RetroVision Media Reviews And Recommends Bertolt Brecht's The Caucasian Chalk Circle

The revival of Bertolt Brecht’s The Caucasian Chalk Circle by the Hipgnosis Theatre Company opened to a pleased audience Saturday past at the Theatres at 45 Bleecker Street. With a tremendous infusion of spirit and passion via an inspired cast, producer, singer and yes actor par excellence Demetrios Bonaros delivered the theatrical goods big time for this classically contemporary work.

The famed prolific German writer would have been proud of this theater company’s artistic use of space to convincingly convey his tale of a young peasant girl’s trials and tribulations of caring for the life of a child that is not her own. Under war torn circumstances Brecht’s Grusha, a member of the permanently poor struggles to ward off rebels seeking to kill a king’s heir that has been haphazardly left in her care by those more worried about their own asses.

Forced to flee into miserably dangerous mountainous terrain and marry a man on his deathbed for the sake of her reputation, our heroine has to forgo true love to protect this unfortunate child of royalty. Left dangling by the hands of fate, a simply peasant girl's story of how a strong will, determination and true grit, gives rise to the good within the good among us when we are called upon to do the right thing.

The subplots carry the usual heavy dose of greed, hierarchy, elitism and snobbery that is overcome by that mysterious concept of karma that plays its self out in every conflict that befalls our lives. For aficionados of Brecht’s works, you will want to see the Hipgnosis Theatre Company’s efforts to honor the writer’s contributions to great literature. Click here for the Podcast Review

Here is what you need to know:

The Place
Theatres at 45 Bleecker Street.
East Village Between Lafayette and Mott Streets

Opened
April 26, 2008
Closing
May 11, 2008
The Shows
Wed - Sun at 7pm; also Apr 29 at 7pm; May 10 at 2pm
The Price
$19
212-239-6200
Look for Discounts here

The Cast
Demetrios Bonaros, John Castro, Hal Fickett, Pharah Jean-Philippe, John Kevin Jones, Colleen Kennedy, Matthew Kinney, Elizabeth Mirarchi, Dennis J. Paton, Ayanna Siverls, Douglas Scott Streater, Rachel Tiemann, Richard Ugino
The Author
Bertolt Brecht
The Music
Demetrios Bonaros
The Director
Margot Newkirk
The Producing Company
Hipgnosis Theatre Company

RetroVision Theater Presents The Devil’s Party

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In this super grade B flick, a gang of kids hanging in the hood, grows up, moves on with their lives and eventually gathers for a reunion. Unfortunately, murder spoils the get together for all but the viewer of the movie. Click here to download. Dont forget to share this one. The Movie Store

RetroVision Theater Presents The Original Sweeney Todd

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Sorry, no Johnny Depp in this original, but never fear, we got the O.G. razor wielding mad crazy barber of Fleet Street. As the story goes, a notorious barber murdered his customers for their money with the aid of his trusty slice and dicer. Click here to download The Movie Store

RetroVision Theater Presents Teenage Zombies

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A female scientist goes bonkers with nerve gas that turns local teens into zombie slaves. This could been the precursor to ecstasy. This may be a crazy, goofy flick, but its still funny. Click here to download The Movie Store

RetroVision Theater Presents Captain Scarface

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A guy trying desperately to make a hasty exit from South America, books passage on s rust bucket with a captain harboring sinister plans. Click here to download The Movie Store and dont forget to share the movie with a friend. Okay, if you think this one sucks send it to someone you only like a little bit.

Cheney in 1994 on Iraq

While the mainstream media continue to misdirect the nation's attention to the Clinton Obama primary contest for ratings, we thought we'd refocus on the primary issues that put the country in it's current crises.

RetroVision Media Covers The Iraq War and The Recession Connection

A group of protesters gathered in downtown Poughkeepsie NY to voice their concerns over the vast amounts of money the country is spending on the war in Iraq, while the nation suffers. Small groups all over the country took time out of their schedules to speak out over and get out the word on the latest raw numbers that is sinking the economy into a recession. (Some say depression)

The political organization, MoveOn.Org complied data from a myriad of independent sources to show a distinct relationship between the cost of the Iraq war and the crumbling infrastructure, lack of affordable healthcare and the nation’s ability to provide adequate education for the nation’s youth or training for the American workers.

Some of the startling figures that jumped out at us from the Iraq and Recession Report gave us reason to pause and report some to the disturbing data to you.

According to data from the Congressional Research Service, the total cost to US taxpayers breaks down as follows:

Per Second: $3,919.00
Per Minute: $235,160.00
Per Hour: $14.1 Million
Per Day: $338.6 Million
Per Week: $2.4 Billion
Per Month: $10.3 Billion
Per Year: $123.6 Billion

If this don’t give you something to think about, you better check to make sure you are still thinking at all. Click here for the Video-cast

RetroVision Theater Presents Scared to Death

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A young woman tells a chilling story of how she died from her near final resting-place of the city morgue. Replete with hypnotists, midgets and murder, this story is one of the best dark movies we have come across in a while. Click here to download. (BTW) Dont forget to share. The Movie Store

RetroVision Theater Presents Inner Sanctum

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A man on the run from the cops after jacking some S.O.B. big-time, takes refuge in a boarding house in a small town. You know how things go, love blooms as the law closes in. Click here to download The Movie Store

Issues Under Fire: Should Obama Deliver Clinton The Final Smackdown or Keep Fighting Off The Ropes

Many are saying that Barack Obama needs to get tough with the Hillary Clinton campaign if he is going to stave off the theft of his win of the Democratic nomination. Since we agree that a picture is worth a thousand words, we’ll let this image speak for the half of the Democratic Party that wants this primary process to end so the real fight can begin.

