267 stories by "Ken Levine"
What a concept! Friday Questions actually on Friday.Jim S has a question based on a recent podcast with casting director Sheila Guthrie (if you haven't listened you're missing out on two gr…
When first-run movies play in theaters (you remember theaters), they're always preceded by four or ten trailers. And the trailers are always movies geared to the same people who came to see…
Here was an interesting question posed to me as a writer " do I mind if audiences talk back to the actors during performances of my work? It's a cultural issue. For some cultures it's acc…
Memo:FROM: Christopher Nolan TO: President of Walt Disney PicturesSUBJECT: Re-boot of MARY POPPINSAfter watching the original 1964 movie once I know how we could improve this beloved chi…
Here's the REAL plot of caper movie, OCEAN'S EIGHT " a movie studio is trying to steal $100,000,000 from unsuspecting theatergoers.What a blatant cash grab. Award-winning actresses cashing…
Ken discusses how top comedy writers determine whether things are funny or not, and offers some helpful tips on how to make your writing and content much funnier. It's another behind-the-sce…
When Romcoms Go BadJust back from a couple of weeks in New York, Cleveland, and Grand Rapids " the typical east coast swing. In no particular order, here are some observations and thoughts …
Greetings from Gotham. Congrats to THE BAND'S VISIT, which was the big Tony musical winner last night. I saw it and thought it was the right choice.I also saw, with great a…
FQ's are ready. Come get 'em while they're hot.McAlvie starts us off. I hate it when they colorize original b&w movies, because something I can't put my finger on what gets lost. I thi…
As I mentioned last week, I saw SUNSET BOULEVARD recently, Billy Wilder's classic from 1950. You would think it won the Academy Award for Best Picture. It didn't. Another worthy film,…
I'm always in awe of those technicians who set up the acoustics for major theatres like the Disney Hall in Los Angeles. It's such a baffling science. Sound travels in mysterious ways and …
When you make your travel plans, try not to fly to New York during a Nor'easter. Back from Fun City, where I was really lucky to get INTO Fun City. I had a play in the ANDTheatre Company…
Or should I say the "old" Annie Hall? A senior center in Manhattan has done a reboot of the Woody Allen classic ANNIE HALL. I'll pause here for a moment to say this is not a…
... than host of the Oscars?Jimmy Kimmel hosts his second Oscarcast tonight. (I will be reviewing it. Check out my podcast.) I thought he did a very good job last year, alt…
Devastating news that David Ogden Stiers has passed away. He was only 75. Probably best known for playing Dr. Charles Emerson Winchester on MASH he had a long distinguished…
I've got a bunch of theatre pieces being produced in March and April. Depending upon which continent you're on come see one.My short play, THE HOOK UP gets two productions. March…
There was a recent article in the LA TIMES proclaiming that spec screenplays are now dead. For quite some time studios would buy these scripts written on speculation for goodly amounts and…
I have a number of short plays playing in different festivals. These are generally evenings of ten-minute plays. Theatres seek submissions and I send off material. An…
There's nothing writers enjoy more than hearing or reading about other writers' horror stories. It's not schadenfreude per se (okay, maybe a little); it's more that we all have them and ta…
For a TV writer or a playwright, there's nothing like seeing your first production. After God knows how many specs, one acts, and plays that never saw the light of day, the feeling can be…
When the musical I co-wrote was produced I was asked to submit my bio for the program. The trouble is, if I list that I am primarily a TV writer it's like putting a big target on my ch…
The new TV trend is to do reboots of classic TV series. WILL & GRACE, X-FILES, ROSEANNE, FULL HOUSE, and others are in the works including MAD ABOUT YOU.So what about MASH? Why not? …
Based on a reader's question I surveyed a number of very successful actors and actresses to learn how they memorize scripts. Their answers were all fascinating and wildly different. The…
Happy New Year! Here are my New Year's resolutions:Throw out my Miramax DVD's.Finally watch THIS IS US.Get ALMOST PERFECT on Netflix or Hulu.Go to the gym at least twice a week. (My gym i…
We all talk about how great the theatre is. I'm writing for the theatre. I love it. But in the interest of fairness, I present the opposing view. From British comedienne Sara Pascoe:
