Dream State: California in the Movies
May 18, 2021 | 7:00 pm – 8:30 pm
Join renowned San Francisco Chronicle film critic Mick LaSalle as he takes us on a virtual journey into the mythology of California and its depiction in film. Part one-man show, part movie magic, this event promises to be an immersive experience.
LaSalle will venture through the historic Fox Theatre in Oakland, bringing to life clips from eminent films that are Californian in their ethos to show us the paradoxes of the California dream: it is always in sight but out of reach, glamorous but destructive, aspirational but vain. We take a virtual trip through genres and movies––from the Wizard of Oz to Vertigo––exploring the ways in which California influences film, film influences California, and they both influence the world.
Legendary Bay Area radio broadcaster and author Michael Krasny will introduce the event and moderate a live conversation with Mick LaSalle after the main event.
Register HereREPLAY AVAILABLE IF YOU CAN’T MAKE THE LIVE EVENT: If you can’t make the live program at 7pm PT, you can still join the conversation – but you need to register now! We’ll make the link viewable for everyone that registers, regardless of when you view it.
About the Speakers
Mick LaSalle
Mick LaSalle is the film critic for the San Francisco Chronicle. In the late 1990s he was the on-air film critic for the ABC-TV affiliate in San Francisco, KGO. He is the author of three previous books: Complicated Women: Sex and Power in Pre-Code Hollywood, a history and critical study of the actresses who worked during the pre-censorship era of 1929–1934; Dangerous Men: Pre-Code Hollywood and the Birth of the Modern Man; and The Beauty of the Real: What Hollywood Can Learn from Contemporary French Actresses. He wrote and coproduced the Complicated Women documentary for Turner Classic Movies, which was narrated by Jane Fonda. He has written introductions to several books, including The Enduring Star, Peter Cowie’s biography of Joan Crawford.
Michael Krasny
Dr. Krasny was the host of the award winning KQED FORUM, a program discussing news and public affairs, current events, culture, health, business and technology. FORUM can be heard daily on Northern California’s public radio station, KQED, as well as on Sirius/XM Satellite with National Public Radio, Comcast digital cable, and on the Internet as a podcast on iTunes. He has interviewed a wide range of major political and cultural figures. He is also a veteran interviewer for the nationally broadcast City Arts and Lectures series. Focus Magazine named him Best Bay Area Talk Show Host, and he was selected Best Talk Host and Best Interviewer by the editorial staff of San Francisco Weekly, as well as in their annual reader’s poll.
