|
March 17, 2010
 As
many of you know, Ken Burns has become one of the most
influential documentary makers of all time. Back in the
fall of 2009, PBS broadcast "The National Parks:
America’s Best Idea". The six-part
series, narrated by Peter, focused on the ideas and
individuals that helped propel the parks into existence.
Ken Burns will once again enlighten us with a
three-part, six-hour documentary called "Prohibition".
The film series, now in production, will again be
narrated by Peter and is tentatively scheduled to be
broadcast on PBS later this year.
The story of Prohibition’s rise and fall is a compelling
saga that goes far beyond the oft-told tales of
gangsters, rum runners, flappers, and speakeasies, to
reveal a complicated and divided nation in the throes of
momentous transformation. According to Peter,
"The parallels to today are frightening, especially in
how Prohibition created 'organized' crime, and increased
the value of liquor logarhythymically."

Earlier this month
it was announced that Warner Bros. has acquired Spanish
rights to Peter's latest film,
DI DI HOLLYWOOD,
the showbiz-set drama by helmer Bigas Luna. Starring
Spanish sex-symbol Elsa Pataki, the film follows an
actress who travels to Hollywood pursuing her dream of
success. "Di Di" is the second part of a trilogy focused
on young women trying to escape their humble pasts. The
film's producers include Spain's Malvarrosa Media,
Canica Films and El Virgili Films. Spanish pubcasters
TVE and TV3 and Gallic paybox Canal Plus have all nabbed
TV rights. Warners Bros. will release the film in Spain
in the fall. Peter says he became fast friends
with Elsa and co-star Paul Sculfour during production
and is "looking forward to seeing the film with
eagerness." If you click on the above photo, the link
will take you to a short teaser trailer. The photo below
is a candid one of Peter with his female pals from the
film crew -
Claudia, Alva, and Vanessa.

Coyote
man will soon be headed to LA to tape another episode of
"Flash Forward" reprising his role as President
Dave Segovia. The sci-fi TV series premiered on ABC last
September with Peter making a guest appearance in "Gimme
Some Truth", the fifth episode. The second season will
have a two-hour opener tomorrow evening and a two-hour
finale on May 27th. I will try to give a heads up when I
have any info on which episode he will be appearing in.
Here are some photos from the episode that aired on
October 22, 2009:
After
spending two years of extensive reading and research,
Peter, the writer, is hard at work on
the third draft of a new book called "Lies That
Blind: The Education of an Angry Man." He describes
it as a political book written in narrative form telling
how he learned certain things as a child and how those
lessons have affected how he sees the world as an adult.
His memoir, "Sleeping Where I Fall" was published back
in 1998 and a second edition was released last summer.
"Crimes
of Opportunity", one of Peter's film scripts is
getting a re-write these days with hopes that it will
finally be seen on the big screen. What an exciting
thought! The drama was originally co-written with Sylvia
Peto, a
Seattle-based author. It involves a character called
Eddie Malick, modeled loosely on Jack Henry Abbott, the
convicted murderer and would-be writer whose case was
championed by Norman Mailer. Less than six weeks after
Mr. Abbott's 1981 release from a Utah prison, while on a
parole partly sponsored by Mr. Mailer, Mr. Abbott killed
an actor and playwright working as a waiter at an East
Village restaurant. "Crimes of Opportunity" links the
convict and his literary aspirations to an equally
ambitious local television personality, adding a love
story to the mix.
February 5, 2010

Come April 20th, ADOPT A SAILOR
will be available on DVD, courtesy of Echo Bridge
Entertainment. The 81-minute drama, shot over two weeks
in the spring of 2007, stars Bebe
Neuwirth and Ethan Peck alongside Peter. Written and
directed by Charles Evered, the film has been making the
film festival circuit over the past year. Here's what
Deborah Dearth of the Desert Post Weekly had to say
about the film:
Sometimes it takes an unexpected
jolt to awaken the realization that life is not
merely floating by for everyone. In “Adopt a
Sailor,” a young man hits New York City for a night
during Fleet Week, spending the evening with a
couple who has volunteered to host a sailor — only
they have forgotten. His presence throws their
schedules off kilter and changes their outlook on
the world outside of their apartment. Charles Evered
makes his directorial debut with “Adopt a Sailor,”
based on the dichotomy of his experience as a sailor
and writer. Palm Desert producer Kim Waltrip of
WonderStar Productions worked for two years with
Evered, a professor at UC Riverside, to bring the
film to the screen. The interiors were shot in the
Coachella Valley.
