John Mulholland is a film historian [1] and an American writer and director, specializing in documentaries. He was born in New York City, where he still lives. Mulholland's most recent documentary is Cooper & Hemingway: The True Gen , exploring the 20-year friendship between actor Gary Cooper and author Ernest Hemingway. [2]
Mulholland began writing documentaries in 1980 for ARTS, a cable channel which had been recently formed by ABC. Among some of his documentaries for ARTS, are:
Mulholland left ARTS after it folded into Arts & Entertainment. Always interested in pre-1960s Hollywood films, Mulholland was intrigued by the posthumous reputations of such stars as Gary Cooper and Glenn Ford, and directors such as Fred Zinnemann and William Wyler, whose legacies had suffered because of the auteur theory so prevalent in critical and academic circles. [3] Mulholland went on to explore, in two documentaries, both Cooper as actor and as central participant in the complex political controversies which almost derailed two of his most notable films:
Among some of Mulholland's other documentaries which focus on classic Hollywood, are:
2013 saw the release of Mulholland's documentary Cooper & Hemingway: The True Gen , produced by Richard Zampella, narrated by Sam Waterston, with Len Cariou as the voice of Ernest Hemingway. [7] [8]
In 2015 Mulholland worked on a documentary on author Elmore Leonard with Richard Zampella. [9]
Mulholland hosted a radio podcast show, ICONS Radio Hour, for four years, from 2007 to 2010. He interviewed both current Hollywood artists and those with first-hand knowledge of the Classic Hollywood era. At times, Mulholland was joined by author and film historian Meir Z. Ribalow. [10]
Mulholland is among the list of signatories who have expressed doubts about the identity of William Shakespeare, joining such as Mark Twain, Mark Rylance, Derek Jacobi, and Supreme Court Justices Sandra Day O'Connor and John Paul Stevens, among a host of other notables. [11]
Gary Cooper was an American actor known for his strong, quiet screen persona and understated acting style. He won the Academy Award for Best Actor twice and had a further three nominations, as well as an Academy Honorary Award in 1961 for his career achievements. He was one of the top-10 film personalities for 23 consecutive years and one of the top money-making stars for 18 years. The American Film Institute (AFI) ranked Cooper at number 11 on its list of the 50 greatest screen legends.
Liza May Minnelli is an American actress, singer, dancer, and choreographer. Known for her commanding stage presence and powerful alto singing voice, Minnelli has received numerous accolades, and is one of the few performers awarded a non-competitive EGOT. Minnelli is a Knight of the French Legion of Honour and subject of the 2024 documentary, Liza: A Truly Terrific Absolutely True Story.
Kirk Douglas was an American actor and filmmaker. After an impoverished childhood, he made his film debut in The Strange Love of Martha Ivers (1946) with Barbara Stanwyck. Douglas soon developed into a leading box-office star throughout the 1950s, known for serious dramas, including westerns and war films. During his career, he appeared in more than 90 films and was known for his explosive acting style. He was named by the American Film Institute the 17th-greatest male star of Classic Hollywood cinema.
High Noon is a 1952 American Western film produced by Stanley Kramer from a screenplay by Carl Foreman, directed by Fred Zinnemann, and starring Gary Cooper. The plot, which occurs in real time, centers on a town marshal whose sense of duty is tested when he must decide to either face a gang of killers alone, or leave town with his new wife.
Lust for Life is a 1956 American biographical film about the life of the Dutch painter Vincent van Gogh, based on the 1934 novel of the same title by Irving Stone which was adapted for the screen by Norman Corwin.
Elmore John Leonard Jr. was an American novelist, short story writer, and screenwriter. His earliest novels, published in the 1950s, were Westerns, but he went on to specialize in crime fiction and suspense thrillers, many of which have been adapted into motion pictures. Among his best-known works are Hombre, Swag, City Primeval, LaBrava, Glitz, Freaky Deaky, Get Shorty, Rum Punch, Out of Sight and Tishomingo Blues.
