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Harvey Brownstone conducts an in-depth interview with David Fantle & Tom Johnson, Authors, “C’mon, Get Happy: The Making of Summer Stock”

About Harvey's guest:

Today’s guests,  David Fantle & Tom Johnson, are co-authors who last appeared on our show to discuss their landmark book entitled, “Hollywood Heyday: 75 Candid Interviews with Golden Age Legends”.   The interviews contained in that book were conducted when our guests were mere teenagers living in Minnesota, visiting Hollywood in the hopes of meeting movie stars.  And boy, did they ever!  

Since then, our guests have gone on to have distinguished careers.   David Fantle has been interviewing, writing, and speaking about Hollywood’s Golden Age stars for 45 years, and he’s an adjunct professor of film at Marquette University.  Tom Johnson is a former senior editor at Netflix, and he’s written movie reviews and features for many publications including E! Online, Movie-phone, and People magazine. His writing has been recognized with a Minnesota Newspaper Association achievement award and a National Hearst Foundation award.  

They’re here today to discuss their brand new book entitled, “C’mon, Get Happy: The Making of Summer Stock”.   This well-researched and illuminating book chronicles how Judy Garland’s last MGM movie, and her 3rd and final film with co-star Gene Kelly, was conceived, cast and filmed, despite the troubled atmosphere of drama and heartache, and the sometimes overwhelming obstacles and challenges surrounding the production.  

The book is jam-packed with little-known and newly uncovered details about the people in front of and behind the cameras, and it examines the enduring legacy of the movie, including some fascinating insights provided by Judy Garland’s daughter Lorna Luft, Gene Kelly’s daughter Kerry Kelly Novick, and other celebrities including Savion Glover, Ben Vereen, Tommy Tune and Michael Finestine.   

For more interviews and podcasts go to: https://www.harveybrownstoneinterviews.com/

To see more about David Fantle and Tom Johnson, go to:

https://www.upress.state.ms.us/Books/C/C-mon-Get-Happy

#DavidFantle  #TomJohnson #harveybrownstoneinterviews

Harvey Brownstone conducts an in-depth interview with David Fantle and Tom Johnson, Authors of “Hollywood Heyday: 75 Candid Interviews with Golden Age Legends”

About Harvey's guests:

Today’s guests have done something not only remarkable, but jaw droppingly unique.  In 1974, when our guests were teenagers in Minnesota, they saw the MGM movie “That’s Entertainment”, and fell in love with classic Hollywood movies.  In the summer of 1978, fresh out of high school, these star struck kids travelled to Los Angeles, and were somehow able to convince Fred Astaire and Gene Kelly to meet with them for an interview.  That experience opened the door to dozens more interviews with the greatest Hollywood legends of all time, including Lucille Ball, Milton Berle, Bob Hope, George Burns, Jimmy Cagney, Charlton Heston, Vincente Minnelli, Gregory Peck and many more.   Those interviews are compiled in a book entitled, “Hollywood Heyday: 75 Candid Interviews with Golden Age Legends”.  These interviews are nothing like anything you’ve ever seen.  Somehow, these unassuming young men were able to get the most iconic superstars to open up in a way that no one else has ever been able to do.  And THAT’S what makes their book so special.

For more interviews and podcasts go to: https://www.harveybrownstoneinterviews.com/

https://davidfantle.com/

https://www.facebook.com/dfantle

#DavidFantle  #TomJohnson  #harveybrownstoneinterviews