The Front Row Network

Join us as we go back 40 years to a movie that looked ahead 18 years, to a time that is now 24 years ago, as we look at the John Carpenter cult classic - Escape from NY.

The year is 1997, and the president of a tyrannical United States has had his plane hijacked and crashed into the maximum security prison formerly known as New York City. The security of the world depends on saving the president and ensuring the new world order stays intact. The government known for good decision making, decides to extort a former Special Forces veteran and world renown criminal Snake Plissken to save the president. Snake has 24 hours to accomplish this feat or die. Snake manages to avoid sewer dwelling scavengers and barbarian clad crooks on his journey through NY. Finally with the help of some old frenemies, he battles it out against a pimped-out version of Chef from South Park to save the President of the United States. Will Snake make it out alive? Does he trust his government to keep their word? Who's the baddest man around? The names Plissken…

Hosts: Ryan Lootens, Erin McCabe, & Jay Hoffman

Guest Hosts: J.D. Reynolds & Phillip Kennedy Johnson

Front Row Flashbacks Linktree: https://linktr.ee/Flashbacks

Interview with Phillip Kennedy Johnson - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/interview-with-phillip-kennedy-johnson/id1422459548?i=1000512277723

Phillip Kennedy Johnson:

Website: https://www.phillipkennedyjohnson.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/PhillipKJohnson

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/phillip_kennedy_johnson/

"Alas, poor Yorick." We were thrilled to be invited by FX to preview their upcoming series Y: The Last Man. The series will premier on FX on Hulu this Monday, September 13. Craig invites his friend, Aaron Hughes, who originally gave him the Y comic series, onto the show. They are also joined by Scott who has yet to read the comic series. The crew gives their first impressions of the show, without spoilers.

"A drama based on DC Comics' acclaimed series by Brian K. Vaughan and Pia Guerra, Y: The Last Man traverses a post-apocalyptic world in which a cataclysmic event decimates every mammal with a Y chromosome but for one cisgender man and his pet monkey. The series follows the survivors in this new world as they struggle with their efforts to restore what was lost and the opportunity to build something better."

FEATURING: Craig McFarland, Scott McFarland and Aaron Hughes

Don't forget to follow/reach us at: Website: www.nprillinois.org/programs/front-row-network Twitter: @frontrowreviewz Email: [email protected] Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thefrontrownetwork/ Instagram: frontrownetwork YouTube: https://bit.ly/2NyawO0

Please enjoy this episode of Sneak Peek and as always, we'll see you in the front row!

The MCU is back in theaters with Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings. Shang-Chi, the master of unarmed weaponry-based Kung Fu, is forced to confront his past after being drawn into the Ten Rings organization and it's mysterious and powerful leader The Mandarin. We break down everything from the fire stunts and fights to those bonkers post-credits scenes. LET'S SPOIL SOME COMIC BOOK FILMS.

FEATURING: Jeremy Goeckner, Scott McFarland & Brandon Davis

Don't forget to follow/reach us at: Website: www.nprillinois.org/programs/front-row-network Twitter: @frontrowreviewz Email: [email protected] Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thefrontrownetwork/ Instagram: frontrownetwork YouTube: https://bit.ly/2NyawO0

Please enjoy this episode of FULL DISCLOSURE and as always, we'll see you in the front row!

Welcome to the rock! We were very excited to be invited by Apple TV+ to get an advance stream of the Broadway hit musical turned movie, Come From Away. Craig, Brandon and Anna give a non-spoiler overview of the film, and also share their own personal reflections on the 20th anniversary of September 11, 2001. This story of human kindness and hope lands on Apple TV+ September 10.

"Come From Away is based on the true story of when the isolated community of Gander, Newfoundland played host to the world. What started as an average day in a small town turned in to an international sleep-over when 38 planes, carrying thousands of people from across the globe, were diverted to Gander's air strip on September 11, 2001. Undaunted by culture clashes and language barriers, the people of Gander cheered the stranded travelers with music, an open bar and the recognition that we're all part of a global family."

FEATURING: Craig McFarland, Anna McFarland and Brandon Davis

Don't forget to follow/reach us at: Website: www.nprillinois.org/programs/front-row-network Twitter: @frontrowreviewz Email: [email protected] Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thefrontrownetwork/ Instagram: frontrownetwork YouTube: https://bit.ly/2NyawO0

Please enjoy this episode of Sneak Peek and as always, we'll see you in the front row!

We are truly honored to welcome to Beyond the Mouse, Alan Menken. Alan's work has inspired millions. Having begun his career on Broadway, he and his writing partner Howard Ashman brought their talent to The Little Mermaid. That film is credited with saving Walt Disney Animation, and ushering a new era dubbed the Disney Renaissance.

Alan has gone onto work on such Disney classics as Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, Hunchback of Notre Dame, Tangled, Enchanted and so many more. He has earned one Emmy, 11 Grammys, eight Oscars and one Tony. This makes him one of only 16 people to have earned an EGOT. Alan became a Disney Legend in 2001.

FEATURING: Craig McFarland, Vanessa Ferguson, Brett Rutherford and Jeremy Goeckner

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Named one of the top 50 Disney Podcasts by Feedspot! blog.feedspot.com/disney_podcasts

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Please enjoy this episode of BEYOND THE MOUSE and as always, we'll see you in the front row!

