Posted on February 3rd, 2012

KLRU Q Night at the Movies spotlights a classic film each Saturday night at 8 p.m. This month’s feature films will be:

2/4 – One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest
Adapted from a novel by Ken Kesey, mental patients rise up and follow social-misfit hero Randle P. McMurphy (Jack Nicholson).

2/11 – People Will Talk
A doctor’s (Cary Grant) unconventional theories of medicine and his relationship with a young student (Jeanne Crain) place his reputation in jeopardy.

2/18 – Run Silent, Run Deep
A U.S. sub commander (Clark Gable) obsessed with sinking a Japanese ship, butts heads with his first officer (Burt Lancaster) and crew.

2/25 – Witness For The Prosecution
An aging barrister (Charles Laughton) defends a man (Tyrone Power) for murder despite damaging testimony from the accused’s wife (Marlene Dietrich).

Posted on January 30th, 2012

KLRU-Q offers fascinating science programs each Tuesday on 18.3 in February.

February 7th:
8:50 PM Blood & Guts: A History of Surgery – “Into The Brain”
Throughout its history, surgery has been brutal, bloody and very dangerous – and in no area of the body has it been more frightening than the brain. Just over 100 years ago, cutting into the brain was a terrifying prospect for both patient and surgeon; they could expect the result to be the surgeon bloodied and defeated, the patient dead. From freak accidents involving crowbars through the skull to notorious lobotomies with ice-picks, this programme reveals how, through mishap and misadventure, brain surgery has become the life-saving discipline it is today.

February 14th:
8:00 PM Human Senses – “Smell/Taste”
This sensory romp around the globe goes in search of the biological roots of our senses to uncover the reasons why particular sights, sounds, smells and tastes have such powerful effects on us. How do we manage to block out intense pain? How does our sense of balance keep working under the most extreme conditions? Live action combined with special effects creates incredible imagery to convey the ‘feeling’ of how our senses work. As an alarm bell goes off, we ’see’ the noise, slowed down thousands of times. Ripples of sound roll towards us; we spin around and follow a sound wave as it travels into the dark outer ear canal. This epiosde goes in search of the most disgusting and the most attractive smells, and examines why humans eat such a range of diverse tasting dishes.

8:50 PM Blood & Guts: A History of Surgery – “Bleeding Hearts”
The development of heart surgery produced some of the most reckless, experiments in the whole history of surgery. With a family history of heart problems, Michael Mosley takes a personal interest in these surgical pioneers who teetered on the scalpel-edge between saviour and executioner. Michael has a go at heart surgery, meets a man with no heartbeat and witnesses the latest breathtaking operation – where the patient is cooled until their brain stops and has all of their blood sucked out.

February 21st:
8:00 PM Human Senses – “Hearing/Balance”
8:50 PM Blood & Guts: A History of Surgery – “Spare Parts”
These days transplant surgery saves thousands of lives every year and almost everything can be replaced: your heart, your lungs, your liver, your eyes, even your hands and face. But in the beginning transplants didn’t cure, they killed, because surgeons didn’t understand that they were taking on one of the most efficient killing systems we know of – the human immune system. This episode traces the story of transplant surgery from a 19th-century neo-Nazi to the latest miraculous life- and limb-saving operations.

February 28th:
8:00 PM Human Senses – “Touch/Vision”
8:50 PM Blood & Guts: A History of Surgery – “Fixing Faces”
Plastic surgery is not a modern phenomenon. It started over 400 years ago with a spate of botched nose jobs, so badly engineered that the nose would fall off if the wind blew too hard. Since then, surgeons have been entranced with the idea that not only could they fix the body, but now they could even fix our sense of self-esteem. From DIY face-lifts to heroic wartime reconstructive surgery, Michael Mosely undergoes 16th-century bondage and 21st-century botox in his journey to trace the bizarre history of plastic surgery.

Posted on January 15th, 2012

KLRU-Q takes you out to the ballgame with documentaries focusing on America’s past time from Jan. 15th to March 25th. Ken Burns’ Baseball airs at 8 pm each Sunday and other documentaries air as noted following Ken Burns’ Baseball airings.