(BTW) It’s postings like this is why you will never see any comments at our blogs. We seem to bring out the worst in people and don’t have the time or the resources to monitor and moderate the madness. For those that agree with us, continue to enjoy and for those that don’t continue to send your creative emails. C-YA Monday

Programming note: As previously mentioned, our daily podcast of Issues Under Fire is on a short break while we transition to a full video format starting mid May. However, Monday we will have a special video podcast report on a MoveOn.Org we covered in Poughkeepsie NY hosted by Jay Weiss, political and community activist. (Iraq & Recession Report)

RetroVision Theater Presents the Werewolf of Washington

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Well you can just guess from the title, what this 1973 classic is about. Based on the condition of the current administration we thought Washington was plagued by bloodthirsty blood sucking vampires, but we suppose a werewolf preying on the citizenry is just as appropriate Click here to download. The Movie Store

RetroVision Theater Presents the Front Page

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This is the original movie entitled the Front Page, not the one most people get confused with My Girl Friday with Cary Grant. This is the same story about a guy escaping from death row and hiding among a group of hard-nosed reporters desperate for the scoop. A lot of love and comedy tossed in to keep things interesting Click here to download The Movie Store

New York Film Festivals Recommended

Even though we are in the field for the next few days, we got some really cool

stuff to recommend tonight and throughout the weekend Click images for details

RetroVision Theater Presents Karate Kids USA

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Charles Lane and Ann Southern star in the story of a wise grandfather guiding his two "Karate Kids" through a summer vacation. What do you know, they are going to have a fight with some really bad guys to save some chumps. Thats what summers are for. Click here to download. The Movie Store

RetroVision Theater Presents The Brave Lion

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We got Wei Tzi Yung starring in the WW2 era story about tow Japanese prisoners sent to manage a Chinese labor camp. When the workers are pushed too hard and far they begin to revolt. Hey, thats when the butt kicking starts. Click here to download The Movie Store

How Theater Failed America: Reviewed and Recommended

Mike Daisey, monologist extraordinaire delivered a passionate solo performance of his insightful work, How Theater Failed America at Joe’s Pub in The Public Theater. With passion for his chosen vocation and with just as much compassion for those struggling to survive a diminishing desire for regional theater as an art form, Mr. Daisey, through a series of anecdotal tales and personal explorations, delved into the deep seeded reasons theater is losing it’s audiences.

With dwindling interest, as a result of a corporate bottom-line mentality infiltrating the art of theater, according to Daisey, all parties concerned are suffering. From theatergoers, to actors, directors, and the unsung techies that make things go smoothly behind the scenes, all are being short changed by a system that is more interested in perpetuating it self as an institution, than providing adequate support for the very art form it’s supposedly existing to support.

Peeling himself like an onion, one thin skin at a time, Daisey uses his personal life’s dreams and nightmares, triumphs and tragedies to provide testimony for his dim view of the future of theater in America. As the audience, grays and the youth of America strays to other immediate forms of intellectual engagement, Daisey laments the slow but steady death of theater in America, as we once knew it to be.

How Theater Failed America is a brilliant piece of work told with humor, a smattering of drama and smartly interlaced with a sharp dose of realism. This is a story all aspiring actors and others planning for or dreaming of a career in the the arts should see, as Mr. Daisey’s efforts will pull the curtain back for all to witness the beautiful and brutal truths of American theater. Click here for the podcast

Here is what you need to know:

The Place

Joe's Pub @
The Public Theater
Opened
April 14, 2008
Closing
May 11, 2008
The Shows
Mon at 7pm
The Price

$20.00
212-967-7555

Written & Performed By
Mike Daisey
Directed By
Jean-Michele Gregory

(BTW) Reservations are not an option, they are a must!

RetroVision Theater Presents Bruce Lee: The Invincible

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Bruce Li uses his martial arts skills to stop Cheung, the kung fu killer. Only those familiar with the fighting style of Bruce Lee can stop Cheung, and Li is just the man for the job. Click here to download. The Movie Store

RetroVision Theater Presents Image of Bruce Lee

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In another rip-off of the greatest martial arts practitioner of all time Bruce Li stars as a secret agent in Hong Kong takes on an international crime ring to stop a million dollar jewel heist. Rated R. Click here to download. The Movie Store

RetroVision Media's Issues Under Fire: Off the Air Until May 1st, All Other Programming Continues On Regular Schedule

We are off the air for the next few days in order to ramp up for our transition to full video programming of Issues Under Fire as well as RetroVision Media's Black Box Theater Wednesday. Full reviews of local theater, comedy, and short film festivals will continue as per usual along with our daily video casting of classic movies. Continue to visit this blog and or your podcast catchers/directories for that programming and more.

We are leaving political scene during this time as the Democratic primary race is essentially over. We see the Sen. Barack Obama has won the battle and the Clinton peeps are simply making sure their donors and supporters get their due efforts from the campaign. When we return on May 1st, we hope to have the first full video cast of Issues Under Fire ready to compete for the eyes and ears of those tired of the lies and manipulating of the truth by the mainstream media. Well that's what we hope! In the meantime, enjoy the programming and share the files.

