventure. To me, the core message is simple, "if that's what you think, that's all you'll ever be". The 80's really taught us to believe in ourselves as it was a cinematic time of optimism and exploration via Steven Spielberg and George Lucas. Directed by Nick Castle with a script from Jonathan R. Betuel, The Last Starfighter gives us heart, humor and action that all still holds up today. Sure the then cutting edge computer graphics are vastly outdated but overall it's still a funny, fun and rousing time at the movies you don't see too much today. Craig Safan's score is bombastic and memorable, giving it an even bigger feel even if some of the sets look a little cheap. Guest is convincing as Rogan, the mixed up kid who isn't sure he's up to the challenge of saving the galaxy. Preston knocks it out as the fast talking, pseudo space con-man and Robocop's O'Herlihy is terrific as the mentor with a huge laugh Grig.

After the film, a giant panel was introduced that included director Castle, stars Guest and Stewart, composer Safan as well as producer Gary Adelson, f/x coordinator Jeffrey Okun and actors Chris Hebert and Peter Nelson.

- 3 sets of leads were under consideration before Guest and Stewart were cast
- Robert Preston was a real movie star, oozed charisma and kissed Stewart's hand when they met
- Preston's character was based on his role in The Music Man and producers were elated to land him
- Funded by Lorimar and Universal, Adelson convinced them they could do the f/x with computers even though he didn't know how
- Was cutting edge of technology and some days didn't know if they could do it
- Budgeted at $15 million, went over
- Shot quickly in northern California where it was very cold
- Nick Castle fostered a great working environment for the actors, fun and open
- The Playboy little brother Lewis flips through was real
- Sequel rights reverted back to writer Betuel who with Castle drafted a script and storyboarded it, got studio interest and then it all fell apart
- Sequel would deal with grown up Alex and Maggie and their kids who become next generation of Star League fighters
- Rights tied up with Universal, Betuel and Warner Brothers who bought Lorimar
- Castle had never worked with visual effects before and the film had everything else going on, drama, comedy, costumes, make up, etc
- Grig's mask was made from plastic, always pushing designers to allow more expression and O'Herlighy's performance show through
- Safan had a full orchestra for a week, scored it to temp f/x of dots on a screen
- F/X crew heard the score and worked hard to make visuals match quality of the music
- F/X took a huge room of computers to accomplish 2 gigs of info, today could be done on cell phone
- Studio executive changed during production who didn't believe in film until first test screening reaction which was overwhelming positive
- Opened in wake of Ghostbusters and Gremlins but did better than studio expected
- Really found audience on video and HBO

It was a great night and the panel was terrific. With another movie playing they couldn't go on for too long which was a shame. Everyone there looked like they reflected on the experience with nothing but fondness and you could tell many of them were still close. It was a great start to the weekend of movie madness and bro'ing out.

(Pre)Ask Me a Question: The Last Starfighter and 80's Arcade Sci-Fi Cinema

If going to three conventions in a month wasn't enough fun, I've got a couple of packed weeks before taking off for a destination wedding. Coming off of Star Wars Celebration and a slight case of Con-fluenza, I've got one more day to rest up before a weekend full of 80's and 90's goodness starting with a double feature of mother fudging The Last Starfighter and Krull! You know, where a smart kid who lives and works in a trailer park gets the chance to go to space and fight an intergalactic war?! I've never seen Starfighter on the big screen so am very pumped for some innocent, post Star Wars, Spielberg flavored Americana and rising to the outrageous occasion. The American Cinematheque's Egyptian Theatre, where Dammaged Goods Presents proudly flies it's banner of repertory cinema and special events a la Dolph Night, An Evening With Carl Weathers and The Sunbow Celebration; is hosting a badass weekend of 80's science fiction films dubbed Space Invaders: Sci-Fi in the Arcade Age. Starfighter and Krull kicks things off Thursday with special guests including Star director Nick Castle, cast members Lance Guest, Catherine Mary Stewart, Chris Hebert and Peter Nelson along with composer Craig Safan, producer Gary Adelson and visual effects coordinator Jeffrey A. Okun! Phew! If that weren't enough, there will be a special presentation of rare behind the scenes material as well.