January 15th – Ken Burns’ Baseball “Our Game”
The first inning tells the story of baseball’s rise, in only one generation, from a gentleman’s hobby to a national sport played and watched by millions. Viewers meet the first baseball magnate, Albert Goodwill Spalding; explore the game’s first gambling scandal; see the first attempts by women to play the game in the 1860’s; witness the first attempt by ball players to unionize; and learn how the first black professionals were hounded out of the game in the “Jim Crow” 1880’s.

January 22nd – Ken Burns’ Baseball “Something Like A War”
The second inning introduces some of the most extraordinary individuals ever to play the game: Ty Cobb, the volatile, brilliant outfielder who may have been the greatest ball player of all time, but who was “possessed by the furies”; Walter Johnson, the modest farm boy with a fast ball so intimidating batters sometimes left the batter’s box after only two strikes; Christy Mathewson, a college-educated pitcher so virtuous he was worshipped by schoolchildren as “the Christian gentleman”; and John McGraw, the brawling, unstoppable manager of the New York Giants who “took kids out of the coal mines and the wheat fields and made them walk and talk and chatter and play ball with the look of eagles.”

January 29th – Ken Burns’ Baseball “The Faith of 50 Million People”
The Black Sox scandal, which is at the center of the third inning, reveals how eight members of the Chicago White Sox including the incomparable shoeless Joe Jackson, “Played with the faith of 50 million people,” as F. Scott Fitzgerald later wrote, by taking money from gamblers to throw the 1919 World Series.

February 5th – Ken Burns’ Baseball “A National Heirloom”
Babe Ruth, the Baltimore saloon-keeper’s son who became the best-known and best-loved athlete in American history, and who was described by sportswriter Jimmy Cannon as a “National Heirloom,” is the focus of the fourth inning. This inning details how Ruth’s phenomenal performance thrilled the nation throughout the 1920s and rescued the game from the scandal that threatened to destroy it.

Jews and Baseball: An American Love Story Feb. 5th at 10 pm
Narrated by Dustin Hoffman, Jews and Baseball: An American Love Storyexplores the connection between Jewish Americans and America’s national pastime. The feature- length documentary tells a story of immigration, assimilation, bigotry, heroism, the passing on of traditions and the shattering of stereotypes. Interviews feature fans, writers, executives and players, including Al Rosen, Kevin Youkilis, Shawn Green, Norm Sherry, Ron Blomberg, Bob Feller, Yogi Berra and legendary Hall of Fame pitcher Sandy Koufax. Jews and Baseball: An American Love StoryL interweaves powerful personal and historical stories with an extraordinary collection of rare archival footage and photos, and a musical score ranging from Benny Goodman to Yo-Yo Ma to Rush.

February 12th – Ken Burns’ Baseball “Shadow Ball”
The fifth “inning” of Ken Burns’s film BASEBALL looks at baseball’s desperate attempts to survive the Great Depression and Babe Ruth’s fading career, while a new generation of stars, including Joe DiMaggio and Ted Williams, is on the rise. It also presents the parallel world of the Negro Leagues, which thrived in the shadow of the Major Leagues. The inning culminates with the greatest showdown in the history of the Negro Leagues: Satchel Paige, arguably the best pitcher ever, against Josh Gibson, “the black Babe Ruth,” in the Negro League World Series.

February 19th – Ken Burns’ Baseball “The National Pastime”
The sixth “inning” leads off with the baseball season of 1941, one of the most exciting of all time. Joe DiMaggio hits in 56 straight games, the longest hitting streak in history. Ted Williams becomes the last man to hit .400. The Brooklyn Dodgers win their first pennant in 20 years. Then the war intervenes and baseball’s best players become soldiers. On their return, the game – and the entire country — are changed forever: Branch Rickey integrates baseball on April 15, 1947, when Jackie Robinson takes the field for the Brooklyn Dodgers. Baseball finally becomes what it had always claimed to be: America’s national pastime.

