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any new news on the movie being made about daniel??

The "BIG MOVIE" (i.e. a feature length film/documentary) about Daniel by reknown director Jeff Feuerzeig and producer Henry Rosenthal will likely have it's first showing after the first of the year.

As these things go, just where it is viewed bafterward is defined a great deal by it's reception at the festival.  But by MANY ACCOUNTS, this will be a major attention-getter and perhaps the premier film of the festival.

This was not some low-budget home-video undertaking.  It was the creation of key movie-makers, was well funded, filmed patiently and meticulously over three or four years, includes animations, interviews, never-before-seen real footage, and "re-enactments" of key events at their actual locations.  The crew traveled half way around to globe following Daniel for some of this content.  

The story is woven by people who appreciate Daniel, and should be a gratifying experience for all those who feel a deep afinity to him.

It is a compelling story, and Daniel's music - since it maps directly to events in his life - is compelling.

So, "look for it in a theatre near you!"... who knows.???

At the film-makers request - factual details about the second post has been corrected, and the third post replaced as it mentioned the mis-information.

Thanks.

any further details on the movie? I know I read recently, possibly on rejectedunknown, that it looks like it will be showing at Sundance in 2005.

But any other info?

Ughhh!  We're gagged on telling anything more just now... but maybe before the end of November that will all be lifted.

I found out indirectly (so no one told me NOT to say this) that the title is (or was in a rough cut) "The Devil And Daniel Johnston".

I got top billing!!!! :evil:

Jeff

ps: that's a joke for anyone who isn't sure...

 :evil:  :evil:  :lol:  :evil:  :evil:

The last info I got was a few weeks ago in an email from the producer - at that time they were still waiting for the word from Sundance and suggesting "crossed fingers". Sorry I can't be of more help.

  - Not Daniel

(Hmmm... If Jiffy is the Devil, am I Salieri? Or is that mixing too many literary metaphors?)

Sundance will announce which films have been accepted on November 28-29. Until then nobody knows. The Variety article does NOT say the film has been accepted. Don't believe everything you read on the internet.

Good to hear that there is *some* news anyway .. and I do like the title :)

Hopefully the film will make a bit of a splash, what with documentaries having made a bit of a comeback in the last few years. Can't wait to see it myself anyway...

It's now official - the movie will premiere at Sundance.

http://festival.sundance.org/2005/?=films

I am a university student in New York City. I hope its ok to talk about this. We weren't asked not to, so...

Last night I had the pleasure of seeing a short piece of "The Devil and Daniel Johnston" in a class on Documentary films. The filmaker was there to speak about his earlier film, "Half Japanese" which we had viewed the previous week. He gave us a partial sneak peak at the new film as a teaching tool. He said the US premiere would be at Sundance and (I think) the International Premier in Berlin.

I had never heard of Dan Johnston before, but I was completely fascinated by his story and by the film. I went home raving about it to my family and as soon as I got to a computer this morning, I looked up this website to find out more about Daniel. I can't believe I have to wait months or longer to see the rest of this film. It was amazing. The part I saw included lots of material from films and cassette tapes that Daniel himself made over the years. It includes interviews with his mom and dad and siblings and never before seen footage of the woman he wrote all those songs about. It shows the little electric keyboard or organ that he set up on his brother's weight bench in the garage as a lo-fi studio. It has his best friend talking about what he was like in high school when he decided to draw eyeballs on everything in sight, including I think the walls of the school.

I am anxious to see how the film portrays the role of religion in his life. One of the funniest moments has his mother yelling at him over and over, You are an unproductive servant of God! He re-created his life with her in a film where he plays both himself and his mother. He is hilarious dressed as her with curlers in his wig, yelling at himself to get out of bed and do something with his life and serving slop for breakfast made from green kool aid and cereal. Moments like that make this film a treasure. I highly recommend it.

Wow!  That's amazing!  I can't wait, either.

Here are a couple articles that popped up on the internet today:

http://www.eonline.com/News/Items/0,1,15431,00.html?tnews

Sundance '05: Buscemi to Baghdad
E! Online - Los Angeles,CA,USA
... Other notable docs in competition this year are Jeff Feuerzeig's portrait of manic-depressive songwriter Daniel Johnston The Devil and Daniel Johnston and ...

http://www.moviecitynews.com/Notepad/2004/041129_sundance.html

FEATURE FILM AND WORLD CINEMA COMPETITIONS
Movie City News - Los Angeles,CA,USA
... THE DEVIL AND DANIEL JOHNSTON (Director: Jeff Feuerzeig)--Daniel Johnston, manic-depressive genius singer/songwriter/artist, is revealed in this portrait of ...

I can't wait!!!

i hope it wins ALL the awards and people really start to check out daniel's music big time... he deserves it and more... :D  :D  :D

Let's hear the skinny...

I'm keeping an eye on
http://parkcity.indiewire.com/ and www.filmthreat.com

but yeah, can't wait to hear the news..

from the Sundance Channel website , tantalising or what ?

"The greatest singer-songwriter alive today is introduced at Los Angeles' famous Key Club, and Daniel Johnston emerges from the backstage bowels and takes his place in the spotlight. As the crowd quiets, someone yells, "We love you, Daniel!" and Daniel launches into a song of unrequited love.

Daniel's mother Mabel and his father Bill take us through a family slide show of Daniel's early years offering reminiscences and looking backward for clues in those slides and snapshots of the portentous events to come. Daniel's early career as a filmmaker is examined as excerpts from his Super 8mm home movie "It Must Be Monday" in which he portrays himself and his mother, are shown.

Dave Thornberry, Daniel's childhood friend and art collaborator speaks of the early art years through high school. The eyeball art is introduced as a theme that will carry throughout the film. Daniel's song, "Story of an Artist" takes us inside his early home and family life, establishing the increasing alienation he will experience. Daniel's basement art factory is revealed and paralleled with his current-day art factory in his parent's garage. The tension builds around the adolescent Daniel's house, and as events reach a boiling point, the first of many audiocassettes that Daniel recorded to obsessively document his own life, is played."

so i guess we still dont know when the rest of us will get to see this??? its drivin me crazy to think maybe it could be a long time before the rest of us get to see it... 6 months? a year? ugh... :(

i think it is really great that daniel's family helped so much in the making of this film... they are to be commended for allowing the whole process to take place... thanks johnson family... history its self will show how much help you have given mankind for letting us into daniel's world and art(thanks to daniel too for everything of course)
i think it is a huge step foward as well for the way people with metal illnesses are to be looked at and treated in this country... a lot of families would try to hide the whole thing but you guys showed ton's of courage and caring... again thanks ain't enough but thanks a lot anyway!!! :D

im dieing to hear about the movie!! anyone see it yet??