RetroVision Theater Presents The Four Shaolin Challengers

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Bruce Leung stars in the familiar control of the neighborhood story line, where a group of students of the kick ass arts, ban together to rid the community of Triad thugs Click here to download The Movie Store

RetroVision Theater Presents City Ninja

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Michael Chan stars in this karate chopping butt thumper. We are going with martial arts all week with some of the best of the seventies had to offer. Click here to download.The Movie Store

RetroVision Media Covers Flunky Media Being Used By Pentagon

The NY Times leveled some very serious charges against the Defense Dept. as well as the so-called mainstream broadcast media this weekend with their story of the administration’s use of money hungry military flunkies to pump their pro-war stories to the public via the talking head shows and cable news outlets. In an eye opening account of how certain military analyst were picked to give their opinions of how things were going in Iraq and what strategies should be employed going forward, the Times reported these so-called unbiased experts were nothing but message boys for the defense department.

With little info given the viewing public of these so-called respected retired Generals etc. private business connections to the to the Pentagon, the viewers were fed a pack of bull by a group of flunkies ripe with conflict of interest. The mainstream media, so hyped on getting ratings failed miserably in properly vetting their analyst to determine if these people were giving their honest opinions or just parroting the White House talking points for a buck, future access and most importantly future contract for their consulting firms.

After the appalling performance of ABC’s Charlie Gibson and George Stephanopoulos moderating the Obama/Clinton debate Thursday last, it is a wonder that the mainstream media can still lay claim to being mainstream. The broadcast media ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, FOX News has played every stupid game for ears and eyeballs, while at the same time leaving the viewing public to fend for themselves for valid information.

With this latest revelation, it seems there has been an ugly pattern of incompetence or worst yet a purposeful conspiracy to keep the public asking all the wrong questions so the powers that be don’t have to worry about the answers they give. The NY Times has had it’s share if issues to address as of late, but they did a heck of a job of reporting on this story

Click here to download the podcast.

RetroVision Theater Presents Sister Street Fighter

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Sonny Chiba makes another kick ass appearance at RetroVision Theater in this non-stop action tale of martial arts expert Tina Long tracking down her missing undercover cop brother and finding herself having to take down a big-time drug lord in the process. Rated R Click here to download Click here for more recent titles to purchase. And as usual, pass this file on to a friend

RetroVision Theater Presents Death Machines

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Karate fighter Ron Marchini stars in this crazy bitch-slapping festival, featuring doped up ass kicking specialist being forced to do the really bad bidding of some creeps. Of course revenge is in the mix as the lone survivor of a martial arts school has payback on his agenda. Click here to download. The Movie Store

RetroVision Theater Presents The Phantom Broadcast

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The Phantom Broadcast, staring Ralph Forbes. This 1933 B&W crime thriller runs 68 min. and is not rated. But never fear, in 1933, there was so much censorship, anything considered hot would be light stuff by todays standards. In this classic, a popular radio crooner is really lip syncing to an ugly hunchback. When the crooner is found dead, his girlfriend is the number one suspect. Guess who is going to take the blame to keep her from going to the poky? You got it; the hunchback. Go figure! Enjoy! Click here to download

RetroVision Theater Presents Spirits of Bruce Lee

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We got another great karate flick today featuring Michael Chan as a martial arts expert running a jade importing business with his brother Chang Fan. When Chang Fan suddenly disappears on a buying trip, its not long before we realize a gang of local thugs has killed his brother. Well you can guess the rest. Let the ass kicking revenge begin. By the way, the real Bruce Lee is not in this film, the producers are just using his name to pump up movie sales. Click here to download

Jack Benny Revisited at RetroVision Media

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We apologize for the missing files yesterday, as Lee was out of the studio on assignment for the Popes visit to the Big Apple. Here is the episode you folks missed Click here to download. By the way, should this every happen again check this link RetroVision Theater, as many times duplicate files are uploaded and converted to flash for faster downloading and better quality. Thanks for you patience and Lee will return Monday.

RetroVision Theater Present Jack Benny, The Missing Episode

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The golden age of television featured the comic genius of Jack Benny and a cavalcade of stars that kept CBS the ratings leader for years. Enjoy the program and as always, pass the file on to a friend. Click here to download.

The Movie Store

RetroVision Media Presents Jack Benny and Ninja Champion

RetroVision Theater Presents Ninja Champion
Bruce Baron stars in this kick-ass karate flick of a woman being the brains behind a successful diamond smuggling business, but her real goal is to deliver some serious payback to a bunch of creeps that jacked her years ago. If that ain’t enough of a plot, she is mistaken as part of the very gang she is after by a group of ninjas looking for their own revenge.

Click here to download The Movie Store

RetroVision Theater Presents The Jack Benny Show
We got more retro laughs with one of the funniest comics that ever graced the television screen during the golden age. Click here to download The Movie Store

RetroVision Media Presents Another Episode of Jack Benny
Since Lee decided to play hooky on this beautiful northeastern spring day, we got another episode of Jack Benny to keep the laughs going until he decides to get back in the studio. Well, not really, he is on assignment in preparation for the Pope's visit to New York Click here to download

RetroVision Media Reviews and Recommends Street Kings and The Ruins

Okay, we know it’s Black Box theater Wednesday and we should have some local, affordable theater to recommend as per usual, but quit frankly, we did not see anything this week that would rate your attention. We did however get to some good stuff on the silver screen.

The Ruins and Street Kings are our recommendations for an evening of kick ass action and scary spine chilling suspense.

In Street Kings, Forest Whitaker as captain Jack Wander goes head to head with Keanu Reeves as detective Tom Ludlow, the kick ass detective being used by the captain to do the dirty work while he and the rest of his elite unit is raking in big dough from their own street drug sales. Whitaker is able to operate with immunity since he has the goods on all power figures in the Los Angeles political scene as well as the LAPD. This is a cool cop against cop, police corruption, internal affairs on the hunt for all the bad guys flick. This one is worth an afternoon in the theater just vegging to the action.

