Gotham Variety

Twenty-two U.S. Senators speak out on Vietnam; in the Deep South, schools in four states are integrated; a serial strangler terrorizes Boston; Robert Kennedy speaks to American Indians; Frank Sinatra is linked to a mobster; the Yankees clinch their 28th pennant. Newscaster: Joe Rubenstein.  Support this project on Patreon!

In this episode, we move on to our seventh-ranked film of 1963, "The Great Escape," which marked career turning points for Steve McQueen, James Garner, and James Coburn.  In this episode: - Background on director John Sturges [2:07] - Difficulties with Steve McQueen [5:58] - How Sturges helped viewers remember so many characters [8:31] - Where the filmmakers deviated from the facts of the 1944 escape [11:44] - Placing the film in the context of 1963 [15:15] - Scenes deleted from the final cut [18:38] - Facts on casting, storytelling structure, musical soundtrack [22:30] For an additional podcast on McQueen's role in this film and in two others, click here. Support this project on Patreon.

President Kennedy speaks out on Vietnam; Governor Wallace blocks integration of Alabama public schools; two young women are brutally murdered in New York City; the Beatles take Britain by storm; Whitey Ford joins an elite group; a blast from the past at the Polo Grounds. Newscaster: Joe Rubenstein. Support us on Patreon!

The South Vietnamese Buddhist crisis worsens dramatically; a Birmingham civil rights leader's home is bombed; security measures are announced for next week's March on Washington; the Castro regime is charged with kidnapping; General Eisenhower signals support for the test ban treaty; a massive brawl breaks out at Yankee Stadium. Newscaster: Joe Rubenstein.  Please subscribe to this podcast, and thanks for your support! 

In this episode, we move on to our 8th-ranked film of 1963, "Crisis: Behind a Presidential Commitment," a groundbreaking example of "direct cinema" that provides fly-on-the-wall coverage of the the 1963 integration crisis at the University of Alabama. In addition, we discuss the other Kennedy films of Robert Drew and offer recommendations of some other direct cinema films of the '60s, including "Mills of the Gods: Viet Nam" (1965).  Link to documentary: "Mills of the Gods: Viet Nam" 

President Kennedy speaks at the Naval Academy; Barry Goldwater hits the radical left; possible coup in South Vietnam; Marlon Brando is heckled; Cassius Clay cuts a record; Sonny Liston has a spiritual guide. Newscaster: Joe Rubenstein.  Please subscribe to this podcast, and thanks for your support! 

D.C. police get ready for a massive civil rights march; South Vietnamese Government forces crack down on Buddhists; Richard Nixon defends Barry Goldwater; Marlon Brando is hospitalized; Floyd Patterson needs a miracle. Newscaster: Joe Rubenstein.  Please subscribe to this podcast, and thanks for your support! 

In this episode, we move on to our ninth-ranked film of 1963, "This Sporting Life," directed by Lindsay Anderson and starring Richard Harris and Rachel Roberts. Please subscribe to this podcast, and thanks for your support! 

West Berliners cheer President Kennedy; N.J. Governor Hughes scores a major coup; the Mississippi D.A. seeks the death penalty for Byron De La Beckwith; the Viet Cong set booby traps; Malcolm X speaks out; Sonny Liston bites back at Cassius Clay. Newscaster: Joe Rubenstein.  Please subscribe to this podcast, and thanks for your support! 

The University of Alabama is integrated; Medgar Evers is assassinated; a Vietnamese Buddhist monk sets himself on fire; President Kennedy talks peace; New Yorkers talk “Cleopatra”; the Yankees and Dodgers are on the rise. Newscaster: Joe Rubenstein.  Please subscribe to this podcast, and thanks for your support! 

In this episode, we commence our survey of the top 10 films of 1963 with a deep dive into our 10th-ranked film, "From Russia with Love." Please subscribe to this podcast, and thanks for your support! 

In Washington, cheers for astronaut Gordon Cooper; in Vietnam, a major Communist attack; in New York, a premature birthday party for President Kennedy; Martin Luther King speaks out; Koufax gets hit; Mickey Mantle launches a baseball into outer space. Newscaster: Joe Rubenstein.  Please subscribe to this podcast, and thanks for your support! 

In Birmingham, negotiators call a truce in the racial crisis; in Vietnam, a U.S. Army lieutenant is killed; in Boston, another young woman is strangled; Harry Truman takes a call from the President; the Dodger offense finally explodes. Newscaster: Joe Rubenstein.  Please subscribe to this podcast, and thanks for your support! 

President Kennedy hits back at Richard Nixon on Cuba; Martin Luther King is released from Birmingham city jail; the Communist Viet Cong score another victory; a white integrationist is murdered; the clock is ticking on the New York World’s Fair; the Boston Celtics reign supreme. Newscaster: Joe Rubenstein.  Please subscribe to this podcast, and thanks for your support! 

In this episode, we complete our survey of the top 10 films of 1962 with an examination of our No. 1 film, "To Kill a Mockingbird." Click here to listen to 1962 Top 10 Films pt. 1 Click here to listen to 1962 Top 10 Films pt. 2 Click here to listen to 1962 Top 10 Films pt. 3 Click here to listen to 1962 Top 10 Films pt. 4 Please subscribe to this podcast, and thanks for your support! 

The U.S. government cracks down on Cuban exile leaders in Miami; Mississippi police break up a voter registration march; President Kennedy hits back at former President Eisenhower; the New York newspaper strike is over; Steve McQueen speaks out; Duke Snider is coming home. Newscaster: Joe Rubenstein.  Please subscribe to this podcast, and thanks for your support! 

President Kennedy reviews his trip to Costa Rica; Malcolm X speaks out; nuclear test ban treaty talks hit a roadblock; boxer Davey Moore is hospitalized; Alcatraz is closed; the Big O puts on a show in the NBA playoffs. Newscaster: Joe Rubenstein.  Please subscribe to this podcast, and thanks for your support! 

In this episode, we continue our look at the top 10 films of 1962 with an examination of our second-ranked film, "Days of Wine and Roses," starring Jack Lemmon and Lee Remick and directed by Blake Edwards. Click here to listen to 1962 Top 10 Films pt. 1 Click here to listen to 1962 Top 10 Films pt. 2 Click here to listen to 1962 Top 10 Films pt. 3 Please subscribe to this podcast, and thanks for your support! 

President Kennedy responds to Republican charges; Richard Nixon appears on the Jack Paar Show; General Harkins calls 1963 a year of decision in Vietnam; Mickey Mantle has a new contract; Cassius Clay has a new poem; Patsy Cline is dead. Newscaster: Joe Rubenstein.  Please subscribe to this podcast, and thanks for your support! 

The New York newspaper strike continues with no end in sight; in South Vietnam, new rules of engagement are announced; a Hollywood T.V. writer brutally murders his wife; Lenny Bruce is arrested; an NBA referee is attacked; Frank Robinson has a new contract. Newscaster: Joe Rubenstein.  Please subscribe to this podcast, and thanks for your support!