Friday night sees the classic terror then action in space masterpieces Alien and Aliens (aka #HicksLives aka #F@ckAlien3! aka #MichaelBiehnRules aka #HicksHudson86') with special behind the scenes material. On Saturday it's Blade Runner, the Final Cut with more making of materials and Sunday closes off with a Disney double feature of Tron and The Black Hole. Tron will also be a tribute to writer and #MovieBro Jay West who sadly passed recently. Jay was a mainstay on the repertory and genre film circuit as he was a fan, expert and collector of all things Alien and Tron. I found his work through his Beyond the Marquee site of news, reviews, interviews and more. When we saw Alien and Aliens at Hero Complex last year, the stage was adorned with prop xenomorph eggs that came from his personal collection. I introduced myself to the man at Hero Complex's Comic-Con party in San Diego last year and he was very warm and cool to chat with. The Tron evening welcomes VFX supervisor Harrison Ellenshaw and concept designer Richard Taylor along with more behind the magic info.

Information and tickets on the nights can be found HERE. Remember what Centuri said, "If that's what you think, then that's all you'll ever be!"The 80's taught us to believe in ourselves. See ya there!

(Almost) Ask Me a Question: Transformers and G.I. Joe

Less than a week until the Sunbow Animation Celebration double feature of The Transformers and G.I. Joe: The Movies! Response has been great with online Joe powerhouse HissTank being very supportive and subsequent shares from the likes of Nerd Reactor and LootCrate. It all goes down Saturday, March 7th at the Egyptian Theatre at 7:30 PM. Doors will be open at 6:30 PM as we've got a lobby full of fun and a pre-show you won't want to miss. In addition to our already terrific line up of special guests, excited to announce even more Sunbow Alumni in addition to writers Flint Dille, Buzz Dixon, Donald F. Glut, storyboard director Larry Houston and Joe director Don Jurwich:

Bill Ratner - Voice of Flint on G.I. Joe, also heard in video game series Mass Effect and is an author with an Amazon #1, Parenting for the Digital Age.

Michael Bell - G.I. Joe leader Duke as well as Prowl on Transformers. You've also heard him on The Smurfs, Voltron and Rugrats. Aside from his 300+ acting credits, Bell supports local charities like animal rescue.

Hank Garrett - Dial Tone from G.I. Joe. On screen you've seen him in Three Days of the Condor, Serpico, Death Wish and Max Headroom. Besides acting, Hank is also known in the worlds of bodybuilding, professional wrestling and martial arts. These days, Mr. Garrett speaks at prisons to help inspire troubled youths as he himself was going nowhere before Sammy Davis, Jr. set him straight.

But that's not all, not by a long shot! Arrive early to check out our mini-Sunbow Con in the lobby:

Diana Davis - G.I. Joe expert and collector, Diana will be showcasing some of her awesome personal collection including portfolios, press books, official design sketches and more.

Livio Ramondelli - IDW, Google and video game artist who will be selling and displaying Transformers prints. Pick one up to have our guests sign as a keepsake of this sure to be crazy event.

Bill Forster - Comic book artist and co-author of the Transformers AllSpark Alamanacs, Ark Books and G.I. Joe Field Manuals. Bill will have some of his books and research materials on display. Sadly, Forster's writing co-hort Mr. Jim Sorenson won't be able to make it.

We'll also be supporting the following charities and programs:

People to People Ambassador Program - School trips and adventures to introduce students to new cultures, create global awareness as well as develop leadership skills and prepare them for college. Sunbow writer and special guest Flint Dille will be selling some of his personal memorabilia to support People to People.

Serenity Place Rescue - A volunteer group that rescues and rehabilitates cats and kittens offering advice, assistance and education on responsible pet ownership. Voice actor Michael Bell will raffle off a personalized signed photo to help raise money for Serenity Place.

Wounded Warrior Project - With a mission To honor and empower Wounded Warriors, the Project raises awareness and provides service to injured veterans addressing mental, physical, financial and family. Actor Hank Garrett will be selling signed photos and autographing items with all proceeds going directly to the Wounded Warrior Project.

At 7:00 PM, a pre-show with writers Flint Dille, Buzz Dixon, Donald F. Glut and voice actor Bill Ratner will accompany the mini-con and incoming attendees. They'll be talking about writing, animation, acting and the various other properties they've been a part of like He-Man and the Masters of the Universe, comic books, video games and more.

