Canton, NY, Mar 03, 2011 — She won the first "Best Actress" Emmy Award, garnered a Tony Award and was a broadcasting pioneer. Gertrude Berg is credited with inventing the first television sitcom in 1949. She was principal writer and star of "The Goldbergs", a popular radio and TV show in the 1940's and 50's. Todd Moe talks with filmmaker Aviva Kempner, whose work investigates non-stereotypical images of Jews in history and celebrates the under known stories of Jewish heroes. Kempner says Berg was the Oprah of her day, but many of her contributions to show business have been forgotten. Aviva Kempner will host a screening of the documentary film "Yoo-Hoo, Mrs. Goldberg," at St. Lawrence University tonight at 7 p.m. in Room 218 of Hepburn Hall. Free admission.  Go to full article

Potsdam, NY, Nov 23, 2010 — Remember the classic 1980s horror flick, Nightmare on Elm Street, with Freddy Kreuger, the guy with razor claws haunting teenagers' dreams?

Legend has it that the film and its title was inspired a student film director Wes Craven made at a former fraternity house on Elm Street in Potsdam. Craven taught at Clarkson University in Potsdam for several years in the 1960s.

On his website, Craven denies the connection. Still, it remains part of local lore. It's even mentioned on the village's website. A Facebook-based movement to preserve the building won almost 8,000 fans.

But the so-called "Nightmare on Elm Street House" was in disrepair and had been condemned. Today it's being torn down. Local historian John Michaud led the effort to preserve the building. He met David Sommerstein outside the Nightmare on Elm Street House.  Go to full article

Potsdam, NY, Oct 18, 2010 — Americans have witnessed two wars in the Middle East over nine years and counting. Much of what we know about the combat in Iraq and Afghanistan comes from journalists embedded with U.S. troops.

A new documentary called Full Disclosure takes a self-reflective look at the embedding process and what it means for coverage of the wars. Director Brian Palmer will show the film tonight in Potsdam and take questions afterwards.

Palmer is a journalist who's reported for CNN, the Village Voice, and New York Times Magazine, among others over 20 years. He embedded with marines in Iraq three times. He spoke with David Sommerstein about the film. One scene shows marines hunkered down in a bunker during a deadly mortar attack.

Full Disclosure is showing tonight at 7:15 at the Roxy Theater in Potsdam as a part of the Cinema 10 film series. Palmer will be there for the showing and will take questions afterwards.  Go to full article

Lake Placid, NY, Aug 06, 2010 — The Adirondack Film Society invites you to "follow the Yellow Brick Road" to the Palace Theatre in Lake Placid this Saturday for a special screening of The Wizard of Oz. And after the film, you'll meet a panel of experts on the 1939 musical fantasy film. It's an opportunity to ask any question about this enduring classic.

Todd Moe spoke with one of Saturday's panelists: film historian and Oz expert, John Fricke. He's written three books about the film, and is past president of its international fan club. Fricke says The Wizard of Oz has become, over the years, one of the best known of all films. He remembers watching it for the first time on network television in 1956.  Go to full article

Burlington, VT, Jul 01, 2010 — Last December, Jose Obeth Santiz Cruz of Mexico was killed when his shirt got caught in a machine on a Vermont dairy farm. The incident renewed concerns over Hispanic farmworkers in the dairy industry who are in this country illegally. An estimated 1500 work on dairy farms in Vermont. Hundreds more work in northern New York. A farmworkers' rights group helped return Santiz Cruz' remains to his family in Chiapas, Mexico. The Vermont Migrant Farmworker Solidarity Project made a documentary about their journey. It's called "Silenced Voices" and debuts tonight at 7 at the Black Box Theater in Burlington. Brendan O'Neill teaches English to Hispanic farmworkers in Vermont. He co-directed the documentary and spoke with David Sommerstein.  Go to full article

Watertown, NY, Feb 24, 2010 — A new tragicomedy that examines winter heating bills and personal safety gets a staged reading in Watertown on Saturday. Todd Moe talks with Watertown playwright Craig Thornton about The High Cost of Heating.  Go to full article

Lake Placid, NY, Feb 04, 2010 — Lake Placid's Olympic heritage goes deep -- back to 1932, and through the "Miracle on Ice" 1980 games, to this month's games in Vancouver, Canada. The story of how Lake Placid developed as a winter sports resort and hosted two Olympic Winter Games is told in the documentary Small Town, Big Dreams. The film is being shown nationwide on public television this month as part of the 30th anniversary of the winter games in Lake Placid. It includes rare film footage and audio recordings from museums and private collections. Todd Moe talks with Adirondack-area filmmaker Scott Carroll about some of the people behind the '32 and '80 Winter Olympics, and whether the region could host the winter games again.  Go to full article

Lake Placid, NY, Jun 09, 2009 — NCPR is media sponsor for this week's Lake Placid Film Forum. It runs from Thursday to Sunday and features film screenings, conversations with directors and authors, and a filmmaking competition. Events will be held at the Palace Theatre, Whiteface Lodge and the Lake Placid Center for the Arts. Todd Moe spoke with writer and filmmaker Barry Snyder. He teaches at Burlington College and is organizing the third annual "Sleepless in Lake Placid," the 24-hour filmmaking competition.  Go to full article

Jan 23, 2009 — (TEXT ONLY) Frozen River, a film set at the Akwesasne Mohawk Reservation on the border in northern New York has earned Oscar nominations for its screenwriter and one of its lead actresses. Frozen River tells the story of two women who are driven by poverty and circumstances to smuggle illegal immigrants across the US-Canada border.

Courtney Hunt is nominated for an Academy Award for best original screenplay. She also directed the movie. She told North Country Public Radio she knows the North Country because her husband is from Malone. She says it was women smugglers who really attracted her to the subject matter of Frozen River. She now lives in Chatham in Columbia County.

Melissa Leo, of New York's Ulster County, was nominated for best actress. She plays the single mother who finds herself destitute at Christmas and teams up with a Mohawk woman to bring a Pakistani woman and her baby across the border. Oscar winners will be announced during the 81st Academy Awards presentation Feb. 22. Frozen River also won the Grand Jury Award at this year's Sundance Film Festival.  Go to full article

Jan 08, 2009 — The North Country Film Society and the Roxy Theater host the annual North Country Film Festival this weekend. The event opens Friday night at 8. Steve Madeja, one of the festival's organizers, told Todd Moe that it's a weekend of classic films and independent features.  Go to full article