February 26th – Ken Burns’ Baseball “The Capital of Baseball”
In the seventh “inning” rare newsreel film and interviews celebrate the glorious heyday of New York City baseball with some of its most memorable moments: the “shot heard round the world,” Bobby Thomson’s home run off Ralph Branca in 1951; Willie Mays’ incredible catch in the 1954 World Series; and Don Larsen’s perfect game. The highlight of the episode is 1955, when the Brooklyn Dodgers, sparked by Jackie Robinson and Roy Campanella, finally win their first World Series, only to be moved by their owner to a new city 3,000 miles away: Los Angeles.

1955 World Series: 7 Days of Fall, Feb. 26th at 10:15 pm
The 1955 World Series – Seven Days of Fall’ about the 1955 Brooklyn Dodger/New York Yankee World Series is based upon the poem, entitled “1955″, by James T. Crawford. In unprecedented style, the presentation uniquely blends the normal documentary elements of archival film footage, still images, narration, player and fan interviews, period music, and recital of the poem to recount this timeless story 50 years later. It’s a program about dedication, teamwork, belief in one self and commitment to achievement against all odds; the story of the Brooklyn Dodger’s only World Championship after 65 years of futility, and of the team’s unique connection with the community that so closely identified with it. ‘1955′ is more then a sports story, but a time capsule of a period in American history like no other. Or as, the documentary’s epilogue states: To believe was to achieve … back in 1955″.

Posted on December 30th, 2011

Had a bit too much holiday cheer? Take a break before the work week begins by snuggling up in front of KLRU Q for a night of prohibition. First is all three parts of Ken Burns’ Prohibition series starting at 6 pm. That’s followed by a documentary on the flapper era.

A NATION OF DRUNKARDS
Episode: #101
Since the early years of the American Republic, alcohol has been embedded in the fabric of American culture. But by 1830, the average American over 15 years old consumes nearly seven gallons of pure alcohol a year, three times as much as we drink today. Alcohol abuse wreaks havoc on the lives of many families. As a wave of spiritual fervor for reform sweeps the country, many women and men begin to see alcohol as a scourge. After the Civil War, the country’s population swells with immigrants, who bring their drinking customs with them from Ireland, Germany, Italy and other European countries. The temperance campaign ignites, spearheaded by the Woman’s Christian Temperance Union. Carrie Nation and her Home Defenders Army bring publicity by attacking Kansas bars with stones and hatchets, and the Anti-Saloon League (ASL) forms to push for an amendment to the Constitution outlawing alcohol nationally. Most politicians dare not defy the ASL, and in 1917 the 18th Amendment sails through both Houses of Congress; it is ratified by the states in just 13 months. When the Amendment is signed into law, Prohibitionists rejoice that America has become officially dry. But Americans are about to discover that making Prohibition the law of the land has been one thing; enforcing it will be another.

A NATION OF SCOFFLAWS
Episode: #102
In 1920, Prohibition goes into effect, making it illegal to manufacture, transport or sell intoxicating liquor. This episode examines the problems of enforcement, as millions of law-abiding Americans become lawbreakers overnight. While a significant portion of the country is willing to adapt to the new law, others are shocked at how inconsistent the Volstead Act actually is. As weaknesses in the law and its enforcement become clear, millions find ways to exploit it. Drys had hoped Prohibition would make the country a safer place, but the law has many victims. Honest policemen are killed on the job, unlucky drinkers are poisoned by adulterated liquor and overzealous federal agents violate civil rights just to make a bust. Alcoholism still exists, and may even be increasing, as women begin to drink in the speakeasies that replace the male-only saloon. Despite the growing discontent with Prohibition and its consequences, few politicians dare to speak out against the law, fearful of its powerful protector, the Anti-Saloon League.