Walter Stacy Keach Jr. is an American actor, active in theatre, film and television since the 1960s. Keach first distinguished himself in Off-Broadway productions and remained a prominent figure in American theatre across his career, particularly as a noted Shakespearean. He is the recipient of several theatrical accolades, four Drama Desk Awards, two Helen Hayes Awards and two Obie Awards for Distinguished Performance by an Actor. He was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play for his performance in Arthur Kopit's 1969 production of Indians.
New York, New York is a 1977 American romantic musical drama film directed by Martin Scorsese from a screenplay by Earl Mac Rauch and Mardik Martin, based on a story by Rauch. John Kander and Fred Ebb wrote several songs for the film, including "New York, New York" which became a global phenomenon. A tribute to Scorsese's home town of New York City, the film stars Liza Minnelli and Robert De Niro as a pair of musicians and lovers.
Lionel Jay Stander was an American actor, activist, and a founding member of the Screen Actors Guild. He had an extensive career in theatre, film, radio, and television that spanned nearly 70 years, from 1928 until 1994. He was known for his distinctive raspy voice and tough-guy demeanor, as well as for his vocal left-wing political stances. One of the first Hollywood actors to be subpoenaed before the House Un-American Activities Committee, he was blacklisted from the late 1940s until the mid-1960s.
Carl Foreman, CBE was an American screenwriter and film producer who wrote the award-winning films The Bridge on the River Kwai and High Noon, among others. He was one of the screenwriters who were blacklisted in Hollywood in the 1950s because of their suspected communist sympathy or membership in the Communist Party.
Austin Cedric Gibbons was an American art director for the film industry. He also made a significant contribution to motion picture theater architecture from the 1930s to 1950s. Gibbons designed the Oscar statuette in 1928, but tasked the sculpting to George Stanley, a Los Angeles artist. He was nominated 39 times for the Academy Award for Best Production Design and won the Oscar 11 times, both of which are records.
Omnibus is a British documentary series broadcast mainly on BBC One. The programme was the successor to the arts-based series Monitor. It ran from 1967 until 2003, usually being transmitted on Sunday evenings. During its 35-year history, the programme won 12 British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) awards.
This is a list that shows references made to the life and work of Dutch artist Vincent van Gogh (1853–1890) in culture.
Vincent & Theo is a 1990 biographical drama film about the Dutch painter Vincent van Gogh (1853–1890) and his brother Theo (1857–1891), an art dealer. While Vincent van Gogh's artworks are now famous, he was essentially unrecognized in his lifetime, and survived on his brother's charity. The film was directed by Robert Altman, and starred Tim Roth and Paul Rhys in the title roles.
Bruce David Klein is an Emmy-nominated producer, director, and writer of television, film, and digital entertainment. He is the founder of Atlas Media Corp. and serves as its president and executive producer.
Hollywood on Trial is a 1976 American documentary film directed by David Helpern.
Christopher Trumbo was an American television writer, screenwriter and playwright. Trumbo was considered an expert on the McCarthy-era Hollywood blacklist. His father, screenwriter Dalton Trumbo, was blacklisted by Hollywood for nearly a decade for refusing to testify to Congress, as one of a group known as The Hollywood Ten.
Cooper & Hemingway: The True Gen is a 2013 documentary film about the 20-year friendship between writer Ernest Hemingway and film actor Gary Cooper. Written and directed by John Mulholland, it is narrated by actor Sam Waterston with actor Len Cariou as the voice of writer Ernest Hemingway.
Richard Zampella is an American film and multimedia producer who has collaborated with John Mulholland on three documentary films including Sergeant York of God & Country, Inside High Noon and Cooper & Hemingway: The True Gen, narrated by Sam Waterston. Cooper & Hemingway: The True Gen was reviewed by The New York Times film critic Andy Webster on October 11, 2013, and was named an NY Times Critics' Pick by Manohla Dargis, A. O. Scott and Stephen Holden. Webster said the picture was proof that the work of these two men "endures and so does what they stood for".
Jean-Pierre Isbouts is a professor in the Social Sciences PhD program of Fielding Graduate University in Santa Barbara, California, and an archaeologist, author, screenwriter, director, and producer of works addressing various historical periods, particularly the time period of Jesus and that of Renaissance and post-Renaissance art.