LON CHANEY: Union Man

Remembering Lon Chaney on the anniversary of his birth, April 1, 1883.

Chaney and his famous make-up box.

A personal hero of mine, both artistically and professionally.

Lon Chaney, pre-Screen Actors Guild and American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, was a staunch unionist, proud of his membership in the Theatrical Stage Employees union in the early 20th Century. After his star rose, and he could develop large projects that propelled him to even greater stardom (in roles like Quasimodo and The Phantom for Universal Pictures) he continued to look-out for his fellow actors. Like James Cagney in a later generation, he would often end a work day with a lot of actors on the call sheet before all was shot, knowing full-well they'd get to be employed one more day, or more.

Chaney passed away, of throat cancer, on August 26th, 1930. At the height of stardom with MGM, he was only 47-years-old.

-Mark Redfield, April 1, 2012

MONSTERPALOOZA MAGAZINE'S POE-PALOOZA!

http://www.monsterpaloozamag.com/news.html#poepalooza

POE-PALOOZA starts Sunday, January 15th, 2012  on the Monsterpalooza Magazine facebook page! 

In honor of Edgar Allan Poe's birthday on January 19th, 2012, we'll be posting about the great, influential writer ALL WEEK--on the facebook page and on the website! 

And CONTESTS! What's a birthday party without presents and party favors? Seven days--seven contests--and the rules are simple: open to anyone on the planet; just watch for a contest question each day and be the first to answer correctly and you win! Great prizes--books, posters, DVDs and other Poe-related stuff! 

Let's get the Poe Party started!

MONSTERPALOOZA MAGAZINE

Michael Heisler and I are pleased to announce a new quarterly print 'zine called MONSTERPALOOZA MAGAZINE.

No.1, Autumn, 2011. 96 glossy pages. Full color (unless the subject dictates beautiful black & white!)

The premiere issue is being assembled now, and we ship No. 1 in mid-September, 2011. You can pre-order your copy at www.monsterpaloozamag.com

Our cover, "The Pumpkin Master" is by Jeff Preston. Our contributors this issue include: Jeff Baham, Matthew J. Bowerman, George Chastain, Frank Dietz, Scott Essman, Pierre Fournier, Daniel Griffith, Michael Heisler, Matt Lake, Joe Moe, Caroline Munro, Joe Nazzaro, Mark Redfield, Gary Don Rhodes, Eric Supensky, and Anthony Taylor. Monsterpalooza Magazine is published and edited by Michael Heisler and Mark Redfield.

Check out the website HERE

We're still adding things to the website, so come back often. As of today's website launch, you'll notice that we can only take pre-orders for orders in the US. But don't worry, friends in Canada, the UK and overseas--we'll be adding those very soon!

We hope you like it! It was made with loving care by folks like you--who love the art of monsters!

Copyright Damfino Media. All Rights Reserved. Monsterpalooza is a Trademark of Rubberroom Headhunters Corp., used by permission and under license. All Rights Reserved.

NOTHING SAYS 'HOLIDAYS' BETTER THAN GETTING TOGETHER WITH FAMILY: THE THREE STOOGES HOME MOVIES FROM THE 1930s

I've not seen this fabulous footage before last night. A wonderful home movie of The Three Stooges from the 1930s.

They're all there: The Howard Boys, their kids, parents and wives. Even Larry Fine (who wasn't a blood brother to Moe, Curly or Shemp, but was one in spirit) and his wife.

If the music is familiar, it's because it's a series of LeRoy Shields cuts from the Hal Roach comedies like Our Gang and Laurel and Hardy. And speaking of Laurel, I wish the video had some narration like Laurel's daughter did when his home movies were released on video, identifying everyone.

Around the five minute mark the footage cuts to a "live appearance" of Moe, Larry and Curly. I'd love to know where and when that took place. Then suddenly at around the six minute mark, the footage leaps forward in time to a bunch of frenetic footage of a live appearance of Larry, Moe, and the "sixth member" of the Stooges, Curly Joe DeRita. That footage is probably from the late 1950s or very early 1960s, as Joe DeRita joined the team in 1958.

But this is wonderful to see them all together in the footage from the 30s, all happy and goofing with each other. Yeah, nothing says "happy holidays" better than families getting together and having a good time!

FILM HISTORIAN KEVIN BROWNLOW

Kevin Brownlow's speech to the Academy this November. His books and documentaries have opened windows, doors and worlds to me; his work continues to inspire and remain "must have" works in my library, valuable pieces that I re-visit often.

If you don't know Brownlow's work, I strongly suggest you start with his book THE PARADE'S GONE BY. Then look at his series HOLLYWOOD, and the documentaries UNKNOWN CHAPLIN and
BUSTER KEATON: A HARD ACT TO FOLLOW (with the late David Gill). And then go from there. To Chaney, Lloyd and so much more.

Wonderful contributions; well deserved recognition of his work by the Academy. Hopefully others are being inspired by him to continue on. Listen to his speech to the Academy in November, 2010 HERE.

-Mark Redfield, November, 2010