“King of Comedy” at TCM Film Festival
Mar
30
2010
The role of the (stalked) talk-show host in Martin Scorsese’s brilliant black comedy, “The King of Comedy” (1982), was first envisaged for Johnny Carson. When Carson declined, Scorsese, in a stroke of genius, turned to Jerry Lewis. Lewis is so fantastic in this movie; he skates the narrow edge of powerful, scary, and vulnerable. Really ...
Mike and Julia 4
After immensely enjoying the Nora Ephron film, “Julie and Julia,” I remembered that decades ago my father, Mike Levine, interviewed Julia Child on his talk show on KDKA, Pittsburgh’s 50,000-watt AM radio station. My dad, who during the “Madmen” era looked, dressed, and smoked like Don Draper, interviewed everyone — from his days as a ...