Thursday, April 15, 2010

The Tobolowsky Files


Five years ago, I attended a screening of a film essay called Stephen Tobolowsky's Birthday Party.  The 87-minute documentary centers on the infamous titular character actor (Groundhog Day, Mississippi Burning) as he tells stories. Whether he's alone or entertaining a group of friends over dinner, Tobolowsky recounts events from his life with the skill of a professional raconteur.  I was hooked right away.  I can't speak for anyone else in the theater but this was one of the more refreshing films of this particular festival season.  Anyway, the DVD eventually came out and I recommended to everyone who'd listen.  But ever since then, I've been wanting more.  More stories.  More Tobolowsky.  More.

Ten minutes after my last post was published, I stumbled upon my wish come true.  /Film.com is just wrapping up their first season of "The Tobolowski Files," a weekly series of 100% true, genuine stories told by the man himself.  They're great.  I've listened to three episodes so far and already, I've heard amazing stories about kidnapping, hippo escapes, and Dan Aykroyd's hat.  I found a goldmine.  Enjoy.

2 comments:

xTJMac510x said...

This is such great news. Tobolowsky is so underrated. This could be brilliant. Thanks for the notice

simoncolumb said...

I heard them mention this on the /Film podcast but had no diea what they were on about ... well, now I do...

Simon
www.screeninsight.com