The film began as a short play to
commemorate Sept. 11, 2001, at a special event. It
certainly retains the close feel of a stage set with
three characters bound by an evening of obligation.
Though the topic expanded from a couple's reaction
to the city's attacks to a night with a sailor about
to return to war, soul searching remains the story's
central focus.
Ethan Peck (“10 Things I Hate
about You”) stars as the sailor and shares a natural
poise and
handsome resemblance to grandfather Gregory Peck.
His character holds a careful balance between
aw-shucks mannerisms and a quiet thoughtfulness.
Bebe Neuwirth (“Frasier”) shows off her acting chops
as Patricia, perfectly cast for the bold role as an
annoyed and nagging wife who manages to incite
sympathy despite passive aggressive tendencies.
Peter Coyote (“The 4400”) hams up his role as
Richard, a dependent husband with no serious
concerns who finds excessive emotional weight in
every situation. Following one excessive diatribe,
he labels himself as a “wanker dilettante idiot.”
The shoe fits.
Peck's sailor becomes the hinge
on which the unhappy couple evaluates their lives,
whether they are loudly confronting each other in
front of him or individually speaking with him as to
how their lives have evolved from former
contentment. Through the sailor's naïveté, the
couple finds superiority and guilt. The more they
justify their behavior, the more they become aware
that there is a third person in the room and that
their insecurities do not affect his world. It
slowly becomes clear that the couple did not simply
adopt a sailor but found a broader view of the world
around them.
February 2, 2010
 Adding
to Peter's ever-growing list of narrations is a
30-minute film called "Gray Eagles" by Chris Woods.
Using vibrant, thrilling hi-def aerial photography, "Gray
Eagles" shows the reunion between humble WWII
Mustang ace Jim Brooks and the historic plane February,
that after 60 years, he never thought he would see
again. Inspired by the flood of memories that were
triggered by this unimaginable encounter, the 87-year
old pilot finally breaks his silence, sharing his
stories and experiences of war with the grandchildren
who never thought they'd hear them. The survival of
history depends on the passing along of first-hand
accounts. Gray Eagles shows how a long lost friend in
the guise of a plane inspired one man to share his. For
more information,
visit this link.
Whether
it's between riders of off-highway vehicles and hikers,
preservationists and oil drillers or ranchers and wolf
lovers, the debate over how best to manage Utah's
wilderness is always intense. Tomorrow night filmmaker
John Howe's documentary, "Wilderness: The Great
Debate" will premiere on Salt Lake City's KUED
channel. Narrated by Peter, the film will introduce the
wilderness debate to viewers who know little about the
issue but also challenge the viewpoints of those at the
forefront of the battle. Howe is best known for his
national PBS films "The Last Cowboys" and "Arctic Wars."
January 31, 2010
 Filming
in Gammons Gulch, Arizona, has wrapped for THE
GUNDOWN, starring Peter, William Shockley, Sheree J.
Wilson and Veronica Diaz. The movie, described as a
"shoot 'em up western", will have a limited theatrical
release and then head to DVD.
Click here for a local TV video on the making of the
film. The photo on the left was taken of some of the
cast and the one on the right shows Peter speaking to
members of the SE AZ Economic Development Group about
the impact of movie-making. It was the biggest
production ever filmed at the Arizona Old West Movie Set
and Museum in Cochise County.
|
 |
|
From left,
William Shockley, Veronica Diaz and Warren
Neff during filming. |
James
Zito is a Colorado independent film and videomaker who
continues to be interested in exploring Buddhist issues
on film and in the electronic media. He has been
involved in helping to create electronic archives of
Buddhist materials as well as documenting the progress
of Buddhism in America and the west. His latest film is
called, " Inquiry Into the Great Matter: A History of
Zen Buddhism", narrated by Peter. It tracks the
evolution of Zen Buddhism from its beginnings in the
China of the T’ang Dynasty to its transfer to Japan in
the 11th century and up to the present day. In three
parts the film examines the growth and development of
Zen by profiling the lives of some of its greatest
masters who embody and exemplify various important
phases in Zen history. The DVD is available with
additional material including instructions on zazen
practice by Yasunaga Roshi. For more information,
visit this
link.