VARIETY

By DANA HARRIS, CATHY DUNKLEY, Tue., Jan. 25, 2005, 5:21pm PT

Sundance Film Festival

PARK CITY -- Lions Gate Films paid nearly $4 million for David Slade's drama "Hard Candy," taking worldwide rights outside the U.K., Spain and Australia. Pic bowed Sunday at the Sundance Film Festival.

A selection of the fest's Park City at Midnight section, "Hard Candy" is the tale of an unwise cat-and-mouse romance between a teenage girl and an older man that begins on the Internet. Pic was shot on HD and stars Ellen Page opposite Patrick Wilson.

Deal marks the second significant fest buy for Lions Gate, which earlier this week picked up worldwide rights on David LaChapelle's hip-hop doc "Rize."

William Morris Independent made the "Candy" deal, which includes a clause that gives the filmmakers 20% of the film's worldwide gross and a significant P&A commitment. It's slated for release in late summer or the first quarter of 2006. Lions Gate expects the film to garner an NC-17 rating.

"Lions Gate proved with 'Saw,' 'Open Water' and 'Cabin Fever' that they know exactly what to do with these kinds of movies," William Morris rep Cassian Elwes said.

David Higgins, Richard Hutton and Michael Caldwell produced the pic, with Jody Patton and Rosanne Korenberg as exec producers. Brian Nelson and Hans Ritter are co-producers.

Fest acquisitions showed no signs of slowing Tuesday. Next deal expected to close was for Gaby Dellal's "On a Clear Day," the tale of a laid-off Glaswegian shipyard employee who changes his life by swimming the English Channel. Pic is part of the World Dramatic Competition.

Sales also are expected for music doc "The Devil and Daniel Johnston," the David Schwimmer starrer "Duane Hopwood," John Asher's "Dirty Love" and Steve Buscemi's "Lonesome Jim," as well as for two competition titles, Mike Mills' "Thumbsucker," which features Keanu Reeves in a supporting role, and Noah Baumbach's dysfunctional family drama "The Squid and the Whale," with buyers planning to take another look at the films today.

I've now seen it twice and it's great great great. Gets better the more you see it.  All showings are sold out as is his show with Yo La Tengo tonight.  At the premiere Toby McGuire (Spiderman) was seated 3 seats down from Daniel and he told someone connected with the film that "it's the best movie I've ever seen".

I'll write more when I get back to Austin in a couple of days.

Great great great ! I hope it sells everywhere , talk about spreading the word :)

The buzz is on...

VARIETY.COM

No biz like snow biz

By CATHY DUNKLEY, IAN MOHR, Wed., Jan. 26, 2005, 4:48pm PT

Sundance Film Festival

PARK CITY -- Execs began packing their bags -- many of them stuffed with pics -- at Sundance on Wednesday as the fest began to wind down and further deals closed behind condo doors.

Universal specialty arm Focus Features, headed by David Linde and James Schamus, made its first acquisition of the fest, picking up North American rights to dramatic competition entry "On a Clear Day" for around $2 million from Cinetic Media and sales agent Icon Entertainment Intl. Icon Film Distribution is releasing pic in the U.K. and Australia.

Focus had been in the mix on the bidding for a number of high-profile films.

On the heels of grabbing this year's biggest headlines so far at Sundance -- by acquiring the John Singleton-produced "Hustle & Flow" with MTV Films -- Paramount was said to be one of several buyers, along with Lions Gate and Focus, interested in Slamdance opener "Mad Hot Ballroom."

Being sold here by Cinetic, the dance docu "Mad Hot" had its second Park City screening Tuesday and unexpectedly kicked up a bidding war.

Focus' "Clear Day" is Gaby Dellal's feature debut. Starring Peter Mullan and Brenda Blethyn, pic centers on a 55-year-old man, laid off from his job in a Glasgow shipyard, who seeks to soothe his strained familial relations and shore up his self-confidence by swimming the English Channel. Pic opened the fest for Sundance in Salt Lake City, while Don Roos' "Happy Endings" unspooled in Park City.

"Clear Day" is the only British feature in competition at this year's fest.

After "Hustle," Noah Baumbach's "The Squid and the Whale" was perhaps the pic most hotly tipped for a Park City pickup. But while "Hustle" closed mere hours after it made its Park City preem over the weekend, "Squid" was taking a bit longer to close; a bevy of buyers are interested.

Meanwhile, several buyers including Warner Independent were interested in Amy Sedaris pic "Strangers With Candy," though there was no deal in place Wednesday. Likewise, Sony Pictures Classics and others were said to be looking at "Brick," but no one has picked it up.

Other pics were in play: There were numerous offers in on "The Devil and Daniel Johnston," Jeff Feuerzeig's docu portrait of a musical genius; Phil Morrison's "Junebug," starring Embeth Davidtz and Alessandro Nivola; and Jenny McCarthy starrer "Dirty Love."

Studio execs in Los Angeles were understood to be taking a look at "Thumbsucker," being sold at the fest by UTA.

Rupert Murray docu "Unknown White Male," comedy doc "The Aristocrats" and doc "The Education of Shelby Knox" also were likely to sell by the end of the festival. "Male," the story of an amnesia victim who is piecing his life back together, has a raft of offers so far from film distribs and TV nets alike. Two studios are vying for remake rights.[/u][/b]

any chance of showing this film in europe?

Berlin Film Festival in February.

http://parkcity.indiewire.com/onthescene/archives/000165.html

Much Ado About Documentaries

By Sarah Keenlyside

It dawned on me today as I was going over what films I’d seen that I almost exclusively watched documentaries at Sundance this year. This was not intentional. Thinking back, the majority of buzz I overheard around town was about the non-fiction films at the festival. Then I recalled that about 6 years ago, when the House of Docs was first launched at Sundance, I wrote a piece for indieWIRE about how docs "rarely make front page news…" My how things have changed.

I discussed the doc situation with my ex-colleague Kimberley Brown, managing editor for RealScreen magazine, a documentary trade publication. "I think we’re definitely starting to see more cinematic approaches to documentary, and that was reinforced at Sundance this year," she said.


I could see evidence of this on many levels – from rich soundtracks (as in "Why We Fight"), to high production values ("Rize"), to lush montage sequences (particularly evident in both "Unknown White Male" and "The Devil and Daniel Johnston"). Moreover, many of the films this year moved at a relaxed pace, as though they were constructed without concern for the constraints of the "television hour." ("The Devil and Daniel Johnston" came in at a whopping 109 minutes.)