A NATION OF HYPOCRITES
Episode: #103
Support for Prohibition diminishes in the mid-1920s as the playfulness of sneaking around for a drink gives way to disenchantment with its glaring unintended consequences. By criminalizing one of the nation’s largest industries, the law has given savvy gangsters a way to make huge profits, and as they grow in power, rival outfits wreak havoc in cities across the country. The burgeoning tabloid newspaper industry fans the frenzy with sensational headlines and front-page photographs of murder scenes, while Al Capone holds press conferences and signs autographs. The wealthy Pauline Sabin begins publicly decrying that Prohibition has divided the nation into “wets, drys, and hypocrites.” Nearly a century before, women had hoped Prohibition would make the country a safer place for their children. But by the late 1920s many American women believe that the “Noble Experiment” has failed. Sabin unifies women of all classes, refuting the notion that all women support Prohibition and denouncing the law itself as the greatest threat to their families. Sabin and others argue that repeal will bring in tax revenue and provide desperately needed jobs. After the election of Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1932, Congress easily passes the 21st Amendment, which repeals the 18th, and the states quickly ratify it. In December of 1933, Americans can legally buy a drink for the first time in 13 years.

Flappers, Speakeasies, and the Birth of Modern Culture
The 1920s shut the door on Victorian values and marked the beginning of an enormous cultural shift. FLAPPERS, SPEAKEASIES, AND THE BIRTH OF MODERN CULTURE explores that tumultuous period in history and how the concept of “the modern woman” emerged from that time. Women were entering the workforce in large numbers during this post-war decade, and even choosing to live on their own outside their parents’ homes. It was the dawn of the age of mass media and advertising. It was the Jazz Age. The documentary brings back this time of social change and upheaval through evocative archival footage and interviews with historians, film experts and fashion editors. It’s an eye-opening yet fun glimpse into a colorful, flamboyant and unforgettable era.

Posted on December 29th, 2011

Learn about the history of television with KLRU Q’s New Year’s Eve Pioneers of Television marathon. We’ve got four episodes back-to-back starting at 8 pm Saturday, Dec. 31st.

Sitcoms at 8
This episode focuses on five key sitcoms: “I Love Lucy,” “The Honeymooners,” “Make Room for Daddy,” “The Andy Griffith Show” and “The Dick Van Dyke Show.” The last remaining Honeymooner, Joyce Randolph, offers surprising insights into the mind of Jackie Gleason. Similarly, Marlo Thomas speaks candidly about her father, Danny. Andy Griffith offers forceful opinions about the people and techniques that made his show work. In a rare occurrence, both Mary Tyler Moore and Dick Van Dyke recount their years on “The Dick Van Dyke Show.” Hundreds of episodes were culled for the most entertaining clips – including one particularly side-splitting bit by Don Knotts.

Variety at 9
This episode begins with Ed Sullivan’s “Toast of the Town” and Milton Berle’s “Texaco Star Theater” and progresses through “The Carol Burnett Show,” “Smothers Brothers” and “Laugh-in,” among others. Tim Conway and Jonathan Winters tell hilarious stories about their variety show years. Conversely, Pat Boone offers chilling insight into early TV’s unspoken racism, and Tommy Smothers details the compelling behind-the-scenes story of his landmark show. Tony Orlando wraps up the era with especially insightful comments about the genre. Additionally, the episode includes fresh bites from PIONEERS’ earlier interviews with Milton Berle, Red Skelton and Sid Caesar. There’s no shortage of great clips for this episode. Standouts include Jerry Stiller’s first appearance on Ed Sullivan – with reflections from a June 2007 interview with Stiller.

Game Shows at 10
This episode traces one of broadcasting’s strongest genres – from its beginnings in radio through its heyday in the late 60s. Bob Barker talks about his earliest work and Merv Griffin details his creation of “Wheel of Fortune” and “Jeopardy.” Monty Hall recounts his compelling rags-to-riches story and Betty White remembers her role as the first female emcee. Clips for this episode are wide-ranging and include Phyllis Diller’s very first TV appearance – as a painfully shy contestant on Groucho Marx’s “You Bet Your Life.”

Late Night at 11
The stories of Steve Allen, Jack Paar and Johnny Carson headline this episode about the formative years of late-night television. Merv Griffin also emerges as a key player on the late-night scene. (His interview for PIONEERS was his last before passing away.) Regis Philbin offers revelations about his years as a late-night sidekick (to Joey Bishop). Dick Cavett and Arsenio Hall also discuss their years in the mix, and Sigourney Weaver offers personal details about her father, Pat – the inventor of “Tonight.” The episode is peppered with dozens of never-before-seen clips, including Johnny Carson performing in his early 20s.

