Hechler in late October 2008

Ken Hechler is a very busy person these days. Just as he said in his biographical film, “Ken Hechler - In Pursuit of Justice,” “I like to do many things including write and teach.” He will be flying to Minneapolis, Missouri and Washington, DC in the next two months. He was also interviewed recently for a NPR story to be broadcast on MLK Day, January 19th, connecting MLK and environmentalism. Read the rest of this entry »

Donn Rogosin spent 6 years in WV, from 1986-92,  serving as general manager of Beckley Public TV, WSWP, when WVPBS was less “integrated.” He walked into my office on the 4th floor of the WV Cultural Center, saying, “Steve, I heard everything good in WV comes out of your office….” I replied, “Well, there is the Greenbrier!” This marked the beginning of my friendship with the most creative, friendly, positive person I have ever known in the world of Public Broadcasting. I recently tracked him down, and I thought now would be a good time to recall some of the many things he did during his decade in West Virginia.

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Terry Lively and the Shaffers presented the world premiere of their film, “Coondog Heaven,” on Saturday, October 8th at the South Charleston Museum to an appreciative crowd of dog lovers. About 40 people not only attended the event, but donated $ 176 to the Kanawha/Charleston Animal Shelter plus a Jeep full of items to be used at the Shelter. It was a night to remember.

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The WV Music Hall of Fame mobile display. It will tour WV counties in the future in cooperation with the WV Department of Education and the Arts

The West Virginia Music Hall of Fame under the guidance of Michael Lipton held its second induction ceremony last night at the WV Cultural Center. He also unveiled his traveling exhibit mobile which was parked outside the Cultural Center. As an advisor to the WVMHF, I searched the web for clips of films about this year’s inductees, not finding any complete films except the one I am very familiar with, Susan Burt & Doug Chadwick’s “True Facts…in a Country Song” about the Lilly Brothers.

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NIOSH has produced “Faces of Black Lung,”an informative, short film about the ravages of black lung that is available FREE to the public. The 13.5 minute  film was released in June 2008 so it is up-to-date in its analysis of the surge in underground miners with the horrible, deadly condition. ( Contact Anita Wolfe -  (304) 285-6263, awolfe@cdc.gov)

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Ellis Dungan in India

Ellis Dungan was one of the first people in West Virginia to make a living directing documentaries in the film. He did this after living in Paris and co-founding the Tamil film industry in Madras, India. He also worked on several  Hollywood films including, “Tarzan Goes to India,” and the TV show, “Andy and His Gang.” In 1958, he returned to WV, living in Wheeling for the rest of his life until he died Dec. 1, 2001. Recently a librarian notified a listserv for video librarians that she was looking for Tamil films that he directed.

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Robert Redford has narrated “Fighting Goliath - Texas Coal Wars,” a new 35 minute documentary about a coalition of mayors, ranchers, CEOs, community groups, legislators, lawyers, and citizens  who  come together to oppose the construction of  19 power plants that were slated to be built in Eastern and Central Texas. They were being fast-tracked by the Governor of Texas because of his belief that the state needed the energy in a hurry. During the course of the film, TXU, the energy company, was purchased, and offered to cut the number of plants. Unfortunately, the remaining plants would pollute more than all 19 of the originally planned facilities. Read the rest of this entry »

Burning the Future - Coal in America has been nominated for the 2008 Pare Lorentz Award given out by the International Documentary Association (IDA). The IDA recently sponsored a showing of the previous winners of the award along with films by Lorentz and related films like “The Grapes of Wrath,” based on the Nobel Prize winning book by John Steinbeck who worked with Lorentz on one of his films. “Burning” was selected in October 2008 as the “best film” at the WV Filmmakers Festival and has won many awards.

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Marcy Brenner with WV filmmaker Ray Schmitt

Hardy County, WV filmmaker Ray Schmitt has won an international competition for his short film version of  “Dead Girl Walking.” The film is about Marcy Brenner, a singer-songwriter living on Ocracoke Island, NC who developed breast cancer. The film winning the award is a 10-minute trailer posted on line at the Breast Fest Film Festival where people could vote for their favorite film.  Read the rest of this entry »

 Sid Hatfield, the hero of The Matewan Massacre

Dr. Fred Barkey is one of my biggest WV heroes, and one of two historical consultants for a “lost” WV documentary called “In the Company’s Hands.” The 1987 film, produced by WSWP-TV in Beckley, WV, was directed by Jack Kelly. It was shown on WVPBS on November 27, 1987, just about a month  after “Matewan” premiered in WV at the WVIFF, Capitol Plaza Theater, downtown Charleston. Talk about showing the influence of Sayles’ landmark film on WV culture!

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