Many questions have sprung to mind. Did Michael Moore put docs on the map? Or was it HBO? Has recent festival doc programming contributed? Are more filmmakers finding alternative sources for funding feature docs than broadcast presales and acquisitions? And has the rise of reality television contributed to the documentary’s surge in popularity?


"It’s interesting that three standout docs this year came from video diaries," says Brown noting that these kind of docs have the effect of reality television without the guilt. "They’re more real than reality TV." "The Devil and Daniel Johnston," "Unknown White Male" and "Grizzly Man" all utilized found footage to construct their narratives. This was also true of last year’s hit "Tarnation."


It's just a thought, but perhaps these films worked out so well because a lot of the winning footage was already in the can before production started. Or rather, inside a bunch of green garbage bags in Daniel Johnston’s parents’ garage.


But in spite of all the buzz at the festival, and all their cinematic virtues, will these films go on to clean up at the box office? Only time will tell…

http://www.filmthreat.com/Reviews.asp?Id=6812

Who should I contact to try to show the film in Paris?
thanks
Pascal

http://www.sltrib.com/utah/ci_2538251

so i get the sundance channel on my tv! woo hoo!!! theyre doin this show which has updates from the festival they showed brief  little snippets from the movie while talkin to the director man... young dan on stage old dan on stage dan cleanin tables at mcdonalds during the show they were interviewing the directors with some of their subjects... but no director man and dan... :cry: the shows gonna be on the next few days so if you dont have the sundance channel dont worry ill keep you posted :|

Congratulations to Jeff Feuerzeig for winning Best Director at the 2005 Sundance Film Festival.

REALLY ?! wow. amazing.

That pretty much means that the film will be seen by a much wider audience. Just thinking about it is quite moving.

Well done to all..  :D

yes it's true. Jeff Feuerzeig was the winner of the documentary directing award.
You can read about the winners in this pdf-file:

http://festival.sundance.org/2005/docs/05Awards.pdf

2005 Sundance Film Festival

Welcome to the NyQuil VIP Room
To catch everything at Sundance, you need a corporate sponsor, a bulletproof immune system and the ability to bend the laws of time and space.

- - - - - - - - - - - -
By Heather Havrilesky



Jan. 28, 2005  |  PARK CITY, Utah -- "Our lives are so boring, normally. We just really love movies." A woman on the bus is explaining to the woman next to her how she landed in Park City with her family. "We also stalk celebrities," she says brightly. "It gets expensive, so we call it 'Stalking Celebrities With the American Express Card.'"

"Have you told American Express about this?" another guy on the bus pipes in. "I'm sure they'd get onboard with the concept in a second."
 

Assigning corporate sponsorships to everything you see is one of the stranger side effects of Sundance. After a few days of walking by the Heineken Green Room or the Motorola Splinter Cell Late Night Lounge or the Shutterfly VIP room, you start to suspect that life can't be experienced fully without a corporate behemoth footing the bill. Even the gossip columns dutifully recite the brand names of festival locations like obedient little schoolgirls.

 

After scarfing down a dish of mini-ravioli between screenings, I've taken to calling our kitchen the Chef Boyardee Lounge. This makes me feel less pathetic for being holed up in the condo, and it takes my mind off the fact that there are ads flashing on flat-screen TVs somewhere out there, and an assortment of smartly packaged breath mints and trial-size face creams waiting for me to just reach out and grab them. But even nursing a burgeoning bout of the Sundance flu in bed isn't so bad, as long as I think of it as relaxing in the NyQuil VIP Room.

At Sundance, no matter where you are, you're always missing something. Every night in the wee hours, my roommate Ray returns to the condo with a big bag of swag. While I tend to scurry home after my fourth screening of the day to finish transcribing an interview or drafting a piece, Ray is the late-night master of free food and free stuff, and every time he drags out his latest goody bag packed with odds and ends, I examine its contents jealously. Sure, I could take or leave the "Pleasure Wipes" and the little earmuffs that don't even fit on my head, but the deep conditioner and the really cool green "Trudell" T-shirt and the glittery pink eye shadow make my heart beat a little faster.

Unlike Ray, one of the only extended detours I take from a schedule of back-to-back screenings and interviews occurs on Wednesday afternoon, when I descend into the depths of the ASCAP Music Cafe, hoping to get a good spot on the floor before Rickie Lee Jones performs an hour or so later. ASCAP stands for the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers -- not exactly the sort of glowering commercial pimp you find elsewhere -- and the Music Cafe is one of the real treats of Sundance, with square, squishy seats and places to sit on the floor right in front of the stage. Sadly, Rickie Lee Jones never appears -- somehow, during the two hours I'm there on the floor, running through songs like "Little Yellow Town" and "Stewart's Coat" in my head in anticipation, no one announces that she won't be performing. Eventually the substitute headliner says something about how intimidating it is to be standing in for Jones, and I creep out, disappointed, during the next song.

Luckily, the premiere party for "The Devil and Daniel Johnston" is just across the street in the Volkswagen Main Street Lounge, which is sort of like an art gallery filled with massive Volkswagen logos, the back end of a VW wagon, and a rug that looks like a collage of floor mats. The crowd gathered to celebrate Jeff Feuerzeig's entertaining documentary about songwriter Johnston is in good spirits, not surprising since the film is considered this year's "Super Size Me."

Speaking of fast food, there are McDonald's fries and hamburgers on platters at the party, in honor of Johnston's longtime job as a cashier at McDonald's. (Incredibly enough, when Johnston gained recognition, editors from Spin and other magazines would call him at McDonald's, since he didn't have a phone at home.)

At the party, Feuerzeig tells me he'd wanted to make a film about Johnston for years, but he'd been waiting for a third act in Johnston's life, as the musician disappeared from the public eye, spending time in and out of institutions due to his escalating battle with manic depression.

It proved to be well worth the wait, and Feuerzeig proved he had the patience to sort through piles of confessional audiotapes, home movies, artwork and hundreds of odd but impossibly catchy songs. Over the course of four years, Feuerzeig cobbled all of these artifacts together, along with some very moving interviews with friends and family, and the result is an imaginative and at times heartbreaking tribute to Johnston's life and work. Not only is Feuerzeig's film as inventive and outrageous as Johnston himself, but the filmmaker somehow manages to capture the strange quirks and charms of Johnston's cohorts and collaborators on film as well, choosing delectably odd first-person accounts over the more typical, tedious VH1-style testimonies of rock stars.

Johnston was performing later that night, but there was a long line outside, it was starting to rain and I was faint with hunger, so I escaped to Bandits down the street with some friends, where they offer a Kobe Burger described as follows:

"American Kobe beef patty that has been raised on beer and hand-massaged daily to make meat extra tender."