7:30 PM it's time to Transform and roll out to the awesomely 80's synth and guitar soundtrack of Vince Di Cola and Stan Bush as the Autobots face the evil Decepticons and a new threat; the giant, planet eating Unicron!

Between films it's a Sunbow Celebration panel with writers Flint Dille, Buzz Dixon, Donald F. Glut, voice actors Neil Ross, Michael Bell, Bill Ratner and Hank Garrett, G.I. Joe storyboard director Larry Houston and director Don Jurwich!

And then it's time for G.I. Joe: The Movie where America's elite take on Cobra and their ancestors from Cobra-La, a secret society hidden in the mountains looking to take over the world with mutant spores.

It's going to be a great night, we'll see you there. Yo, Joe!

Tickets and info here!

(Pre) Ask Me a Question: The Transformers & G.I. Joe The Movie

"Autobots! Transform and roll out!" To the Egyptian Theater on Saturday, March 7th at 7:30PM. Or, "Yo, Joe!" The Transformers and the G.I. Joe animated movies are playing at a Sunbow Celebration! And end my infomercial...

Dammaged Goods Presents is back, this time celebrating another glorious aspect of the 80's, cartoons! Try and tell me you didn't grow up on Masters of the Universe, G.I. Joe, Transformers, My Little Pony, Jem, Duck Tales and the like. One of the main contributors to the era of animated toy commercials that became so much more is Sunbow Entertainment, an animation studio that ran from 1980 to 1998 founded by Griffin-Bacal Advertising out of New York. Working with toy giant Hasbro and comic book mainstay Marvel, Sunbow gave the world G.I. Joe, Transformers, Jem, Inhumanoids, Visionaries, My Little Pony and Bucky O'Hare among other series. While the main goal was to sell toys, Sunbow managed to create worlds and mythologies that have lived on 30 years later.

From these daily animated series, four films emerged: The Transformers, My Little Pony, Inhumanoids and G.I. Joe. The first two titles would be released in theaters to weak box office thus relegating the remaining titles to go straight to video and sliced up for broadcast. I grew up on Transformers and G.I. Joe though and their movies have a special place in my heart. In a weird twist I watched more Joe episodes and followed the brand through comic books, toys and whatnot more so than Transformers. But when it comes to movies, I know the tale of Robots in Disguise just about front to back. From the opening scene where a planet is devoured by the mysterious Unicron to the awesomely 80's heavy metal soundtrack, Transformers: The Movie has just always been a treasured part of my life that opened up my imagination as a kid while also making realize that life is beautiful but life is also sad when Optimus Prime died. Although it's lived on through midnight and anniversary screenings, I've never seen it on the big screen. And in all my years I've never heard of G.I. Joe playing on the big screen. So here I am rectifying the situation and putting on a Sunbow Celebration to honor those who gave us so much wonderful entertainment as kids. While the shows were attacked for being glorified toy commercials, the worlds, characters and messages of good VS evil helped shape a generation of kids.

Taking place once again at The Egyptian in Hollywood, site of both Dolph Night and An Evening With Carl Weathers, we're doing our best to make this more than just a double feature. So far guests include:

Donald F. Glut - Writer and actor who scripted episodes of Joe, Transformers, Shazam!, Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends, G.I. Joe, He-Man and the Masters of the Universe, Go-Bots, Transformers, Duck Tales and Robocop, phew! Glut also wrote the hit novelization of The Empire Strikes Back among his 65 published books as well as comic books.

Flint Dille - Writer and director whose resume includes Garbage Pail Kids, Mister T, G.I. Joe, InHumanoids, Transformers and Visionaries. Dille was credited as Story Consultant on Transformers: The Movie hashing out the story and pounding out a new script. Also worked on video games Diablo III, Ghostbusters, Transformers and Batman: Rise of Sin Tzu.

Buzz Dixon - Writer on Thundaar the Barbarian, Alvin & The Chipmunks, Transformers, Jem, Visionaries, Bionic Six, Story Editor of G.I. Joe and Story Consultant on the movie.

Larry Houston - Storyboard Artist and Director on EVERY FRIGGING CARTOON YOU'VE EVER SEEN AND LOVED! Seriously, The Incredible Hulk, Spidey and His Amazing Friends, Defenders of the Earth, G.I. Joe, Jem, The Real Ghost Busters, Denver the Last Dinosaur, Pryde of the X-Men, C.O.P.S., James Bond Jr., Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Captain Planet, X-Men...is that enough? He still has more.