Front Row Classics kicks off September with a very special interview. Brandon and Eric welcome Natasha Gregson Wagner to the Front Row. Natasha is the daughter of Natalie Wood and stepdaughter of Robert Wagner. She has written a beautiful memoir about life with and without her mother called, More than Love: An Intimate Portrait of My Mother, Natalie Wood. The interview covers many aspects of the book including: growing up in the spotlight, finding your own voice in life and coming to peace with your own grief. We also take time to celebrate the life and talents of a woman who's death has often overshadowed her amazing accomplishments. This interview will certainly leave you feeling like you've spent time with an old friend.

More than Love is available from Scribner Books, an imprint of Simon and Schuster.

Natasha Gregson Wagner has acted in such films as Another Day in Paradise, High Fidelity, Two Girls and a Guy, and David Lynch's Lost Highway, and in the television shows Ally McBeal, House MD, and Chicago Hope. In 2016, she coauthored a coffee table book titled Natalie Wood: Reflections of a Legendary Life. She is one of the producers of the HBO documentary of her mother's life: Natalie Wood: What Remains Behind. Wagner lives in Los Angeles with her family (Scribner Books).

From the minds of Steve Martin, Dan Fogelman and John Hoffman comes a comedic murder-mystery series for the ages. "Only Murders In The Building" follows three strangers (Steve Martin, Martin Short and Selena Gomez) who share an obsession with true crime and suddenly find themselves wrapped up in one. When a grisly death occurs inside their exclusive Upper West Side apartment building, the trio suspects murder and employs their precise knowledge of true crime to investigate the truth. As they record a podcast of their own to document the case, the three unravel the complex secrets of the building which stretch back years. Perhaps even more explosive are the lies they tell one another. Soon, the endangered trio comes to realize a killer might be living amongst them as they race to decipher the mounting clues before it's too late.

FEATURING: Jeremy Goeckner

Don't forget to follow/reach us at: Website: www.nprillinois.org/programs/front-row-network Twitter: @frontrowreviewz Email: [email protected] Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thefrontrownetwork/ Instagram: frontrownetwork YouTube: https://bit.ly/2NyawO0

Please enjoy this episode of FULL DISCLOSURE and as always, we'll see you in the front row!

"She's a genius, with a lot to learn."

We were invited to cover the upcoming Disney+ series, Doogie Kamealoha, M.D. which will arrive on Disney+ September 8. Craig was able to participate in a virtual junket where he interviews the creator of the show, Kortney Kane, as well as many cast members from the show. We hope you join along with us to watch this original series as it hits your screens this week! Interviews feature Peyton Elizabeth Lee, Jason Scott Lee, Jeffrey Bowyer-Chapman, Kathleen Rose Perkins, Mapuana Makia, Matthew Sato, Wes Tian and Emma Meisel.

FEATURING: Craig McFarland

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Named one of the top 50 Disney Podcasts by Feedspot! blog.feedspot.com/disney_podcasts

FIND US ON NPR ILLINOIS! https://www.nprillinois.org/programs/front-row-network

FIND US ON FACEBOOK – https://www.facebook.com/thefrontrownetwork/

FIND US ON TWITTER – https://twitter.com/FrontRowReviewz

FIND US ON INSTAGRAM – https://www.instagram.com/beyondthemousepod

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Please enjoy this episode of BEYOND THE MOUSE and as always, we'll see you in the front row!

Front Row Classics is about to take you on a journey through "Dark City" this week. We're thrilled to welcome back the "Czar of Noir" himself, Eddie Muller to discuss one of our favorite genres. Eddie has recently released a revised and expanded edition of his book, "Dark City: The Lost World of Film Noir". The book covers the various destinations and colorful characters one comes across when traveling through the world of Noir. Brandon and Eric are thrilled to discuss many of the Noir's famous & infamous people and places with one of the genre's foremost experts.

"Dark City: The Lost World of Film Noir" is available from Running Press wherever books are sold.

Eddie Muller is the host of Noir Alley on Turner Classic Movies (TCM). Every Saturday, Noir Alley visits classic noir films featuring some of the best set-ups and shake downs involving iconic antiheroes and the unforgettable, fatalistic dames they fall for. Muller is a contemporary renaissance man. He writes novels, biographies, movie histories, plays, short stories, and films. He also programs film festivals, curates museums, designs books, and provides commentary for television, radio, and DVDs. He produces and hosts NOIR CITY: The San Francisco Film Noir Festival, the largest noir retrospective in the world, which now has satellite festivals in seven other U.S. cities. As founder and president of the Film Noir Foundation, he has been instrumental in preserving America's noir heritage, which to date has included restoring and preserving more than 30 nearly lost classics in partnership with the UCLA Film & Television Archive, such as Too Late for Tears (1949), Woman on the Run (1950), and The Bitter Stems (1956). He has also presented and lectured on film noir at the Cinémathèque Française in Paris, the Museum of Modern Art in New York, and the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C. His debut novel, The Distance, earned the Best First Novel "Shamus" Award from the Private Eye Writers of America. Muller is a two-time Edgar Award nominee from the Mystery Writers of America and has earned three Anthony Award nominations. Tab Hunter Confidential: The Making of a Movie Star, which he co-wrote with the actor, was a national bestseller in 2007. He has twice been named a San Francisco Literary Laureate.

We're Eastbound & Down…AGAIN!! Guilty Pleasures is teaming up with Front Row Classics to talk about the Smokey & The Bandit trilogy. On this episode, we get into 1980's Smokey & The Bandit Part II! Burt Reynolds, Sally Field & Jackie Gleason are back, this time with Dom DeLuise and an elephant. Cynical cash-grab or hidden gem? Larry Smith (Convince Me) joins Lou & Brandon to render our verdict!

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Find us on Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/Guilty-Pleasures-A-Front-Row-Network-Podcast-103833148379753