When I ordered the Kobe Burger, though, the waitress informed me that they were all out. "Really? That means there must be a masseuse back there, and a few extra pitchers of beer as well. Can you bring them out here instead?"

Clearly exhausted by the antics of pushy city types, the waitress redirected me to the Bandit Burger, which I promptly ordered, much to my regret. The patty tasted like it had been raised on charcoal briquettes and kicked daily with a muddy boot.

By the time we emerged from a disappointing meal, Johnston had already gone offstage after a short set, which just goes to show you that at Sundance, no matter how much you plan, you're always going to miss something. But chances are, festival-goers who've been stalking the latest indie hits with their credit cards won't miss "The Devil and Daniel Johnston" when they pass out the awards on Saturday night.

salon.com

By Dave Poland

Thank God that there have been some really good movies in the last couple of days. But the devil is a lot more fun.

If there is a masterpiece at Sundance this year, it's Jeff Feuerzeig's The Devil and Daniel Johnston.

It's amazing how many people wrote off this doc because of the catalog description. I guess that it is the price of maing a film about a guy that few Sundancers have ever heard of and describing him as a "musical genius." Put up or shut up. I was one of those who didn't know about Daniel Johnston's genius career. But after an hour or so of this film, I was not only aware, I was a believer.

But not only is the story of this dangerously manic depressive artist fascinating, the execution of the storytelling by Mr. Feuerzeig is elegant and complex, incredibly showy without ever seeming to try to be more interesting than the film's subject. Feuerzeig has only made one other film, a dozen years ago, about the band Half-Japanese… one member of which, by no coincidence, had collaborated with Daniel Johnston. But the skill Feuerzeig shows here is just amazing, bringing the barren melancholia, as well as the humor of Johnston's work to us in a way that makes the emotional experience unavoidable.

Feuerzeig's film is the latest quality example of the new genre of Self-Verite Documentaries. This group includes films like Andrew Jarecki's Capturing The Friedmans, John Dullaghan's Bukowski: Born Into This, Billy Corben's Raw Deal: A Question of Consent, and last year's Sundance surprise from Jonathan Couette, Tarnation. None of these films could have been made without a lot of footage taken on Super 8 or video by the subjects of the docs… none of whom actually directed their own stories.

Of course, the quality of the director's vision and skill are every bit as important as the raw footage. About half way through this film, I started thinking about how many horrible films we are about to see being submitted to (and sometimes accepted by) film festivals that are based on the home videos that have become ubiquitous in the era of relatively cheap video cameras.

So why is The Devil and Daniel Johnston so amazing? Well, it is the symbiotic use of Johnston's art work and his music, filling the eyes and ears so intensely that it fills the heart. This is the tale of a man who is deeply loved by the people in his life… and who have to put up with a great deal of trouble created by his illness. The music is fascinating, seemingly incompetent at first, but more and more beautiful as you get a chance to really listen to the lyrics. Feuerzeig uses lots and lots of taped dialogue over which he fearlessly loads visual imagery, never stuck to the traditional style of dealing with taped info. He even risks a harsh "click" at the end of some tapes that serves as a great filmic period to those tapes.

And of course, there is the subject. My first reaction to the film is that Fox Searchlight is the perfect studio to release this film, since for all intents and purposes, this is a real-life version of Napoleon Dynamite and the cult audience, which Searchlight built for Napoleon as effectively as any movie studio ever has, is ripe for the embrace of this movie. Not only is this a great doc, but it is fully capable of becoming one of the great college cult films of all time. Daniel Johnston is, after all, a kid from a small town who never gave up on his dreams and overcame not only his parents' disapproval, but the revolt of his own body and mind. Not only do you come to really respect his work in this film, you find a form of love for this damaged soul.

Not only was I thrilled to get the double CD of his work from the press office after seeing the film, but I can't wait to see him play live here in Park City later this week.

But I still don't feel like I've really expressed what is so very special about this film. And I'm not sure that I can…. maybe after I've seen it a few more times. Every time you think that it isn't going to get you, it grabs you tighter. This is a guy who couldn't handle cleaning tables at McDonald's but still managed to push his way onto MTV. This is a guy who obsesses on Casper The Friendly Ghost and Captain America, but raises their artistry to new levels in a way we are used to seeing from Warhol or Basquiat. This is a guy who is considered a genius, but who has lived with his parents for most of his life.

Entertaining. Challenging. Compelling. Magic.

So many questions...
 
What did Daniel's family think of the film?
Did any other famous faces check out the movie?  
When can we see a trailer?

from http://www.timeout.com/film/news/268.html

Day five: Cult musician Daniel Johnston hits the big screen; and Time Out meets Jamie Bell, Thomas Vinterberg, Tilda Swinton and Mike Mills.

Sometimes, one event can make the entire trip to a far-flung film festival worthwhile. Monday night's screening at Sundance of Jeff Feuerzeig's music documentary 'The Devil and Daniel Johnston' achieved exactly that.

Daniel Johnston is a 43-year-old outsider singer-songwriter and manic depressive who has built a cult following since his early days in the mid-1980s performing in Austin, Texas while simultaneously holding down a day job at McDonald's.

Feuerzeig's compassionate film draws on Johnston's obsessive audio-taping of his life and work to tell us his extraordinary story, with interviews from his family and many who have known and worked with him over the past three decades.

The result is superb: a complex and balanced portrait that celebrates and reveals a character who has remained an enigma for years.

Johnston and his family, including his elderly parents, attended the film's premiere, watching Feuerzeig's documentary for the first time. They were clearly moved by the experience, remaining motionless in their seats as the rest of the audience filtered out. [/snip]

by Dave Calhoun

http://www.sundanceonlinefilmfestival.org/2005/index.aspx

Check out the Daniel Johnston section.  Quite moving, plus a few  great interviews.

Freakin' Gosh (part 1): Great great news about Daniel Dale Johnston's little movie! I predict within a year, "Daniel Johnston" will be a verb in our collective hipster dialect. A long time ago, Craig Czury, a fellow poet friend of mine said, "It aint real until you see it on T.V." Well, if the big screen counts (and I would certainly say it does), IT'S REAL!!!

Freakin' Gosh (part 2): MTV (whatever...) covers the Sundance Film Festival on its website. Promotes blatant misogyny and racist stereotypes by headlining "Pimp" film, doesn't even mention "The Devil and Daniel Johnston!" See for yourself, if you are so inclined: http://www.mtv.com/movies/news/articles/1496408/01312005/story.jhtml

PS- What's this about the 2 CD set being passed around Sundance as a promotional item? Is it left over copies of Gammon's "Benefit" tribute? Yikes!

Some loved it and others didn't. Daniel was very pleased.

