All Day Entertainment

How d'ya like our new web site? I've revised this site many times since it first went live in 1997, and this latest update is to add a brand new feature--the David Kalat Blog (see the front page), a place where I can shove my shambolic ramblings and incoherent thoughts.

Also, keep an eye on the "Other Projects" tab to the left, because I've been doing some fun things with other media companies. Some of these projects need to stay under wraps until they are farther along, but I'll post updates as they become relevant.

GO GO GODZILLA!

I provided the audio commentary for the fab new Criterion edition of GODZILLA--which would make a terrific Christmas gift if it weren't for the fact it won't be out until January 2012!

HAVE WE LOST OUR EVER-LOVIN' MINDS?

Just take a gander at the DVD Catalog (see link at left). Yes, those prices are real. I'm not kidding. Stock up now for the holidays, while supplies last!

KEEP WATCHING THE SKIES!

OK, I don't really mean that. I just like the quote. But do keep watching Kino's site for the latest news about their on-going Buster Keaton releases. Everything out so far is beyond excellent and must-have. There's more coming. Bookmark this, check often.

DO YOU HAVE YOURS YET?

DVD Beaver (Jeez, they need to change the name of that site) has awarded me and Jonathan Rosenbaum "Best Audio Commentary of 2010" for our team-up on the Masters of Cinema release of the restored METROPOLIS.

And then, they went and placed the METROPOLIS release on their Top 100 List and named it an "Essential DVD."

So... I'm hoping I get a trophy! I want a big gold statue (of the robot Maria?) to put on my mantle!

Congrats to everybody at Masters of Cinema--way to go!

THE THRILLING WORLD OF HARRY LANGDON

Film historian and Harry Langdon fan has put together a crackin' good web site called Feet of Mud. It features a filmography and biography of one of America's most enigmatic and avant-garde screen comedians--as well as content created by the same network of silent comedy scholars that helped put together the Harry Langdon: Lost and Found DVD box

THE SNARK ENSEMBLE AT SLAPSTICON

Slapsticon is the nation's premiere celebration of silent comedy, featuring four full days of rare treasures of silent and early sound comedy. This year Slapsticon proudly presents a guest appearance by the Snark Ensemble, unveiling four newly composed scores for classic early works by Mack Sennett. This special event will take place on Saturday July 17th at 10:30 am at Saturday, July 17 the Rosslyn Spectrum Theatre located at 1611 N. Kent St. (lower level) Arlington, VA (under an office bldg at N. Kent and Wilson Blvd in Rosslyn). $99 for 4 days, $30 for one day, $16 for 1/2 day.

FEATURING THE FOLLOWING FILMS BY MACK SENNETT:
Shot in the Excitement (1914) — Al St. John, Alice Howell
Don’t Weaken (1920) — Ford Sterling, Charlie Murray
The Funnymooners (1925) — Ralph Graves
Ice Cold Cocos (1926) — Billy Bevan, Andy Clyde

SKELETONS IN THE CLOSET

This unprecedented Japanese-Canadian co-production is a loving and thoughtful exploration of the J-Horror phenomenon. The documentary features behind the scenes footage, clever fictionalized recreations, and interviews with important figures of the genre--and for some odd reason, the producers included me in the proceedings, too. I was both honored and a little flabbergasted, and I'm excited that this film reaches a larger audience. I hope to have ordering information soon, but for now here is some promotional material for your edification.

And if your appetite has now been whetted to hear me yammer on about J-Horror movies, then click here to listen to a radio interview I gave for an Australian broadcast last year.

AMERICAN SLAPSTICK ONLINE BONUS CONTENT
Silent comedy / classics / 9 mins / 1920 / B&W / silent

You know who you are: you've been bitten by the Snub bug. All these terrific Snub Pollard shorts on AMERICAN SLAPSTICK VOLUMES 1 & 2 and BECOMING CHARLEY CHASE have gotten you hungry for more. Well, we here at All Day Entertainment feel your pain--and we've responded. Exclusively available from this site is our version of FRESH PAINT.

This one-reel short was directed by Alf Goulding and released to theaters March 7, 1920. It stars Snub Pollard and Marie Mosquini, with Harold Lloyd's brother Gaylord Lloyd as a bike messenger, Noah Young as a jealous husband, and Eddie Boland as an artist.

The musical setting is derived from jazz recordings by Manolo Camp and Reno Project, published under a Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike Generic 2.5 license. For more of their music please follow this link.

BECOMING CHARLEY CHASE

If you're looking for the booklet that was at one time alleged to have been a part of this set (but which was never published and never included), then you need to follow this link.

GODZILLA REVISIONS

In 1997, I wrote my first book. It was a serious study of the history of Godzilla, published under the scholarly-sounding title A CRITICAL HISTORY AND FILMOGRAPHY OF TOHO'S GODZILLA SERIES, by McFarland and Co. Press. Over the years it has been my best-selling publication and has generated tons of happy fan mail. But, as I've matured as a writer and grown as a film historian I've come to be embarrassed by the primitivity of that book. In 2008, I asked McFarland if they thought sales were strong enough to warrant rewriting the book. They agreed, and over 2009 I hacked the original down to its barest essence, and rebuilt it from the ground up. The new edition is now available, and is in my mind an entirely new book, with the same title as one I hope it will replace.