Next up is The Ruins with Jonathan Tucker, Laura Ramsey, Jena Malone, Shawn Ashmore, Joe Anderson and Dimitri Baveas. This is a good scary flick with a unique plot line about four college students on vacation in Mexico taking a side trip they would be better off skipping. After meeting a German guy heading to some remote Mayan ruins, they tag along only to find themselves trapped atop a pyramid/ temple type structure that is engulfed by flesh seeking vegetation. If that ain’t enough, the local villagers fearing the co-eds might bring the cursed foliage to their village causing them harm, the kids are forced at gunpoint to face their horrible fates. This is better than your average teen chiller thriller. Click here for the Podcast review.


For our locals in the tri-state area, we are recommending the P.I.T. People’s Improvisational Theater this Saturday at 8:OO PM. Click here for more information on some of the best affordable comedy in New York. A Really cool show called: The Dumb Waiter

This is from their press materials. Blood & Stone Theatre Co. and The Peoples Improv Theater present THE DUMB WAITER by Harold Pinter for a limited engagement!

Two seasoned assassins (Martin Carey and Rich Orlow) await their call to action in a windowless basement. Their partnership strains as their familiar routine is suddenly challenged by hidden forces. As the intrusions intensify, the hitmen grapple with these distractions, becoming increasingly disoriented while the task at hand ominously approaches.

Street Kings Trailer

This is one kick ass cop flick with a kick ass cast. Even though this is Black Box Theater Wednesday at RetroVision Media, we are recommending the silver screen for you weekend entertainment. We got the Cool Guy's full podcast review of this movie and The Ruins at the blog...Yo this is hot pass it on!

THE RUINS Movie Trailer

It's Black Box Theater Wednesday at RetroVision Media, but we are recommending you check out the silver screen this weekend as The Ruins and Street Kings get our vote for something cool to do! Check out The Cool Guy's Podcast Review

RetroVision Theater Presents Kentucky Rifle

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Chill Wills stars in this thriller western about that tamed the Wild West. While protecting a wagonload of Kentucky rifles through dangerous territory, he and his crew have to fight to keep the guns or lose their lives fighting for them. Click here to download The Movie Store

RetroVision Theater Presents Daniel Boone Trail Blazer

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Daniel Boone leads a group of settlers into untamed territory to establish Boonesborough in the heart of Shawnee land. With a scheming Frenchman trying to let the local tribes that the settlers were really out to steal their land. Here is where the sh*t hits the fan. We think Frenchman was right in retrospect! Click here to download The Movie Store

Issue under Fire: Obama and the Second Amendment

Barack Obama is wresting with the toughest issues America has had to endure during this contentious campaign for the Democratic nomination. After having to confront race and gender issues he is now forced to deal with the gun control controversy head on as a result of the recent dustup over the “bitter” remark made concerning small town voters in Pennsylvania.

We dealt with this media made issue of his perceived elitism for said remarks yesterday and offered an alternative point of view. We tried to make a case that may help those among us that fear change, differences in thought processes, and ways of seeing life, to move this country forward so as to make America competitive again.

Today, we thought it necessary and timely to revisit the issue of guns, gun control, the second amendment and how things work in the bigger cities. Our mayor Bloomberg, the NYCP Dept. Commissioner Ray Kelly, the loved ones of Sean Bell, (local man shot 50 times by police) and the officers on trial for the shooting are all trapped in this difficult situation because of the proliferation of weapons on the streets of New York.

Stories like this as well as school shooting, Jr. High, High School, and college campuses are regular news items and have been getting worse every year. What Barack Obama is trying to get those in smaller, less densely populated areas of the country to understand is we need a compromise on this issue that all law abiding Americans can live with.

One only need to see the morning local news reports coming out of Brooklyn New York, Newark New Jersey, South Central Los Angles, the South side of Chicago and many other urban centers to realize the need to put reasonable controls on gun sellers to properly check the backgrounds of their potential customers.

Mayor Bloomberg and some of our local detectives tried to get some cooperation from neighboring states to help curtail illegal guns making their way into the NYC metropolitan area, but they got their hats handed to them and told to take a hike. Hence, we have situations like the Sean Bell case where the police has to fear for their live, or so the story goes, because every potential suspect, traffic stop, or interaction has to be handled as if everybody is strapped.

We in the northeast are not all a bunch of tree hugging liberals and metro-sexuals, trying to disarm the nation of it’s rights to have guns, we just think some areas in the country need to have tougher rules for tougher conditions law enforcement has to deal with. Click here to download podcast

RetroVision Theater Presents South Beach and Shattered Dreams Today

South Beach starring Fred Williamson, Gary Busey and Peter Fonda is the first featured flick today. A pair of ex-footballers solve crimes to make extra cash in Miami, This is a pretty good grade C film if your bored at work. You can find this gem in the dollar store or Wal-Mart for 88cents Click here to download The Movie Store


Shattered Dreams starring Erik Estrada is our second retro cool flick of the day. In this not so original plot of an innocent man being framed for a crime he did not commit and having to do hard time for it. After fighting a battle to gain custody of his eight-year son, he begins to track down the creeps that F’d up his life. Click here to download. The Movie Store

RetroVision Media's Issues Under Fire: Obama's Bitter Remarks, Cold Reality We Must Face

Barack Obama is taking fire for the telling the bitter truth about how many Americans are dealing with the changing world we live in and must ultimately compete with. Some in the mainstream media are using this truism to portray his statement as elitist and out of touch with mainstream voters. We think his remarks were less a slap in the face than a much needed bucket of cold water to bring this country into the world’s reality that many of their cherished jobs as they knew them may not be coming back soon if ever.