At the premiere Toby McGuire was seated 3 seats from Daniel and was heard to say that it was the best documentary he had ever seen. After the second screening John C. Reilly (Boogie Nights and Mr. Cellophane in Chicago) told Daniel he loved him.

Could someone possibly post a direct link to the Daniel section? I clicked on the above link and it's still not easy to find Daniel.

That would be cool! That site is really confusing only picture I found was the one of Daniel holding Yip/Jump that is already posted on the front page!!!


Someone PLEASE tell me the CD that was being given away was not the Gammon tribute!

The cds that were given away as promos were purchased from Gammon and I believe Gammon did give the filmmakers a decent price.

We sold them 1,000 CD's at cost.  I don't think you can get a better price then that?!

Big Business Monkey!

There are plenty of legitimate reasons to be unhappy with Gammon but I don't see how this is one of them.  The movie producers wanted to purchase a large number of cds to use as promos and Gammon let them go at cost. This is a good thing, not a bad thing.

By the way, does anybody here know who the song Big Business Monkey is really about?

Austin, TX (AP): Federal agents and local police this morning surrounded the home of art dealer and Satanic cult leader Jiffy Tartarsauce, demanding that he come out peacefully and surrender to them, whereupon he was arraigned on charges of "trolling for accomplices on the internet".  Detectives scanning the world wide web discovered a post by Tartarsauce in which he asked the question "By the way, does anybody here know who the song Big Business Monkey is really about?". A spokesman for the APD says that law enforcement officals are also looking for another poster, whom they say had replied to Tartarsauce's question with the statement "I do, but I'm sure there are very few others here who know the story behind the early classic Daniel Johnston tune! Why don't you share it with everyone?" Asked what the APD planned to do if they were able to apprehend the second suspect, whom they say had identified himself only as "Not Daniel", the spokesman replied that he would be charged as an accomplice, and also reprimanded for fabricating Associate Press wire reports.

Ha! Can I acquire the movie rights to THIS story???

Jeff, it's funny how you always find away to take a shot at me.  You never stop.  I think this is just a sign of a very simple mind.  Don't you know how to stop?  You'll send me e-mails telling me how happy you are to hear from me, how the world is doing you wrong and all is good between us. You are so full of ****. You just need people to focus on you because you really have a very small and sad life.  I hope to see you face to face at SXSW, we should have a beer and try to clear thing us...one way or another, right?

Jordy - first of all why don't you watch your language? There are young people reading this and when you fly off the handle you're not doing yourself any good.

Secondly I THOUGHT I was defending you. If you disagree so be it. I take it you dispute my saying there were legitimate reasons to be unhappy with Gammon which was missing the point of my post. So you think there are no reasons - coming from a guy who released a cd with more blatant typos than anyone has ever seen you don't have a lot of credibility. You couldn't even spell the names of two of the artists correctly! There was absolutely NO excuse for that.

As for my emailing you - yes we had one cordial exchange. I had planned on keeping it cordial from now on but your post makes that difficult. Please tell me again which part of my post was not correct or cordial. And I don't recall ever telling you the world was doing me wrong. I love this world and am working as hard as I can to make it better. What are you doing?

Trust me, I love drama in TV shows like OZ or 24, but this routine between Stress & Gammon gets old.  Do you have to do this on a message board for the world to read?  Can’t you two go to a therapist or get some counselling?  Or maybe find a new obsession?  I say you two get a web camera and let us watch a juicy fight online.  We’d pay good money for it.  Just let us know where to sign up.

Maybe someone can document it and possibly screen the video at next year’s Slamdance festival.

Those in the San Francisco area can see the film this Sunday night at The Roxie as part of the San Francisco Independent Film Festival.

My finances did not allow me the trip to Sundance (they barely allow me a trip down the mountain to get groceries, these days!) ... so, beyond the award, how'd it go? Did Daniel perform?

And I think it's great that Gammon sold 1000 copies of the Tribute CD at cost to help promote Daniel's music... bravo! That's what we're all here for, after all :-).

Jeff, I'm sure we'll work this out.  See you at SXSW.

I take it all back,I take it all back!

Why wood you maek fun of anywon's spelling?? :lol:

yuck

Well, I meant to write this alot sooner, but all that damn snow in Park City didn't help my immune system & I've been nursing a nasty cold I picked up during Sundance, but now that I'm recovering, I wanted to write and share my incredible experiences with everyone that wasn't able to be at the movie Premiere.
I was lucky enough to be invited by a friend that had some strong ties with the movie, and was ecstatic to find myself staying with not only the big guy himself, but Daniel's entire family and the heart and soul of the movie, Jeff and Henry. This was a great, great group of people, and the aura around the house was without compare. Daniel was in a great mood, very cheerful and happy, and it was great seeing him so perky.
I was so excited to finally see the movie that I'd heard so much about. I found myself sitting almost directly behind Daniel in the theater, and was anxious to be able to see his reaction to the movie as well. Right before the movie started, Toby McGuire and his escort were seated just a couple of seats away from me, which was impressive, but not nearly as impressive as when he found out that he was sitting just as few seats down from Daniel...he looked absolutely awestruck, nudging his date and whispering...it was great to think of a Hollywood Star being intimidated by being near Daniel :) Anyways, the movie was shown, and it was awesome. So full of insight into the life, the music, the people that are all a part of Daniel...the story is one that we have grown familiar with, being DJ fans, but seeing it is just so different from reading it...
Daniel seemed to enjoy it, and Jeff and Henry got a great audience reaction, and the question and answer period was enjoyable. The second showing of the movie the following day was just as great, hell, even greater...Daniel and his family were brought onto the stage and introduced afterwards, and Daniel's responses to the audience's questions were quite memorable, and made the evening. Afterwards, standing around the outside of the theater with Daniel, I was witness to John C. Reilly himself coming up to Daniel to introduce himself and say how much he enjoyed the movie. Being a fan of John, I was impressed by this, and was overjoyed at seeing it happen.
Wednesday afternoon, there was a quick party, sponsored by McDonalds and Mountain Dew, of course, which was alot of fun, and I met some fascinating people. Afterwards, we went across the street, and saw Daniel perform. Personally, I didn't think it was Daniel's best performance, but it was still good. Quick, but that's Daniel. He came back and played one song on the piano that was the highlight of the show, and then it was on to Yo La Tengo...another good performance, but again, I have seen them play better as well. When Daniel joined them for "Speeding motorcycle", they brought the audience down. Daniel got very into the song and at one point, got so into it that the house went wild...this few minutes definately made up for the rest of the show. But then again, I'd spent the last couple of days seeing and hearing Daniel practice, at the dining room table, in his room...something that most of the audiece were not able to experience, and that is definately some memories I'll hold onto to...kinda like having a private concert by Daniel...wow :) What a lucky goil I am....
The next day was my third screening of the movie, and I found myself more emotional each time I saw it. Not to tears, but close. This time, after the movie was over, Jeff and Henry brought Jeff Tartakov to the stage, intoducing him as "the other person I made this movie for". The movie very much portrays Jeff in an excellent way, showing us all his dedication, his love for Daniel, and the horribly unfair turn of events that went down between Daniel and Jeff. Like I said, one may know the story, but seeing it in the movie really opens your eyes to things in a much different way, and seeing the story behind Stress records was enlightning indeed.
Altogether, the trip was the most incredible experience imaginable Daniel, Jeff Feuerzeig, Henry Rosenthal, Jeff Tartakov, Dick Johnston (who had the balls to pick a fight with Jeff F. late that first night...what an argument THAT was to overhear!), Fortune, Don, Tyler...what an incredible group of men, what a film. I hope you all get to see this movie as soon as possible, and trust me, it's worth the wait! So, hope this provided a little insight for those unfortunate enough to not be able to attend this years sundance, and boy, I can't wait till SXSW!!!!!!

