by Quendrith Johnson, Los Angeles Correspondent. If you had a chance to see actor Kelsey Scott at work in the movie 12 YEARS A SLAVE, where she played a hard-pressed woman named Anne Northup, it may occur to you that she has grit, a kind of inner stillness in the face of injustice. But that would only be one aspect of Scott, who has generously offered up her experience in Hollywood as a window into the New Hollywood era.     CAST AND CREW OF GIANTS & KELSEY SCOTT (EM...

by Quendrith Johnson, Los Angeles Correspondent Everyone from Iran to Serbia seems to be bent on letting me know there’s a Gore Vidal biopic in the works starring Kevin Spacey. And while Gore would definitely think Kevin Spacey is hot, one wonders what he would make of another *damnable biopic,* especially about himself now dead since July 31, 2012. He died on my birthday, in keeping with his sour and sweet tone since we met at an event in Beverly Hills.   We had collaborated on a...

By Quendrith Johnson, Los Angeles Correspondent   What do John Updike and Fran Lebowitz have in common? They both discovered James Thurber, American humorist, at age 10. You will find this out by watching James Thurber: The Life and Hard Times, directed by Adam Van Doren, released June 17 on iTunes (also for sale as DVDs) from First Run Features. This visual non-guilty pleasure is teamed with co-incident releases, Top Hat & Tales: Harold Ross and the Making of The New Yorker (also ...

  by Quendrith Johnson, Los Angeles Correspondent   Gore Vidal's worst nightmare is the circumstances of this film review: he is dead, and "the lady reporter" gets to review a documentary said to be his "Last Word and Testimony."      If you haven't cracked a smile at that opener, you are lucky you never met the Old Lion. Gore had no sense of humor when it came to his legacy. Gore Vidal: The United States of Amnesia, directed by Nichol...

by Quendrith Johnson, Los Angeles Correspondent On Pearl Harbor Day, literary lion Gore Vidal, 85, allowed a rare exclusive interview at the offices of Dr. Hessam Nowzari, DDS, PhD, in Beverly Hills, Calif.  Vidal made himself available to discuss Dr. Nowzari's documentary THE ENEMY OF THE SMILE that "addresses the serious global dental health issue of early-in-life oral infection" (the bacterium known as AA, according to Nowzari), as well as his recent missive to US Presi...

Award Winners, Honored Guests, Turn Up for BH Film, TV & New Media Festival by Quendrith Johnson, Los Angeles Correspondent There should be a sign on elder statesman Gore Vidal that reads: "Beware! Deadly When Served A Martini." Unfortunately, at the Beverly Hills Film, TV & New Media Festival last night at the Aqua Lounge in Beverly Hills, guests were more likely to be familiar with the other Vidal (Vidal Sassoon).  No matter, the irascible Mr. Vidal, who has h...

by Quendrith Johnson, Los Angeles Correspondent  Somewhere in Connecticut, Bill Haber, one of the founders of CAA, got a flash that Hollywood history should ride again. To that end, he contacted four-time Emmy winning documentary veteran Jon Wilkman and the rest is "A History of Hollywood." Set to air Nov. 1 through mid-December, "MOGULS & MOVIE STARS: A HISTORY OF HOLLYWOOD" will unspool every Monday night at 8 PM (ET) on Turner Classic Movies (TCM). Academy...