We also think, until Americans wake up and realize that clinging to bullets and bibles while looking in the rearview mirror for past successes and blaming immigrants, legal or otherwise for their woes, we will continue to falter. We can not expect the world to slowdown for America to catch up. We as a nation must find away to get out front with new cleaner and greener technologies. This is going to take huge investments in research and development, education and retraining of the current workforce.

We think the American voter and worker have been pandered too long enough. Hillary Clinton and John McCain are going to use this media driven story to keep the cable ratings up, Hillary’s dead campaign on life support and the water cooler chatter buzzing, but the fact of the matter is, America needs to be confronted with our shortcomings from time to time.

We think promising the lunchbox crew a return to the loading dock, the assembly line and the mills is possible, is condescending at best. The truth is; we should be promising a change from carrying lunchboxes to laptops. We should be encouraging and training our youth to work by the tips of their fingers on a keyboard and not working their fingers to the bone in a factory. Since when did Americans stopped seeking a better life for each succeeding generation. Why are we allowing our politicians to promise the good old days when the good old days were not that good. In the best of times of mill and factory work, the environment and related air quality was so bad you could cut it with a knife. Some jobs and industries may be better off being sent off shore as we shift our attention and workforce direction into greener pastures.

We recognize, that ever American worker won’t enjoy life living in a smart house with solar and wind powered everything right away, but the time to start thinking about it is now. Sure, some will say Barack Obama is an elitist, a grandiose thinker with goals that seem pie in the sky, but we think that is exactly what America has been missing for far too long.

After all, John McCain had a similar issue to face in Michigan when he was honest enough to tell those voters their jobs as they knew them may never be back. His comforting advice was the same as ours, get over it and then get retrained.

Click here for the podcast.

RetroVision Theater Presents On Fire and Murder on Flight 502

RetroVision Theater Presents On Fire
We are on fire today with On Fire starring Ivan Rogers, in the hit man turned priest, turned hit man again grade B flick. This film is not as retro as our usual offerings, but you will enjoy it anyway. Click here to download

Today’s second full length feature is Murder on Flight 502
Farrah Fawcett, Sonny Bono and Robert Stack star in this seventies airplane terror as passengers are being murdered in mid air while the killers remain unknown while the victims mount. This is a classic mystery Click here to download

Issues Under Fire: Is Iraq's Military Too Weak and Meek To Stand Up Yet

The New York Times led with a story today that gave us cause to examine the broader reason why America will be involved with this hellhole and money pit of the Iraq war well into the next presidency. The common theme the administration, John McCain and other supporters of keeping the troop levels as is; is that catchall phrase; “everything is conditioned upon the conditions on the ground.” In fact, the so-called conditions on the ground is always the term used when the president or his hand picked military advisors are forced to defend their reasons for not considering a draw down of forces in any fashion.

Maybe they know what we have been thinking for sometime now ourselves. It is clear that we can’t leave until the Iraqis can at the very least, provide minimal security for it’s population and get their infrastructure back on track while stabilizing the government. These are all achievable goals provided the Iraqi people have not been so damaged by past political conditions of thug rule, that they are too weak and meek mentally to take the reins of political, military, and social responsibilities to move their new country forward.

We think it could take decades to build a national backbone for that nation, as they are generations deep and steep in being slapped around and beat down. We are charged with turning punks, chumps, marks, geeks and yes, we dare say sissies into heroes overnight. We are asking a people that have been beaten-down all their lives to finally fight back against seasoned ass-kickers. Maybe they run at the first sight of a fight because they don’t know how to fight through years of fear.

We pose this question to you; what if you were suddenly thrown into one of America’s toughest prisons one day. How would you man or woman up under the pressure of a dog eats dog environment. Would you be able to fend for your self, or would you be somebody’s bitch? Now just think of what the Iraqis are up against and they don’t even have the benefit of every knowing what minimal freedoms are.

So when leading politicians start asking questions about how the Iraqi military is performing in battle situations, they should consider what that Iraqi military is comprised of. And if they are smart, they will realize this situation is bleak; for the Iraqi people can’t standup without a backbone, so we can’t stand-down until we build them one. Those are the real conditions on the ground. Click here for the podcast

RetroVision Theater Presents Riders of the Whistling Pines

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It is Gene Autry day at RetroVision Media. We got the singing cowboy in a second feature starring as a guy being accused of poisoning cattle and murder when he tries to rescue virgin timberland from being destroyed by an eco-terrorism gang. Click here to download The Movie Store

RetroVision Theater Presents Man of the Frontier

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Gene Autry stars in this classic of a guy trying to help \ get a dam built that will bring prosperity to the surrounding land owners. Unfortunately, some creep named Bull and his western gangsters are following the orders to bust the operation up for good. Click here to download. Visit our movie store for the good stuff

RetroVision Theater Presents Space Killers and Space Phantom

Today's Movie-Cast:
Phantom From Space is our first feature today. Santa Monic Ca. is the jumping off spot for a space suit clad alien that is jacking the local peeps for staring some crap with him first. Click here or the photo to download

Next up is Killers From Space, A NUCLEAR SCIENTIST DISAPPEARS AFTER HIS PLANE CRASHES WHILE INVESTIGATING CONDITIONS AFTER AN A-BOMB TEST. hE TRIES TO TELL PEOPLE HE WAS ABDUCTED BY ALIENS BENT ON F-ING UP THE WORLD BUT EVERYBODY THINKS HE IS NUTZ
Click here to download

RetroVision Theater Reviews Robert Schneider’s Dirt

Robert Schneider’s revival of the much-acclaimed Dirt was surprisingly dusty in its efforts to portray the plight of an illegal immigrant from Iraq, desperately trying to make a go of it in the big city peddling roses.