thank you

thank you so much

and from me .many thanks. It's great these days that we can all share in this over the internet.

hot post, thank you very much.

just a little info 4 u:

Berlinale Panorama section title, "The Devil and Daniel Johnston," a Sundance doc competition entry, has found a UK home, landing at Tartan Films, according to Screen's festival daily, while Cinetic Media is in the still in the process of securing a U.S. deal for the movie.

http://2005.indiewire.com/biz/archives/000218.html

:D  YES! thanks for that info.

Tartan films are one of the main arthouse distributors in the uk - hopefully they'll give the film the treatment it deserves ... theatrical release , DVD , etc.

(Hint hint , it would go well on BBC4 one day !! )

Hey we're aproaching France....

The latest info on screening dates including times is available on the Museum of Love's Read Me First page.

http://www.museumoflove.com

Just wanted to say Hiya...

...am new to Dan's music/art...got into it when I read that Sundance gave an award to a documentary about an artist with manic depression, as I have an older sis who is also M-D...

I then researched Dan on-line, listened to some snippets of his tunes...got hooked...bought some CDs, then art - Hi Jeff ! ;-)

Saw the film at the SF Indie Fest...was beyond my expectations...I can't wait for the DVD.

Just wanted to say "Hi" and that I have enjoyed reading your posts.

Gina

PS - Hoping to see Dan perform live one day -

Just displaying my avitar choice.
Am a member now 8)
 Yipee!

...make that av-a-tar....and where did that 'lazy Bum' come from?
Wasn't my choice...will try to fix it...

Help, I've got a lazy bum stuck on my profile! ....

Oh, well. guess I'll have to be known as a lazy bum...dang!
G :oops:

Hey...now I've got another non-selected avatar stuck to the one a chose...YIPPEE!

Much better than the lazy bum...

thanks, cyber space...

Gina164-

Hey! Interesting "In" to Daniel's music...
From reading an article about Sundance and Manic Depression to Yip! Jump Fan Forum. Welcome! (What is that on the adorable pussycat's head? A lime? A Green Orange? I love it.)

Anyway, you mention you picked up a few CDs...which ones?

Not to make too much a metaphor of this, but after one tape (Hi! How Are You?) I needed more. Tape after tape came in the mail. I searched the internet (this was during the dark ages, when a google search would yeild maybe 6 hits on "Daniel Johnston," and most of those where for a Goat Farmer in Montana) and studied the bins throughout obscure Philadelphia record shops. I am now in recovery, only after having everything "Daniel" I could get my obsessive fingers on, but no matter what may come and go, I will always list Daniel Johnston as my favorite.

Good Luck finding what you are looking for, and enjoy the millions of scatter-brained postings of the Fan Forum!

Say Hi to kitty!

The avatar above the one you chose is a post count one.  It will change depending on how many posts you have.  I believe if you get to 50 it will change, or 100, I'm not sure.

Thank you for the warm welcome, Henry...(and Jeff ;-) )....
and also for the 'extra avatar' explanation, Stallion....

"Lazy bum" now makes sense......
I like "Yippee," though...but, not enough that it will keep me from posting more and chancing whatever add'l avatar will be tagged onto my kitty with the lime helmet...That one is too cute, huh?


So, Henry...are your 'from' Philly? Thanks for sharing about yourself...I enjoyed learning about another 'Dan fan.'

My history:
I was born in Philadelphia and lived in the city 'til age 11...then lived in Yardley, PA 'til 15 (along Delaware River)...then in L.A. area (Palos Verdes peninsula) 'til age 17...

Have since lived in Westwood Village (UCLA undergrad), then Redondo Beach, then Memphis, TN (Univ of Memphis grad school), then back to LA again (taught elementary school in South Central LA - pre and post riots), then 3 years at Altus Air Force Base, Oklahoma (AKA 'the middle of nowhere') when my hubby at the time began his career as a clinical psychologist in the AF, then to San Antonio for his post-PhD Fellowship program...got amicably divorced there (no kids), stayed there as a single person, taught there, remarried there, and divorced again there (for 9 years I actually lived closer to Dan's music, but not close enough to have learned of him in SA at that time)...

...anyway, then I moved on to Northern Cal (Bay area) one year ago this March 7th, to join up with some family that had migrated North from Southern Cal...to be an auntie, since I have no kiddos.

Anyway, I am now happily in love again...I took 'him' (Paul) to see the film with me...he enjoyed it, and now understands why I 'got into' Dan's music and art...(since he knows my family and has visited my disabled sis with me)...

So...there's 'me in a nutshell'...gee, that sounds like it could be a title to one of Dan's pieces of artwork...


I like him so much...it's funny...He is the first artist/performer that I have have a genuine sense of who he really is...so much so, that I truly like him and would befriend him, no questions asked, if I met him...kinda weird...never felt like that before about any other singer/artist...guess that's the thing about mental ilness...you can't hide your core when you're falling apart in front of a camera...you can't help but be 'you'...'all of you'...

Because of my sister's life, and being so close in age to her, and from seeing her go through so many similar experiences as Dan, I can't help but 'feel' for Dan, and I also want to thank him for  sharing his reality through his music and art (I actually sent him an e-mail saying thank you)...

...a reality that 'most normal people' have loads of defense mechanisms built up to 'deal with'/avoid/become oblivious to, etc...

It takes courage to face reality....even more so for those with mental illness...to work through it in front of others takes even more courage...

So, even though I know that I haven't met Dan in person, I feel as if I have...I feel I know him better than many people I have met in person, and even some I have known my entire life! That's amazing...

Well...there's 'my connection,' I guess...

