Pride (In The Name Of Love)
I stepped into Times Square at 12:33 tonight, some sixteen hours after first stepping foot in the office. The sidewalk was slick.
"Huh," I thought. "Weather."
This afternoon, I stood outside MTV video Music Awards rehearsals at Radio City Music Hall as one of our crews interviewed the Creative Director in a cramped, curbside mobile office.
I looked up from 49th Street to Rolling Stone Magazine's offices, and though back to a fall day in 1995 when I watched VMA arrivals there as a young intern. It never would have dawned on me then ...
I Heart Pop Candy Because Pop Candy Hearts Mister Rogers (And R.E.M.!)
In December, I travelled to Washington, D.C., to cover President Obama's Inauguration for MTV News. I was managing the operation, for the most part, but broke ranks one afternoon to interview one of my artistic heroes, Shepard Fairey.
USA Today's Pop Candy Blog linked to the resulting article. So I sent its editor, Whitney Matheson, a thank you email. We talked about our mutual love of R.E.M., and agreed to grab beers sometime, then got sucked up into the cycle of our respective lives.
Fast forward to two week ago. I sent Whitney ...
“Mister Rogers & Me” Needs Your Help
I often wonder whether Chris and I should have had a business plan or, heck, any plan before diving into the making of our independent documentary, "Mister Rogers & Me," back in June 2006. Especially now, day one of a month-long fundraising campaign to finish the film.
We've been making slow but steady progress for a few months now, enlisting the advice and editing expertise of "American Hardcore" director, Slamdance Film Festival co-founder and pal Paul Rachman who cut our 2:30:00 run time to 1:15:00. It's far more compelling and ...
Walter Cronkite (1916–2009)
In the fall if 1989, I sat deep within the blue light of Conestoga High School's dusty, off-white library single-finger typing my Northwestern University application into one of the school's ten, well-worn IBM PCs.
I don't remember much about the assignment, or my thesis, or even what made me think I should be a journalism student there to begin with (neither a) "I like to write" b) "I like Chicago" nor c) "My brother wanted to go there but didn't get in" seemed like reasonable responses), I only remember one thing: Twenty years later, I ...
Stay Tuned
Well, that didn't take long. Or did it?
Two weeks ago, my brother handed off a hard drive loaded with "Mister Rogers & Me" footage, and taught me how Avid Editing 101.
After a fifteen-day period that included ten of travel (and one marathon), I sat down in front of the computer to get started.
You'll recall that I first met Mister Rogers in September, 2001. Principle photography for our little, DIY documentary began in June, 2006. We've been steadily chipping away ever since, including weekend shoots in Washington, DC, Durham, ...
Hey, Whatever Happened To That Documentary?
What's going on with Wagner Bros. Pictures, LLC's still-forthcoming documentary, "Mister Rogers & Me?"
I'm glad you asked. Or, I'm glad my pen pal Magnus did.
"When I inquired about the documentary a few months ago [you said] it was on hold," he writes. "I don't know what the progress is, or what's holding it up, but I just wanted to encourage you to keep at it. I know you are extremely busy with all your other endeavors, but this project is as important now as it ever was. Keep at it! You were chosen to remind people of the deep and ...
Remembering The Crash Site
"Mister Rogers Talks To Parents About Divorce" premiered on Sunday February 15, 1981, just as my parents' marriage was falling apart.
Unfortunately, it took twenty-five years to learn of the show's existence, and until this afternoon to see it myself for the very first time.
All I knew of Susan Stamberg's relationship to Fred Rogers when I walked into NPR's Washington, DC, studios way back in November, 2006, was that the two had taped some television specials together in the '80s. Imagine my surprise, then, when I discovered the topic of ...
The Miracle Of Showing Up
We rarely do much of anything in Nantucket, and I like it that way.
A typical day might involve a good run, a real breakfast (eggs, pancakes, etc), a trip to the beach, magazines, books, puzzles, and the ever-essential mid-day nap.
We rarely leave our little corner of the island save for trip to Cisco Brewers (for pints of Whale's Tale Pale Ale), Bartlett Farms (for fresh corn, tomatoes, and blueberry pie), and 167 (aka East Coast Seafood, for whatever Bill's caught that day).
Whatever we do, and wherever we go, the one constant is ...
Saving Mister Rogers
I'm blessed and lucky for my brief but meaningful time with Mister Rogers, and the wheels those few moments set in motion.
When I need a dose of calm, or insight on managing my anger, sadness, or fear in the face of this crazy, crazy world, I don't have to go anywhere or do anything. I just pause, and I hear him in my head.
What's more, he's rarely out of eyeshot. At my office, a photo of us in the living room of his Crooked House rests on a shelf above my desk, and a postcard reading, "I'm so glad we're friends" is tacked to my ...
Tim Russert (1950-2008)
The New York Times just confirmed some sad news: Tim Russert has died of a heart attack.
You'll recall that Chris and I visited Tim in his NBC offices in November, 2006 to interview him for our documentary, "Mister Rogers & Me."
We scored the interview courtesy of my uncle, with whom Tim had worked for years, after I read Tim's wife, Maureen Orth, remembrance of Mister Rogers in The Nantucket Inquirer-Mirror some months earlier.
It was a cold, drizzly Monday morning as we pulled into NBC's Washington, DC, bureau. Despite a fair dose ...