Neil Ross - Voice of Shipwreck from Joe and Springer from the Transformers Movie, also worked on Voltron, Kung Fu Panda, Spider-Man, Garfield and Friends and many, many more.

Don Jurwich - Director, writer and producer. Veteran of Hanna-Barbera and Sunbow with Smurfs, SuperFriends, Jabberjaw, Hong Kong Phooey, The Flintstones and acted as Supervising Producer on the Joe series and directed the movie.

We'll have memorabilia on display and for sale in the lobby from personal collections, trivia and prizes! Tickets are only $11 or $7 for American Cinematheque members and are available here. Yo, Joe!

Ask Me a Question: The Interview

After all major theater chains decided not to screen The Interview due to potential cyber and physical terrorist attacks, independent owners pleaded with Sony to allow the film to play and let freedom reign.  Texas' Alamo Drafthouse chain reported sell outs at all of their 18 locations while The Downtown Independent, Cinefamily and The Egyptian Theatre in Los Angeles all picked up the film.  Sony made the film available online for $5.99 Christmas Eve while co-star, writer and director Seth Rogen and partner Evan Goldberg appeared at a midnight screening.  The American Cinematheque and Beyond Fest teamed up to bring the film to audiences for the original intended Christmas Day release and did not disappoint.  The packed house was treated to a DJ dropping beautiful 80's tunes from Rod Stewart, Motley Crue and Van Halen while clips of essential America in the vein of Rocky IV, wrestling, monster trucks, hot dog eating, Rambo, Chuck Norris, Red Dawn and American Idol contestants singing God Bless the U.S.A. got the audience patriotically pumped up.

I actually thought it was a dick move of Sony to release the film online Wednesday before the actual intended release Thursday and taking theaters' exclusive window.  After all, big boys like Cinemark, AMC, Pacific and Regal dropped the film like it had a disease, 330 independent houses are the ones who stepped up and asked to show the film.  I already wanted to see the movie so whether it was was good or bad didn't matter anymore, you had to support it as a movie lover I figured.

Before the film played, George Washington and The Statue of Liberty (traveling buddy act Grant & Christian) welcomed the audience while Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg and co-stars Randall Park and Lizzy Caplan showed up to talk about the crazy, fucked up road of events, the maybe hack by North Korea and thanking everyone for attending.  Lizzy Caplan claimed she's never felt patriotic in her life but was starting to feel the love and asked the audience to join her in singing the national anthem as we all stood up and belted about rockets red glare and the home of the brave.  After that, Budweiser, tee shirts and tumblers were tossed into the crowd.  James Franco and his grandma appeared via video to thank everyone for showing up and it was time to roll the flick. 

The Interview is the story of schlock journalist Dave Skylark (James Franco), his best friend/producer Aaron Rapaport (Rogen) and their hit tabloid style show, Skylark Tonight.  After 1000 episodes covering the cool, weird, glamorous and seedy lifestyles of the rich and shameless, Rapaport wants to do something pertaining to real journalism.  A connection to Kim Jong-Un (Randall Park) is made and soon the duo is headed to North Korea to interview the world's most vicious and manipulative dictator.  The pair are then recruited by C.I.A. agent Lacey (Caplan) to assassinate Un while they're there.  Honey potting, honey dicking, poison strips, Bengal Tigers, tanks, Lord of the Rings, Katy Perry, booze, boobs and bro'ing out hijinks ensue.  Like action or horror, comedy films are best experienced with a crowd.  Sitting at home watching it on TV or your laptop where you're easily distracted or sitting alone just doesn't work that well for the yuks to me.  I had a good time with The Interview, Franco and Rogen have a nice dynamic with the former playing half homosexual/half debauched soul as the flamboyant, dim witted TV personality who gets celebrities to open up to him and the former being the straight guy looking for a little credibility.  There's dick, fart and homosexual jokes galore but nothing too offensive and they're delivered with such zeal that you can't help but laugh.  Skylark's constant use of "Ain'ters gonna ain't" and "they hate us cause they ain't us" are sure to become this years "Don't be a don'ter, do be a doer" and "I'm a doer!" here on Dammaged Goods.

