That Evening Sun

By Chad Campbell, senior producer

That Evening Sun is a Southern Gothic tale based on a short story by writer William Gay.  It was directed by first-timer Scott Teems and stars octogenarian Hal Holbrook as Abner Meacham who leaves his nursing home but finds some undesirable tenants in his old farm house. Holbrook and Teems join Bob to discuss their movie and to discuss the state of the film business.

Click here to see the trailer and to find out when That Evening Sun might be playing near you.

Dan Gediman, Barry Bingham and This I Believe

Each week Bob is joined by Dan Gediman, the Executive Director of This I Believe, Inc. to discuss one of the original essays from the 1950s radio series. This week’s featured essay is by Barry Bingham, Sr. and was recorded on stage in front of an audience at Bellarmine University in Louisville, Kentucky. Bingham was the long-time owner, editor and publisher of The Courier-Journal and The Louisville Times. His family’s leadership of the newspapers as well as radio and TV properties in Kentucky lead to numerous journalism awards including multiple Pulitzer Prizes. Bingham believed that being a mature adult meant accepting a full share of responsibility in life, and finding strength in God’s help and guidance. Click here to read a transcript and to hear the audio of Barry Bingham’s 1950s “This I Believe” essay. 

Art. Ambition. Poppyseed Cake.

By Steve Lickteig, executive producer

Most people think Billy Pappas is crazy.  And why wouldn’t they?  Who other than a crazy person would spend more than 8 years of his life drawing a single portrait? And of a celebrity, no less?  But that’s what Pappas did. Every day, seven Billy Pappashours a day, Pappas stood in front of an easel, arms steadied by slings and drew, with a razor sharp pencil, what he believes to be the most detailed, precise and life-like drawing ever created. His 14” × 17” work is based on Richard Avedon’s 1957 photograph of Marilyn Monroe. It’s not an iconic photo, but it might show Marilyn Monroe at her most human and her most accessible. It was the perfect starting point for Billy Pappas who believed he could improve upon that photo and make Marilyn Monroe look more life-like than even a photograph, using only his pencil, his talent and his determination.  To see the portrait Billy Pappas drew go here.

This weekend, Bob talks with Julie Checkoway who has made a documentary film about Pappas, his creation and his two year quest AFTER he finished drawing Marilyn Monroe to gain an audience with the world famous artist David Hockney. The film is appropriately called Waiting for Hockney and it shows how Pappas tracked down the one man he believed  could pass proper judgement on his work.  Also, Pappas hoped that David Hockney would give him access to the exclusive—some might say elitist—art world, something working class Billy Pappas knew nothing about. In the film, you also meet Pappas’s strange and lovable entourage and his protective, poppyseed cake-making mother, Cookie.

Waiting for Hockney premieres Monday night at 9 pm eastern on the Sundance Channel. And in the interest of full disclosure, I served as the assistant director on the film; I’m grateful to Bob for looking past the minor conflict of interest and interviewing Julie Checkoway and letting you know about the quest of Billy Pappas.

To learn more about the film, see Cookie’s poppyseed cake recipe and watch the trailer, you can go to the Waiting for Hockney web site.

This Weekend

Bob Edwards Weekend Highlights – November 21-22, 2009

HOUR ONE

Hal Holbrook is best-known for his iconic portrayal of Mark Twain. His first solo act as Twain was in 1954. More than fifty years later, Holbrook is still at it and nobody can bring Mark Twain alive like he can. Now Holbrook stars in That Evening Sun, a Southern Gothic film about a man refusing to face the waning years of his life and his worth. Scott Teems, the director of the film, joins Holbrook to talk about their independent film.

In this week’s installment of our ongoing series This I Believe, Bob talks with executive director Dan Gediman about the essay from Barry Bingham, Sr., He was the long-time owner, editor and publisher of The Courier-Journal and The Louisville Times. His family’s leadership of the newspapers as well as radio and TV properties in Kentucky led to numerous journalism awards including multiple Pulitzer Prizes.  Then, Bob is joined by Molly Bingham, one of Barry’s grandchildren. She recalls some favorite memories of her grandfather and describes how his example of journalistic courage prompted her to become a photojournalist and documentarian.

HOUR TWO

President John F. Kennedy was assassinated on November 22, 1963 and one of the most recent and most detailed books about JFK just came out. It’s titled Jack Kennedy: The Illustrated Life of a President. The book features intimate photos, personal memorabilia and history-making documents. It also includes a CD of some of JFK’s most famous speeches. Presidential scholar and author Chuck Wills joins Bob to discuss his research for the book.

In her new book, The Year of the Flood, Margaret Atwood has created a dystopian world that can be read as a commentary on religion, politics, science and the environment.  Atwood has authored 15 books of poetry but she’s best-known for her novels including The Handmaid’s Tale, The Blind Assassin, and Oryx and Crake.

In the early 1990’s, Maryland artist Billy Pappas set out to draw the impossible. For the next eight years, Pappas worked to capture what is normally unseen in portraiture, each pore, each individual strand of hair. His obsession was matched only by his obsessive pursuit to show his opus to the acclaimed modern artist David Hockney. Julie Checkoway is the director of a film about Pappas. She talks with Bob about Waiting for Hockney which debuts on the Sundance Channel on Monday.

Robert Bergman Photos

Robert Bergman’s exhibit at the National Gallery of Art (Robert Bergman: Portraits, 1986-1995) runs through January 10, 2010. His show at P.S.1 in Queens, New York runs through January 4, 2010 and New York City’s Yossi Milo Gallery is exhibiting a collection of Bergman’s work through January 9, 2010.