I also hope that "The Alliance  for the Mentally Ill" (AMI) will help to promote the film among their members.
I know that my parents benefitted greatly from going to AMI meetings, to help them through my sister's trials with M-D...
And, I also know that seeing the film was cathartic for me, as a sibling of a manic-depressive...If/when it comes out on DVD, it would be great to see some families of other mentally ill people give their reactions to the film...I feel the film will add to raising awareness of the mentally ill, and those who are/have been close to 'them'...

Well...thanks for listening...
Time to go pick up my 4-year-old niece...am 'baby'-sitting tonight.

Oh...Henry...you asked what CDs I got...

I have:

Songs of Pain
Lucky Sperms
1990
Discovered Covered

And now 11 tapes, too (Hi, again, Jeff!)

Adios, amigos...until next time -
Gina

http://www.indiewire.com/biz/biz_050323sony.html

Sony Classics Adds to Slate, Closing "2046" Deal & More

by Eugene Hernandez

Wong Kar-Wai's striking new film, "2046," is finally coming to America, with a deal for the film announced ten months after the film had its tumultuous world premiere at the 2004 Cannes Film Festival. The company, which has also announced a pact for Neil Jordan's "Breakfast on Pluto" and is said to be pursuing Jeff Feuerzeig's "The Devil and Daniel Johnston," has apparently set an autumn release date for Wong Kar-Wai's new film that will have its U.S. premiere next month at the Tribeca Film Festival.

"2046" premiered late at Cannes 2004, missing its festival debut when the film was not quite ready; Wong brought the movie to Cannes late and unveiled the film amidst critical complaints that it felt unfinished. He later re-worked the film before it opened in China at the end of September. Some U.S. fans have already caught a glimpse of the anticipated new movie via Asian DVDs on sale even here in New York City video stores or online.


Describing the film, which in many parts bore a strong resemblance to his last movie, "In the Mood for Love," Wong Kar-Wai said at a Cannes press conference, "The film is actually a portrait of a person who is trying to get away from his past -- the more you try to forget it, the more you remember it, maybe one day the past or the memory will leave you." The title marks the year 50 years after the handover of Hong Kong back to China. "How you deal with your past (is) not only about a person, it can be a city, it can be about anything," Wong summed up. Fortissimo represented the film and negotiated the sale.

Last week, Sony Classics also announced a deal for North American, Latin American, German, and South African rights to Neil Jordan's "Breakfast on Pluto," starring Cillian Murphy, Stephen Rea, Brendan Gleeson and Bryan Ferry.

Finally, SPC is understood to be in pursuit of Jeff Feuerzeig's doc "The Devil and Daniel Johnston," while a deal has not yet been confirmed. The film, which premiered at Sundance 2005 and also screened at SXSW, will screen next Wednesday and Friday at New Directors/New Films in Manhattan.

Gina164
GREAT POST!!! Good to see new fans on the board and even nicer when they tell a little about themselves!! See a few new fans on the board but its usually a few lines then we never hear from them again. Stick around!

Here's an updated list of screenings:

Film Society of Lincoln Center's New Directors/New Films Series

March 30  New York City  6:00 PM at The Museum of Modern Art
April 1      New York City  8:45 PM at The Museum of Modern Art

Nashville Film Festival

April 17    Nashville  9:30 at The Regal Green Hills Cinemas (Theater 16)
April 19    Nashville  9:30 at The Regal Green Hills Cinemas (Theater 16)

The April 19th screening in Nashville will be at 12:30 PM and not 9:30. Stupid Devil!  :lol:

NYTIMES REVIEW

Stephen Holden sucks eggs.  

---

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/03/29/movies/29dire.html

Behold the Hodgepodge: Weird Heroes, Sorry Lives and Even (Yes) Beauty

By STEPHEN HOLDEN, MANOHLA DARGIS and A. O. SCOTT

Published: March 29, 2005



In its final stretch, the New Directors/New Films festival continues to offer up a tasting menu of the good, the respectable and the forgettable. Now in its 34th year, this joint venture of the Film Society of Lincoln Center and the department of film and media at the Museum of Modern Art remains a valuable if not necessarily essential resource for those who like a little bite (if not too much) to their art-house fare.

One of the truisms of the movie marketplace is that even as big companies have been swallowed up by multinationals there has been a modest but nonetheless notable increase in the number of independent outlets. In New York you can find alternatives to multiplex fodder every day of the week in the form of festivals, special screenings and programs like the recently completed Film Comment Selects, a mix of the old (dusted-off classics by veterans like Alain Tanner) and the new (outrages by the sizzling-hot likes of Takashi Miike) from the bimonthly magazine published by the Film Society of Lincoln Center.

It's hard to know how New Directors fits into this changing landscape. It touts itself as "one the country's premier showcases for the work of fresh and unsung international and American filmmakers." That is a generous appraisal, even by flack standards. This year's event includes a handful of local premieres, but 19 of the 25 features were shown last year at other events, including the February 2004 Berlin film festival. More problematic is the festival's claim to fresh and unsung work, as 10 of the features this year already have American distribution. Indeed, two of the stronger entries, "Kontroll" and "Primo Amore," are opening soon in New York. (Reviews of these films will appear this week.)

More intelligently packaged than some higher-profile festivals, New Directors/New Films has neither a clear curatorial focus nor a plausible mandate. Like many festivals these days, it weighs in as a hodgepodge of the slick and the crude, the cynical and the sincere, with the usual lineup of bad boys and wayward hotties. Of course good, even very good films are shown and the festival's commitment to a spectrum of international work remains commendable, particularly given how tough it is to sell contemporary audiences on foreign-language cinema. But it is open to debate whether a grab bag of Kind of New Directors and Not Really New Films really represents the best efforts from two of the city's most important film institutions.

'The Devil and Daniel Johnston'
Directed by Jeff Feuerzeig
6 p.m. tomorrow, the Museum of Modern Art; 8:45 p.m. Friday, the Museum of Modern Art


The word "genius" is applied so promiscuously to the singer, songwriter, cartoonist and filmmaker Daniel Johnston in this documentary portrait that you may be misled into thinking that the subject is, if not the reincarnation of Leonardo da Vinci, at least worthy of mention in the same breath with the Beatles. If there are signs of raw talent in the work of this prolific artist who writes childlike ditties with titles like "Casper, the Friendly Ghost" and sings in the yelp of a wounded puppy, none suggest anything approaching genius. Prolonged infantilism? Yes. Psychotic grandiosity? Yes. Adoration by fans who confuse brilliance with madness? Definitely. Brought up in a Christian fundamentalist family in Virginia, Mr. Johnston has waged a lifelong struggle against manic depression. He became the darling of the underground rock scene in Austin, Tex., and attracted the endorsement of musicians like Sonic Youth and Kurt Cobain. This well made but fawning documentary is symptom of a tendency in the United States to equate weirdness with artistic brilliance. HOLDEN

Holden is a long time hater so this was to be expected.