Surprisingly, there's some well shot action in the piece with a tank, helicopter, troops, etc so maybe we'll see Rogen and Goldberg being handed the reigns to a big budget action comedy someday.  The trailers give away many of the cameos but there's a great one at the start I had no idea was coming.  I was actually surprised at the lack of cameos given how many famous faces showed up in This Is The End but I guess there's not much you can do when half the film takes place in North Korea. 

While the situation with Sony is truly shitty and I'm eagerly awaiting to find out who really hacked them, it turned a regular night at the movies into one hell of a special event.  U-S-A!  U-S-A!

Ask Me a Question: Carl Weathers Night

Honestly, this post could be called Predator & Action Jackson reunion night as we had so many people in attendance who worked on both of tonight's films.  To spice up the evening, I secured author David J. Moore to appear in the lobby talking to attendees about his work covering action, horror and genre movies, his recently published book on post-apocalyptic films World Gone Wild and his next literary effort, a guide to action movies.  We also had Shannon Shea from Stan Winston's Studio set up with tons of behind the scenes photos and some video he shot during the production of Predator.  Was crazy to hear how the guys working on the Predator suit were all in their early 20's and younger, how it was crisis mode all the way for the 5 weeks they had to prep and get down to Mexico to shoot.  Mechanical Designer Richard Landon joined Shannon while Mr. Carl Weathers, stunt coordinator and director Craig Baxley, editor Mark Helfrich and a slew of stunt guys who worked on both films mingled and reunited in the Egyptian Theatre's lobby.

Mark Helfrich was cool enough to provide his original crew jacket from the then titled, The Predator, to give away as a prize.  I got to chat with Mr. Helfrich out in the lobby for a few minutes and he was just an awesome, funny guy who has shaped memorable flicks like Revenge of the Ninja, I Come In Peace, Rambo: First Blood Part II and all of Brett Ratner's films.  Weathers, Baxley and everyone who worked on Action Jackson signed a VHS copy that I gave away as another prize.  The house lights went down and it was time for 1987's Predator.

This is the 2nd or 3rd time I've seen it on the big screen and tonight's digital print looked absolutely beautiful.  The spaceship drop off, the incoming choppers, the quick introduction of the Arnold Schwarzenegger led military squad all set to Alan Silvestri's pounding, memorable score and Carl and Arnold's epically macho handshake make for one of the greatest openings in cinema history.  Even though I had watched it at home recently to prep, seeing it on the big screen with big sound highlighted how quickly the film moves.  The John McTiernan directed film is full of iconic scenes from the handshake, to the helicopter ride and sexual tyrannosaurus talk, finding the mutilated bodies in the chopper wreckage to the huge end to Act I's assault on the complex sequence.  Man I did not realize how much carnage there is in that sequence between the rolling truck with a bomb in the back, machine guns, grenades, explosions, bodies flying, projectile machetes, wow.  Baxley has always shot incredible action in camera and for the first time I noticed Carl Weathers running through a scene with an explosion going off behind him and flames all around, all real.

After the flick, I took to the mic to introduce our special guest of the evening, Mr. Carl Weathers. Who I should note had just been so great through the whole process of getting this night going.  Just a kind, easy going, funny and smart guy.  It's odd, being up there, I honestly don't remember everything we talked about as I was worried about not looking stupid or asking dumb questions (which I ended up doing anyway...), boring the audience, etc.  But I love Carl's work and had done my homework so our discussion just flowed naturally.

- Acting bug bit him from a young age, stage plays through high school and majored in Theater but girls loved the football player so he went down that route.
- Never had a problem balancing acting and athletics, just did things his own way, once he latched on to something, just went after it with everything he had.
- Landed in Los Angeles looking to play for the Rams but ended up in Oakland with the Raiders then Canada, always wanting to get back to L.A. because that's where the acting jobs were.
- Didn't really struggle much once focused on becoming a professional actor, landed 10's of episodics on television then Rocky.
- Rocky audition, just lots of huge guys around but Weathers was chomping at the bit and the producers were having trouble filling the role.
- Knew it was something special early on, during production, told everyone it was going to be huge.  - Met Mark Hamill who had just come off of Star Wars who had a feeling his flick was going to be big as well.
- Got a call from manager that Rocky II was happening, says he made 15 cents on first, made a dollar on the second, it was a nice paycheck.
- Predator came onto his radar through his talent agent who said producer Joel Silver really wanted to meet him, read script but just wasn't there, character didn't even have a name.  Met Silver who said they wanted him and would make it what he wanted.  Met with writers who took his notes.
- Dillon wasn't even named in the script, came up with Marshall Dillon because it was just a "macho ass name".
- Gives props to Arnold and everyone involved for delivering solid performances, McTiernan being so talented behind the camera.
- Arnold had a gym brought down to Mexico so would use that before getting on the bus out to location, sometimes at 4:00 AM.
- The whole cast was so bent but he was the straight guy, had a lot of fun.  Totally ridiculous on and off set, lots of tequila involved.