Sad, our solo character appears to wallow in self-pity and self-loathing while diminishing his last vestiges of self-respect through an unyielding envy for the culture, the literature and accomplishments of a country that rejects his very existence. While the character tries to maintains a positive veneer for the public, the inner sad of Sad continues to bleed through his failed efforts via sudden outburst of emotional rants.

The performance of Christopher Domig as Sad was admirable considering the challenging and sometimes cumbersome dialog he had to work with. Add the fact that he maintained a credible Iraqi/Arabic accent for the better part of the program, made the performance acceptable for all of the first 45 min. of the nearly 85min production. Yes, some serious editing could have been employed here to give the audience something to contemplate and to draw their own conclusions to the many issues raised. Sadly, this is not a production we can recommend. Click here for podcast

For those who want to go, here is what you need to know:

The Place
Under St. Marks

94 St Marks Place

Between 1st Ave & Ave A

East Village

Opened
April 5, 2008
Closing
April 26, 2008
The Shows
Wed - Sat at 8pm; also Apr 12 & 19 at 3pm (these shows are performed in German)
The Price
$20
212-868-4444

The Site
Show's official website
The Cast
Christopher Domig
The Writer
Robert Schneider
Translation By
Paul Dvorak
The Director
David Robinson

RetroVision Theater Presents Paroled To Die

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We got westerns to star the week, featuring Bob Steele.

For those that are fans of the sixties comedy sit-com F Troop, will remember Bob as Duffy, the grubby old, always got a tall tale of Indian fighting that nobody wants to hear anymore. Checkout Paroled To Die. Some shady banker is stealing dough to finance a secret oil drilling operation. Since somebody has got to be the patsy, Bob Steele is the sucker of choice. But you know the old saying; Payback is a mother Click here to download     The movie Store

RetroVision Theater Presents The Oklahoma Cyclone

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The Oklahoma Cyclone is the corniest title we have in the library but we are running this one in honor of Bob Steele.

In this story, his father goes missing and Steele suspects a ruthless gang in the mid-western hood is responsible. And of course, you know the rest, a lot of bad guys get their asses shot but nobody bleeds Click here to download. The Movie Store

RetroVision Theater Presents Gunfight at Red Sands

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Richard Harrison stars in this popular spaghetti western as a civil war fighter who wages a personal vendetta against his despised foster father. This is the better of the two today, but just our opinion Click here to download. The Movie Store

RetroVision Theater Presents Painted Desert

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Bill Boyd and little known Clark Gable star in todays western offering. This is a great free download of one of Hollywoods boilerplate western dramas told well exceptionally well. Click here to download. The Movie Store

RetroVision Theater Presents The True Glory

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With an introduction to this WW2 documentary from one of Americas last great generals, Dwight Eisenhower gives a poignant retro-view of how to conduct a military campaign. Clearly there are lessons that could be and should reviewed by our current leadership Click here to download.

RetroVision Theater Presents At War with the Army

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Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis star is this lightweight comedy about the lighter side of military service during WW2. This movie is the first time the duo got together for a film. Jerry is the hapless private that cant get anything right, while martin sings and gets the hotties. Click here to download

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RetroVision Media Covers the Patraeus Crocker Iraq Progress Report; Progress is very loosely defined

After the obligatory butt kissing prior to each Senator questioning General Patraeus and Ambassador Crocker at their Capital Hill Iraq progress report hearing with the Senate Armed Services and The Senate Foreign Relations Committees, headed up by Senators Carl Levin and Joe Biden, the sessions went precisely as we predicted.

With the primary focus of attention leveled at John McCain, Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama, due to their bids for the White House, much of the hearing was simply the usual grandstanding by both parties trying to establish their respective points of view for the future prosecution of the war. The basic question the Democrats wanted answered was when the hell could we get out? And the Republicans predictable mantra of the irresponsibility of a precipitous withdrawal would cause a calamitous outcome that would lead to the total collapse of the region.

Patraeus gave the administration exactly what they needed to keep the troop levels constant through the end of Bush’s last day in office, save for a meager downsizing of roughly 20 thousand in July depending on the conditions on the ground. Bottom-line, we will have the pre-surge levels in place for the next president to deal with. No clear-cut answers could be dragged out of a disciplined and determined Patraeus or the equally purposely muffled Crocker.

Both men held their ground on; this is the situation as we see it and these are our recommendations going forward. All roles were play to perfection with few defections toward common sense, save for Republican Senators George Voinovich, Chuck Hagel and John Warner. But of course these guys have been know to jump ship from time to time. Even the nutty bastards holding their goofy pink cards and singing outdated folk songs with the disrupting protestor being carried out to the chant of “Bring them home” “Bring the home” was on hand to round out the show.

On the Democrat side of the lightweight Q & A session, Barbara Boxer was the most visibly exasperated in her efforts to get clarification on major issues. Specially, why the hell, after all we have done to date for the Iraqi politicos to get their Sh*t together is it that, the Iranian president Ahmadinejad can waltz into Baghdad and receive hugs and kisses and our president has to sneak in under the cover of a klingon-cloaking device.