Blast
from the Past - Summer of 1992 in Paris:
November 30, 2009
Attention
all Alaska residents! The documentary, "For the
Rights of All: Ending Jim Crow in Alaska", will have
its statewide Public Television premiere tomorrow
evening at 8 pm. The film, narrated by Peter, relates
the struggle for full recognition by Alaska's Native
people. It centers upon the lives, during the time
of World War II, of Nome resident Alberta Schenk Adams,
and Juneau resident Elizabeth Peratrovich, two iconic
figures in the ongoing struggles for civil rights in
Alaska. It also contains much documentary material about
other aspects of what was a very segregated society here
in the 1940s and earlier. Produced by Jeff Silverman,
directed by Phil Lucas and written by Diane Benson, the
film is dedicated to Alberta Schenk Adams, who passed
away midway through production.
November 25, 2009
Peter
recently returned from Ciudad de la Luz movie studios in
Alicante, Spain after wrapping up
DI DI HOLLYWOOD,
the second film by director Bigas Luna in his trilogy on
the struggle of women to improve their lowly existence.
Since the movie has a presence on Facebook, I've been
able to capture several publicity photos taken during
the shoot, which you can view on the film title link
above.
After
Thanksgiving, Peter will be off on a new
project called THE GUNDOWN, a "western shoot'em
up" movie that takes place in the Arizona desert in
1893. Peter will take on the role of Thomas Morgan with
Sheree Wilson (Walker: Texas Ranger), as Sarah
Morgan and William Shockley (Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman),
as Travis McCain. Filming is slated to begin on
November 30th and will take place at Gammons Gulch Movie
Set & Museum located neaer Benson, Arizona. Silver
Bullet Films is producing in assocation with Freewill
Films.
In
his continued relationship with Bullfrog Films, known as
the leading US publisher of independently- produced,
environmental DVDs & videos, Peter has narrated another
one of their films. "The New Metropolis" is a
groundbreaking two-part documentary on the rise, fall
and revitalization of America's first suburbs. Produced
by award-winning filmmaker Andrea Torrice, this is the
first public examination devoted to the issues facing
many suburban towns. Peter narrated Part One called "A
Crack in the Pavement", which follows the story of
two Cincinnati area public officials and their efforts
to keep their towns stable and healthy despite difficult
times to repair and improve infrastructure and lure
businesses. Part Two, narrated by actress Ruby Dee,
focuses on two ordinary people, one black and one white,
who made racial integration the centerpiece of
revitalizing Pennsauken, New Jersey.
CBC
News Network in Canada will be featuring a one-hour
documentary narrated by Peter as part of The
Passionate Eye Series airing on Sunday. It's called,
"Science of Forensics: Mystery of the Floating Feet".
Produced, written and directed by Anna Fitch, the film
tells the stories of mysterious deaths and reveals the
CSI science behind how each case was solved.
PREVIOUS NEWSLETTERS:
Fall 2001, Winter 2002,
Spring
2002, Summer 2002,
Fall 2002,
Winter 2003, Spring 2003,
Summer 2003, Fall 2003,
Winter 2004, Spring 2004,
Summer 2004, Fall 2004,
Winter 2005,
Spring 2005,
Summer
2005, Fall 2005,
Winter 2006, Spring 2006,
Summer 2006,
Fall 2006,
Winter 2007,
Spring 2007,
Summer 2007,
Fall 2007,
Winter 2008,
Spring 2008,
Summer 2008,
Fall 2008,
Winter 2008/2009,
Spring 2009,
Summer 2009,
Fall 2009

For checking out what's on TV this
month featuring Coyote, visit TV Now by clicking on the
above icon.
Home | Latest Tracking | Sleeping Where I Fall | Coyote in Print | Biography
Filmography | TV& Stage |
Documentaries | Audiobooks | Photos | Archives
|
Email
 |