Byron Graham is a writer, comedian and gentleman thief from Denver. Co-host of Designated Drunkard: A Comedy Drinking Game, the deathless Lion's Lair open mic and the Mutiny Book Club podcast, Byron also writes about comedy for Westword. He cannot abide cowardice, and he's never been defeated in an open duel.
The Stop the Presses series at the Alamo Drafthouse, which celebrates the media in movies with screenings of such classics as Sweet Smell of Success and concludes with the premiere of Anchorman 2, has inspired a lot of conversation about the relationship between journalists and the movies that portray them. While inspirational tales of dedicated investigators may go on to win awards and persuade young idealists to pursue a career in the news, movies about journalists who suck at their jobs are often much more entertaining. The worst newsmen in cinema are united by their blinkered narcissism, which bleeds into their work life in fascinating ways. Read on for a list of movies that herald wildly unprofessional behavior, and stay classy, Denver.
The Stop the Presses event at the Alamo Drafthouse, a programming series that celebrates the news in cinema through screenings of classic tales of journalism like Sweet Smell of Success and All the President's Men has inspired a lot of conversation about the relationship between journalists and the movies that portray them. With barely enough titles to qualify as a sub-genre, movies about the news often become indelible documents of the time and place that created them, going on to win Academy Awards and inspire future generation of filmmakers and reporters alike. However, many films about the news tend to gloss over the un-cinematic tedium of the work itself, which is understandable given how much of a journalist's life is spent sitting at a keyboard. The qualities that make a movie character dramatically compelling are often totally at odds with the qualities that make a good journalist, so when a truly entertaining movie about an admirable journalist gets made, it deserves some attention. The following list celebrates movies about journalists --both real and fictional-- who live up to the highest ideals of their profession.
The results are in, and Denver Museum of Contemporary Art's Twelve and a Half Days of Xmas Live! has selected 12 performers who will rock the museum's modernist atrium throughout the holiday season. Each act earns a $50 honorarium as they compete for the winning prize of $500 and With acts ranging from the holiday inspired burlesque of Gigi D'Lovely to the self-explanatory Crazy Gorilla Drummer, the 12 days of Christmas promise to be filled with all sorts of appealing weirdness from the curated best of Denver's diverse arts scene. Westword spoke to MCA Director of Programming Sarah Kate Baie to hear about the finalists and the selection process.
This holiday season, the Denver Museum of Contemporary Art is celebrating by hosting 12 and a half days of artistic performances in their sleek atrium. What sets the 12 & 1/2 Days of Xmas Live! event series apart from MCA Denver's other programs is that the performers will chosen from an open call for entry and the applicants will be competing for a $500 prize. To learn more about the performances, Westword caught up with Sarah Kate Baie, MCA Denver's director of programming and chief of fictions, to discuss the contest rules, reaching out to the local creative community and Denver's puppeteering scene.