Our podcast has the complete audio of all three presidential candidate’s attempts to prove themselves presidential as this hearing was as much an auditioning platform for their futures as commander in chief.

Click here to download the podcast

RetroVision Media Presents The True Glory

RetroVision Theater Presents The True Glory
With an introduction to this WW2 documentary from one of America’s last great generals, Dwight Eisenhower gives a poignant retro-view of how to conduct a military campaign. Clearly there are lessons that could be and should be reviewed by our current leadership, both military and political. Click here to download.

RetroVision Theater Presents Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis

RetroVision Theater Presents At War with the Army
Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis star is this lightweight comedy about the lighter side of military service during WW2. This movie is the first time the duo got together for a film. Jerry is the hapless private that can’t get anything right, while martin sings and gets the hotties. Click here to download
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RetroVision Media is covering the Iraq Progress Report on Capital Hill. Issues Under Fire Will Return Wed.

We are multi tasking today to cover the Iraq progress report by General David Patraeus and Ambassador Ryan Crocker on Capital Hill today. Our Daily scheduled podcast of Issues Under Fire will return tomorrow at its usual posting time of 12:00 noon est.

Gunfight at Red Sands and Painted Desert at RetroVision Theater Today

RetroVision Theater Presents Painted Desert
Bill Boyd and little known Clark Gable star in today’s western offering. This is a great free download of one of Hollywood’s boilerplate western dramas told well exceptionally well. Click here to download. The Movie Store

RetroVision Theater Presents Gunfight at Red Sands

Richard Harrison stars in this popular spaghetti western as a civil war fighter who wages a personal vendetta against his despised foster father. This is the better of the two today, but just our opinion Click here to download. The Movie Store

Issues Under Fire: Penn Downed, Patraeus Report Previewed and Mugabe Fights to Stay

Mark Penn, Senator Clinton’s top campaign strategist who’s ass is fat enough to walk on both sides of the street at the same time decided to work both sides at the same time as well. That proved to be a costly mistake, as the Colombians on the other side of that street are pushing for a trade agreement that is sure to look like another nail in the coffin of the American workers futures. Now placed in the awkward position of explaining what the hell is really going on, the Clinton campaign was forced to unload the tub of lard before he sank the campaign for good.

Hillary Clinton’s last realistic shot of making an unrealistic comeback did not need this latest issue while trying desperately to connect with the Pennsylvanian lunchbox crew while at the same time reporting earnings of more than $109 million over the last eight years. “Yeah baby, they feel our pain alright” one respondent we talked to this weekend about the Clinton’s tax returns released to the public on Friday. How these recent developments will effect the Senator from New York’s poll numbers has yet to be determined. But it is a sure bet, they won’t help in a state that has lost many of its higher paying jobs to other countries while being replaced if at all with lower paying ones.

The one plus for Hillary Clinton this weekend that kept the Sunday talking heads off her lying ass story of the poor uninsured mother and baby dying for lack of healthcare and a lousy $100.00 co-pay for treatment, was the expectation and anticipation of the great General Patraeus’ report of conditions on the ground in Iraq.

Other News: Mugabe won’t leave Zimbabwe , China and the Olympic torch and Shiite against Shiite this time! Click here to download

Oh Yeah! The Movies for today's programming:

We got a twin bill of Bob Steele in The Oklahoma Cyclone and Paroled To Die Further discriptions here Enyoy the films and share the files

RetroVision Media Presents Dragnet

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Yo just the facts...

Issues Under Fire: The Collapse of A Nation

The Fun Stuff First! Our First Feature Flick Is The Flying Deuces making its debut at RetroVision Theater

Laurel and Hardy star in this goofy tale of a love struck loser and his numskull partner joining the Foreign Legion to die a death of self pity over losing officer and a gentleman. Dumb and Dumpier only find themselves facing a firing squad and forced to hi-jack a plane to make a hasty escape.
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Second RetroVision Theater feature today is The Blacksmith

Buster Keaton stars in this classic comedy as a jerk getting thrown in the poky for throwing down some knuckle sandwiches with a blacksmith shop owner. While trying to help customers with a few horses, the idiot F’s up a Rolls Royce parked next to him. Hence, the ass kicking! Click here to download.




The News And Commentary:

The magic word of the day is Collapse. The economy is collapsing, the healthcare system is collapsing, the public education system is collapsing, the National Guard is collapsing under the weight of the collapsing military, the nation’s infrastructure is collapsing along with the citizenry’s confidence in the elected leadership’s ability to break the fall.

It’s not news to report that 81% of those polled feel the country is headed in the wrong direction. What is news, is the 19% that disagrees with the majority. Who, we wonder is that optimistic group that sees the nation’s current course as one to proceed on in a steady as she goes mode?

Clearly, these are the corporate heads and their butt sniffing upper managers that are making out like bandits in a lawless and deregulated atmosphere. These must be that shadowy 1% and their well paid flunky crews that have always made big dough while the little guys and gals are forced to just make do. We think that collective 19% is the same group that has always existed and have been perpetrating the myth that the growing permanent underclass has a real shot of becoming part of their crew. Save for an honest settlement from an insurance claim or winning a power ball lottery(the odds are better with the lottery),at this stage of the American financial nightmare if you are poor today, odds are you are going to be poor for the rest of your life.

