CLOSE UP by Brian Rudnick

He last saw "Humoresque" in 1946

That was 1946. I was about 16 then. AND WHAT WAS YOUR REACTION? I loved the movie and I haven’t thought about it since until I looked and saw that it was playing here tonight. It’s interesting – about two-thirds of the way through the movie, I remembered what the ending was. It is a great movie. WHAT MOVED YOU MOST ABOUT THE MOVIE? As I look back, how great the music was at the time. Not just John Garfield, Joan Crawford but Oscar Levant. By the way, that was him in real life the way he was. He complained all the time he couldn’t sleep. Those were his lines that were really him. Ross Reese at the screening of Humoresque, at the Chestnut Hill Library Tuesday night film series. Watch video here.

Readers are leaders: Chestnut Hill Book Festival 2011

Somewhere I saw, a long time ago, a button or bumper sticker that said "Readers are Leaders" And I think that's really true- that people who read find out details about the world and have things to talk about. And it's much more effective to be in the world with other humans when you have things to talk about.

We have a rule in our household that if there's a book that's been turned into a movie, you have to read the book first- the Harry Potter movies... there's been a lot of kids books that they've taken and changed around and made them into movies and it's been pretty funny. Because they change them! But I always insist that my kids read the books first. Of course we have to do that ourselves, mind our own rules. So my husband and I had to read "The Lord of the Rings" when that coming out as a movie a while back. We had to read them again. I had read them in high school It was actually work!

Being at this book festival, people are walking by and they're talking about books which is so much fun. And there were some women here earlier at my table and they were talking about kids books that were turned into movies, "The Hunger Games" and how excited they are about that. And we started talking about the books that we love, as adults but they also might be kids books. And then we started talking about the books that are narrated, that are read on tape or CD. And one of the leader-readers, it's so obvious, is Barack Obama, You know he got a grammy award for reading his own book aloud?.. That poor guy has such a job!

Laura Richlin, Chestnut Hill Book Festival 

Watch video interview here.

Movie buffs snatch up favorites at TLA Video, set to close next week

  

“WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO WHEN THE TLA CLOSES?

Kelly Carroll: "On demand."

WHAT DO WE LOVE ABOUT MOVIES?

Mark Keintz: “The thing I like about movies is it lets me be vicarious so I see things that I might want to do myself but really wouldn’t dare do. Like “Lawrence  of Arabia” - I like the landscape, I like the story, I like the times.”

Kelly Carroll of Mount Airy and Mark Keintz of Chestnut Hill visited the TLA Video store to get some bargains on videos the store is selling before it closes in a matter of days. Kelly expects to begin watching on-demand which her family already has at home. Watch video here.

Takes just herself to movies for first time

YOU’RE TAKING YOURSELF TO THE MOVIES TODAY? “Yes I am.” AND YOU CONFESSED THAT IT’S THE FIRST TIME THAT YOU’RE TAKING JUST YOURSELF? “First time taking myself to the movies.” WHAT’S THE OCCASION? “I just said, you know what, why not? If there’s something that you want to do, life’s too short to wait for other people. Just pick up yourself and go. WHAT ARE YOU SEEING TODAY? Karate Kid. I heard it was really exciting. I’ve been promoting it with people. So I’m telling people to go for it. Go and see it. I’m a supporter, love Will Smith, love Jaden.” Leslie Burnley of Overbrook at United Artists Movie Theater, Manayunk. Watch video interview here.