- At this point, someone yelled from the audience and it was cast member Richard Chaves!  Who played Poncho in the film.  This was totally unplanned but just added to the evening's reunion feel.  Everyone in attendance had nothing but love for each other.
- Chaves says Weathers saved his life but wasn't that macho as on set. Watched for 3 months as Weathers took care of a little bird and fed it using an eye dropper each day.
- Handshake came from having these two physical characters reunited and how they would interact, had a little beef that Arnold got the angle to show off his bicep but I told Carl I could see his pumped, vascular forearms.
- Craig Baxley joined us at this point and I asked about the infamous assault on the complex scene and keeping actors safe among all the Boom Boom Boom.
- Sequence originally scheduled for 3-4 weeks of shooting but production was running out of money. Joel Silver told Baxley he had 6 days and would be given the full cast.
- Jim and John Thomas had written a terrific scene that Baxley rewrote to fit the schedule with their blessing and got it done.

- I asked about the young, unknown, Jean-Claude Van Damme working as the original creature. Weathers remembers JCVD was one of the most ambitious people he had ever met and was constantly talking about becoming a movie star.  Wanted to do some kickboxing in the suit because that's what he was good at.
- Baxley recalled seeing JCVD coming down a hallway with a 10 person entourage, called out to Joel Silver and jumped in the air, doing a 6 foot full split.
- Van Damme didn't tell anyone he was claustrophobic so when he put on the $10,000 creature head for the first time, he shuddered, pulled it off and threw it to the ground, breaking it.  Joel Silver fired him on the spot and uttered the famous line, "you'll never work in this town again!"  Which you know, wasn't true.
- Weathers works out more as an actor than as an athlete.  Actors have nothing to do between jobs so just got into pumping iron, worked out with Vince Gironda for years who had a tiny gym filled with tons of equipment and approached bodybuilding as sculpture.

- Action Jackson came from Weathers and Joel Silver talking about blaxploitation films on set.
- Title came from an Australian crew member then Weathers went off to flesh out the story of a cop after a high profile businessman villain, started with the name, Jericho "Action"Jackson.
- Many stunt performers from the film were in attendance and Baxley gave them all a shout out.
- Baxley has ghost directed lots of films, had just come off of 5 years of The A-Team on TV and worked with likes of Warren Beatty and Walter Hill.
- Had 3 weeks to prep 32 day shoot, 5 days of 2nd Unit, Silver gave them carte blanche as he was more concerned about getting to know Sharon Stone.
- Made huge profit for Lorimar Film division, among their top earners.

More and more was talked about of course but I don't want to bore you.  I took one question from the crowd and it was my mistake not to preface it with "a succinct and good question" as the asker went on for a bit after we had already been talking for at least 45 minutes, still had a signing and another film to screen.  So apologies to anyone who didn't get to ask a question as lots of hands went up.  Weathers took to the lobby to do a quick signing and photo session.  Was great to see the enthusiasm of the fans who all wanted a Predator shake or fists up Rocky photo.  A surprising amount of Action Jackson DVD's, laser disks and the like showed up as well.

It's hard to process these things as they happen but it was a great night with so many wonderful people in attendance.  Lots of total strangers congratulated me on a job well done so I'll take it where I can get it. Big thanks to the American Cinematheque for having us, Grant and Christian for their support and guidance, Oliver for getting everything set up, Carl for being such a great guest, Craig Baxley, Mark Helfrich, Shannon Shea and everyone who worked on the films for being so cool and approachable, friend and photographer Jeremy for documenting, Dammaged Goods supporters Tammi, Tim, Anna and Phil for working the crowd and of course any of you who attended, I hope you got one of the custom shirts.

Until the next one...