Friday November 17, 2006 SGN.org |
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Volume 34 Issue 46 |
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Friday, Aug 29, 2008
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Legendary satirist Alan Abel is the subject of new documentary |
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| Legendary satirist Alan Abel is the subject of new documentary | |
| by E. Joyce Glasgow -
SGN A&E Writer Abel Raises Cain A film by Jenny Abel & Jeff Hockett, USA, 2005, 82 minutes Winner Grand Jury Award for Best Documentary, 2005 Slamdance Film Festival Seattle Premiere, Northwest Film Forum, 1515 12th Ave., (206)267-5380 November 20-22, at 7 & 9 pm Satirist Alan Abel has spent his life as a professional prankster. He has pulled close to one hundred hoaxes on the media in the last fifty years; all with the ultimate message that you can't believe everything you see, hear or read. He has impersonated Howard Hughes, staged a mass fainting, led protests against breast feeding, promoted the clothing of all animals for the sake of decency and explored the question: is there sex after death? His believability and appearance as an "expert" has continually confounded the media, no matter how absurd the hoax. Filmmaker Jenny Abel, Alan Abel's daughter, lovingly documents the unique creative life of her father and his accomplice -- her mother. These days, some of his activities might be loosely referred to as "performance art". Abel's grand hoaxes have landed him on Today, Tonight, BBC, Good Morning America, 20/20, 48 Hours, National Public Radio. He has been published in numerous publications, including New Yorker Magazine. While I watched this film, I couldn't help but think how much more difficult it might be to pull off one of these hoaxes in the current climate of our society. Nowadays, Abel might be miss-construed as being a terrorist for being out of the ordinary and even outrageous. It made me think that our contemporary political climate, with its fear and tension, has acted to obscure our sense of humor. Abel is now in his 80's and currently lectures internationally on his self-help series: "Using Your Wits to Win", based on his two books, "Don't Get Mad&Get Even" and "How to Thrive on Rejection". He was recently honored by Life' Magazine's publication Century of Change as a cultural icon of the 20th Century. This is a very entertaining and thought provoking film, which I highly recommend. Northwest Film Forum has invited Alan Abel to these screenings. Contact www.nwfilmforum.org for the status of his visit and for other NWFF events. |
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