But all is not lost, for we as a nation can and will change this course with the election of Barack Obama in the fall. The country is betting on him big time as more and more donors are placing their $25,$50,$75 and $100.00 bets on him to set a new direction for the country, with a crew made up of the people. With a total haul of $40 million for the month of March, out pacing Hillary’s $20 million we think Americans have already picked a winner. Click here for the podcast

RetroVision Media Presents Bail Out and The Night They Took Miss Beautiful

We almost forgot the movies for today!


The Night They Took Miss Beautiful, starring Crazy Chuk Connors

Check out Bail Out starring David Hasselhoff

Greedy Mortgage Brokers, Greedy Investors and Greedy Homeowner Wannabes Caused This Problem W/ Help From Crooks

As promised, we are going to veer away from the Democratic nominee battle as in our opinion this fight has already been won and the Obama campaign is simply letting the clock run out. Since Hillary Clinton is primarily staying around for the sake of her donors and the perceived notion that little girls need her as a role model of a tough fighter, we are changing the channel to a far more immediate issue that could paralyze the nation.

Federal Reserve Chairmen Ben Bernanke finally came to his collective senses yesterday, advising the country that we are indeed sinking into a recession; a bit of sense that we have had for the last six months. With the nation losing 50 thousand jobs in March, following on the heels of a bad February and January, it is clear that the economy is contracting faster than the folks who know are willing to admit.

On the bad news from Benny “The Bummer” Bernanke, the Dollar promptly went south against all major currencies, the price of gold headed back toward $900.00 an oz and oil is hanging tough at $100.00 +per barrel. While everyone seem to be scratching their heads over how this could be happening, we think the answer is simpler than you would imagine.

Firstly, most of those in power are not as confused about how things got the way they are at all. The answer is greed as usual. The answer is greed, and nothing but greed, on all parties concerned. It was greedy Wall Street people, greedy Main Street people and greedy investors looking to make a mint off the Wall Street and Main Street people. The greedy mortgage brokers of Wall St. suckered the greedy Homeowner wannabe of Main St. into getting more home than they knew they could afford, while the greedy investors looked the other way when buying the greedy Wall St. peoples pig in a poke investment instruments (bad paper with a promise of good earnings).

Add all of the above to the inevitable cyclical economic downturns that always come around, and (voila!) things come crashing down. The only way for this country to regain the confidence of the world in our ability to fix this problem is to go after all the crooks that let the greed get out of control. The corporate heads that are about to walk away with millions while leaving thousands without jobs, the unsavory brokers that played three card Monte with the trust of the truly stupid sub-prime borrower and let the greedy home purchaser that bit off more than they could realistically chew, choke as they should.

We know this is tough medicine, but collectively, we all should have seen this coming. And, many did; however, most just decided to look the other way. Sure, some heads are going to have to roll, some asses are going to end up in jail and some morons are going to end up on the street. That's just what happens when we lie , cheat and steal. That's just what happens when we think the well will never run dry. That’s just what happens when we live beyond our means while thinking somebody else will pick up the tab.

Click here to download the podcast.

Issues Under Fire: Hillary's Whopper, Barack's Bowling Game And Bush's Lame Duck Nato Trip To Nowhere

We’re back and ready to do battle with the mainstream media after a well-deserved vacation in the Caribbean. Oddly enough, we were on the island of St. Thomas at the same time Barack Obama took his Easter break time-out, but fortunately for my daughters we vacationed on opposite sides of said island. They knew if the opportunity presented itself, I’d have found a way to get some work done to write off part of the trip. Oh well!

Unfortunately, whenever the team takes a collective break, is when the best news stories seem to break. And nothing could be better than the Hillary Bosnia war story she let rip while stone cold sober on the campaign trail. This was the type of lie that drunks let fly after their fifth or sixth Cadillac margarita. Take my word for this, as I met more than my share of these tall taletellers on the Carnival cruise ship Freedom last week.


Bill Clinton has nothing on Hillary when it comes to telling whoppers. Apparently, that is why Chelsea thinks Hillary would make a better president than her dad. This recent self-described gaff, misspeak or misrepresentation of the truth is gathering steam with the press for good reason; it reminds us all of the disconnect the Clintons have with the concept of truthfulness.

Hillary’s efforts to prove she is tough under fire only illustrated clearly; she has never been near anything hotter that a Bic lighter. The tall tale of her ducking bullets and having to hit the tarmac to avoid hostile fire is one hell of a bar story better left to those that don’t travel with journalist and camera crews there to document every fart, burp, and belch.

While many Clinton supporters and spin-doctors will try to blow this so-called misstep off as much ado about nothing, we think it is a blatant insight into the character of these Clinton characters trying to move back into the White House. Click here for the complete podcast

Andy Warhol’s Flesh for Frankenstein @ RetroVision Theater

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Flesh for Frankenstein is one of the hottest Frankenstein flicks ever made in our opinion. Andy Warhol in his maniacal genius, brought a cast and crew together to recreate this classic tale by twisting it into a sex starved sister/wife of a crazy Baron Von Monster maker that knows no limits when it comes to blood and guts. This film has a well-deserved R rating, as there are short snippets of frontal nudity and lots of gratuitous boob shots. Click here to download. Share this with everyone you know!

Night of the Sharks starring Treat Williams @ RetroVision Theater

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Treat Williams is David Ziegler, a cool diver making an easy buck in Cancun Mexico when he comes across a disc by from his recently deceased brother. Soon after, his gets a visit from some tough guys that want the disc for themselves. Apparently, the disc contains info that ties the tough guys to criminal activities that theyd rather keep very secret. Made in 1987, this color flick runs 90 min. and is rated a lightweight PG-13. Click here to download. And, dont forget to visit our movie store for more recent title purchases. Movie Store