Huh. I thought that Entertainment Weekly's Owen Gleiberman (who recently wrote: "[Daniel Johnston] demonstrates about as much talent as Chauncey Gardiner") was the last of the old "asshole for the sake of being an-asshole" school of film reviewers.

Admittedly, if there a notable flaw to the movie, it's that the choice of songs heard throughout doesn't include a lot of tunes that a first-time listener would recognize immediately as being simply tip-top songwriting. The last five or ten minutes almost seem like an attempt to make up for this, with the full-length play of the lovely and accessible "Held the Hand" and "Some Things Last a Long Time." For that reason, it seems like there should've been a complete K. McCarty cut included in there somewhere, like Living Life or some other key track from Dead Dog's Eyeball.

  - still Not Daniel after all these years

http://www.aintitcool.com/display.cgi?id=19760

Let's send this guy hate mail in the form of trannie porn.

...let's send something else  :roll:

Laura the tranny and DJ fan ...

Wow. what a lot of vitriol from the AICN guy.  To write like that he must have had a strong reaction to the film. He's probably just trying to be hip -in-reverse.

er, ok, i am also "Laura the tranny" here./.. just another aspect of my personality. If this seems weird don't worry about it, just that there are are a hell of a lot of different people on this earth

//and we can all get along.

Db / L

Keeping it going for Daniel, which is why were all here.....

did u mean miss laura the trannie from austin, texas?  aka u.l. moses?  long live the pink flamingo!

we get everywhere :wink:

thanks for mentioning the full-play songs there (about three posts before this). i was about to ask if anyone knew what the song was called, to which daniel was dancing very excentric at the end of the film. but you say "held the hand"? that's nice. i loved it. and everyone who haven't seen it yet: watch your backs! it will blow you away, eventually.

and hello, i'm new. calling from copenhagen.

love.

Jeesh - I just finally noticed that and clicked the link. Some quotes follow:

   "I listened to the music and I found it underwhelming in the extreme. There’s a kind of paranoid schizophrenia, one of whose symptoms is the sufferer’s repetition of the same melody over and over without change, and, I’m no doctor, but DJ probably has that condition: to say his song structures are “static” is to bend over backwards to be polite."

That's a valid critique of a thankfully tiny percentage of Daniel's songs, but like the NYT guy, I'm flummoxed as to how these people come to decide they can critically analyze a musician's entire ouvre using only the tunes they heard fractionally used in the background of a film!

   "His lyrics are the kind that are either artless and brilliant, or just artless, and to my way of thinking they’re the latter (though Funeral Home is better than most of them, though it’s basically nicely decorated self-absorbed teenage morbidity). "

Daniel does in some specific cases insist on intentionally being artless (or more accurately "craftless", if I'm following this guy's meaning at all) in favor of words and phrases that come "naturally". Overall, though, this statement is just plain dumbfounding in its ignorance... and WORSE, the guy wasn't even cognizant enough to nail "Funeral Home" for being a shame-less, one-joke Springsteen rip-off!!!

I was personally amused with the "reviewer'"s use of the phrase "dime-store Salieri" - but only because in my song "Artist Inside" (which is partly about Dan and partly about myself), I refer obliquely to my 'Not Daniel' persona with the chorus:

  Talent is a gift, God-given,
  And to steal it is a crime,
  But don't you know that everybody
  Is someone's Salieri at some time...

I'm really only on nodding terms with Harry "Ain't I Cool" Knowles and his cronies, but I may have to give HK a ring and ask whazzup with this Skulldrek yoyo. He's like an old Film Threater with the incisiveness replaced by aimless vitriol.

  - NotDan

If anyone cares, here's the entire lyrics to my song I mentioned:

ARTIST INSIDE

  There is no date of expiration,
  On a feeling pure and true.
  You're seeking sex and inspiration -
  Must be an artist inside you.

  Don't need to understand the question
  To know just where the answer lies.
  If I may make a brief suggestion - 
  Take refuge in the world behind your eyes.

You know your mind is something precious, and to waste it is a shame,
But don't you know that everybody is slowly driving someone else insane.

  I think I need a tape recorder.
  I'd take it with me everywhere I go.
  Not that I think that I'm a genius,
  But when the Great Thought* hits, you never know.

  I mean, what if you came up with a plan for World Peace,
  And then forgot it cuz you didn't write it down?
  But then again, someone'd just probably shoot you
  Before you could even hand your notes around.

Talent is a gift God-given, and to steal it is a crime,
But don't you know that everybody is someone's Salieri at some time.

  There is no date of expiration
  On a feeling pure and true.
  You're seeking sex and inspiration -
  Must be an artist inside you.

(Copyright KWL 1990-ish)

*(this is a reference to Dan's concept of the Great Tune, which comes down and bestows itself only on the one Artist who has perservered beyond all others in his quest for it)

Skoal, Copenhagen! It's Happy Days now that you're here!*

Held the Hand is off the "1990" album, and it's lyrics are deceptively simple, but the equally sparse melody and pounding piano/sweetened vocals combo make for a mighty powerful song! Along with "Don't Play Cards with Satan" it's probably the "devil song" in Dan's portfolio that most highly transcends its subject matter into a more universal beauty. And yep, it is the tune that Dan feverishly conducts, interpretively dances, and, er... aerobicizes to in the scene you mention.

  - NotDan

*(If nobody gets my pun - Copenhagen, Skoal, and Happy Days are all names of chewin' tobacco brands down here in Texas!)

i agree on the simple lyrics and everything, and yeah, the power of the song (and the dancing combined) pushed me back, almost through, my seat. and i researched and found out that it's on "1990" along with Somethings last a long time, so i am definately getting myself that record soon. but thank you for sorting it out though. about the record name. to help a new guy. arw i'm talking.

Thanks, Will :-)
glad you enjoyed what I shared -

...been a while since I have read posts on here...hope this finds everyone doing well...

Right now, I have a friend visiting from Sweden...I turned him on to Dan's music as we drove back up from Monterrey/Carmel to Oakland. He loved Dan's sense of humor, of course!

My friend's web site:

www.ichimusai.org

If you'd like, you can see some pics of his visit on there and read a little bit about his visit with me -

Wish I could have taken him to a DJ concert. though :-)
I do plan to get to Austin sometime soon, to catch Dan in person!

Take good care, everyone -
Gina

Any updates on the film?  Has it been officially picked up? 

What's the good word?