Ep. 191- Ringing in 2024 with Busby Berkeley

Happy New Year from Front Row Classics! We’re kicking off the new year in style with something fun and frothy. Our friend Emmett Stanton joins us to celebrate the work of choreographer/director, Busby Berkeley. Brandon and Emmett are taking a look at three films with the Berkeley touch. All three films were, miraculously, released in 1933. 42nd Street, Golddiggers of 1933 and Footlight Parade remain as fresh and fun as they did 90 years ago.

FEATURING: Brandon Davis and Emmett Stanton

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Ep. 189- The Man Who Came to Dinner

Shut Your Nasty Little Face.

Merry Christmas from Front Row Classics! We’re celebrating the season with a classic holiday farce from Warner Bros. The Man Who Came to Dinner remains one of the greatest adaptations from stage to screen. Ben Burke, from the Hollywood Babylonians, podcast joins Brandon to discuss all of the wacky fun from this 1942 film. Discussion includes topics such as the unusually subtle performance from Bette Davis, the brisk pace set by director William Keighley and Monty Wooley’s career defining performance as Sheridan Whiteside.

FEATURING: Brandon Davis and Ben Burke

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Ep. 183- Giant

Money Isn’t Everything.

Front Row Classics is taking a look at one of the great film epics, George Stevens’ Giant. This 1956 film still resonates with its themes of family, changing times and race relations. Tristan Tapscott joins Brandon to discuss the legendary production. The two take a look at the fine performances from Elizabeth Taylor, Rock Hudson and James Dean. The film would mark Dean’s final screen appearance before his untimely death. Ivan Moffat’s screenplay and Dimitri Tiomkin’s score are also discussed.

You can find what Tristan is up to at https://www.tristantapscott.com/

FEATURING: Brandon Davis and Tristan Tapscott

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Ep. 167- Dark Victory

Our Victory Over the Dark.

We’re taking a look at another great film from 1939 this week on Front Row Classics. Dark Victory is one the great triumphs in the career of Bette Davis. Brandon is joined, once again, by author and film historian Sloan De Forest to discuss this classic tear jerker from Warner Bros. The hosts discuss Davis’ Oscar nominated performance of a reckless woman who has to confront her own mortality. Davis is surrounded by an impressive supporting cast including the off-beat casting of both Humphrey Bogart and Ronald Reagan.

FEATURING: Brandon Davis and Sloan De Forest

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Ep. 158- Warner Bros: 100 Years of Storytelling-Interview with Mark A. Vieira

You Ain’t Heard Nothin’ Yet!

Front Row Classics is pleased to welcome Mark Vieira to the podcast this week. Brandon and Mark discuss his latest book, “Warner Bros: 100 Years of Storytelling”. The book is the official centennial history of arguably the greatest studio in Hollywood’s history. The complete Warner Bros story is chronicled through fascinating stories and glorious photographs from every era. Brandon and Mark discuss the studio’s humble beginnings, it’s Golden Age and struggles through the post-Covid world. They also cover such varied Warner’s films as Casablanca, Batman, Bonnie & Clyde and Confessions of a Nazi Spy.

“Warner Bros: 100 Years of Storytelling” is available wherever books are sold from Running Press.

Mark A. Vieira is a filmmaker, photographer, and writer. He has written seventeen previous books, including Cecil B. DeMille and Forbidden Hollywood. He has lectured at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, UCLA, and USC, and he has appeared in documentaries such as Turner Classic Movies’s Garbo. Vieira resides in Los Angeles.

FEATURING: Brandon Davis

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Ep. 152- The Treasure of the Sierra Madre

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Front Row Classics celebrates the 100th birthday of Warner Brothers with one of the best films to ever come out of the studio. Emmett Stanton and Jay Hoffman join Brandon to discuss 1948’s, The Treasure of the Sierra Madre. The hosts discuss the themes of greed and paranoia beautifully told in John Huston’s uncompromising masterpiece. They also pay tribute to the unforgettable performances of Humphrey Bogart and Walter Huston. Topics also include the groundbreaking location shooting, the mystery surrounding the original novel and a certain iconic line about “stinking badges”.

FEATURING: Brandon Davis, Jay Hoffman and Emmett Stanton

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Ep. 123- Mildred Pierce

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Front Row Classics takes a step into the world of Film Noir and melodrama this week with the 1945 potboiler, Mildred Pierce. Brandon and Eric are thrilled to welcome back ,author and film historian, Sloan De Forest to the podcast this week. Sloan considers Mildred Pierce to be among her top ten favorites films and brings excellent insight and enthusiasm. The hosts discuss the quintessential performance of Joan Crawford which marked a comeback after a two year absence from the screen. Other topics include the changes from the novel by James M Cain along with the expert direction of Michael Curtiz.

FEATURING: Brandon Davis, Eric Flick and Sloan De Forest

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Ep. 47 – The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938)

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CLASSICS is back for their June episode and the crew is going all the way back to 1938 to take a look at Errol Flynn as the titular legendary bandit in The Adventures of Robin Hood. This one has everything a classic action adventure needs including one of the best stunt actors of all time and the immortal Olivia de Havilland.

FEATURING: Brandon Davis, Eric Flick & Allison Means

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Website: www.nprillinois.org/programs/front-row-network
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Please enjoy this episode of CLASSICS and as always, we’ll see you in the front row!