Posted on July 1st, 2011

KLRU-Q marks the 150th anniversary of the Civil War with a special theme night of programming on July 3 starting at 7 pm.
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Posted on June 23rd, 2011

On Monday, June 27th, KLRU-Q features a night of documentaries about the film. From classic films to B-movies, these documentaries give viewers an inside look at Hollywood.

8 pm – Anatomy ’59: The Making of a Classic Motion Picture – Explores the crime, the trial and book that inspired the courtroom thriller “Anatomy of a Murder.”

9 pm – Hollywood Scrapbook – A look at producer Eric G. Stacey and the evolution of moral and sexual themes in films of his time. He worked with legendary directors such as Victor Flemming, Alfred Hitchcock, Michael Curtiz, Frank Capra, Raoul Walsh, Nicholas Ray, Elia Kazan and George Stevens.

10 pm – Drive-In Movie Memories – Film historians and B-movie actors add context to clips from classic drive-in movies of all genres.

Posted on June 14th, 2011

Juneteenth Jamboree 2011 presents Dr. Jessica Grogan and Funmi Ogunro. Remember the Civil War? While not as immediate as the Battle of the Alamo, it has relevance 150 years hence. Prof. Grogan puts the war in perspective. Funmi and Friends presents the “Foods of Juneteenth. Children’s host Funmi Ogunro leads viewers through restaurants and recipes that will satisfy your family on Independence Day. This special will air on KLRU, 18.1, on Sunday, June 19, at 6 pm and Monday, June 20, at 10 pm

Saturday, June 18th, on KLRU-Q, 18.3, features an afternoon of Juneteenth specials. The day kicks off with a live broadcast of Austin’s annual Juneteenth parade followed by the last several years of Juneteenth Jamboree specials.
10:30am Juneteenth Parade

12:30pm Juneteenth Jamboree 2011
Juneteenth Jamboree 2011 presents Dr. Jessica Grogan and Funmi Ogunro.

1 pm Juneteenth Jamboree 2010
Juneteenth Jamboree is an annual glimpse at the notion of freedom and how African American emancipation manifests both in the past and today.

2 pm Juneteenth Jamboree 2009
Juneteenth is a official day of celebration in 30 states, so Juneteenth Jamboree takes a moment to consider a song that is heard every year at this occasion, “The Negro National Anthem.” Also several young essay winners tell why Juneteenth is relevant today.

2:30pm Juneteenth Jamboree 2008
The first African slave arrived in Texas in 1528, but it took until June 19, 1865 to end slavery in Texas and the United States. The anniversary of that day is celebrated as a holiday– Juneteenth. And in celebration, this program explains the history of blacks in Texas, and commemorates the namesake of the annual Alvin Patterson Battle of the Bands.

Posted on April 12th, 2011

AUSTIN FILM FESTIVAL AND KLRU ANNOUNCE NEW SERIES “ON STORY: PRESENTED BY AUSTIN FILM FESTIVAL”

SERIES PREMIERES SATURDAY, APRIL 16, 2011 AT 7:30PM ON KLRU-Q

AUSTIN, TX (April 12, 2011) – The Austin Film Festival and KLRU-TV, Austin PBS, announced today the new 12-episode series “On Story: Presented by Austin Film Festival” will premiere on Saturday, April 16, 2011, on KLRU Q (18.3).

The new half-hour series will focus on the inspiration and creative process at the conception of the filmmaking process and air right after Roger Ebert presents At the Movies and just before the station’s new movie package at 8pm. “On Story” will include new interviews and footage from past Austin Film Festival panels and screenings of screenwriters and filmmakers discussing their craft and films. Each episode will pair these conversations with a short film from a Texas filmmaker, which has previously screened at the Austin Film Festival. “On Story” is produced by Austin Film Festival co-Founder and Executive Director Barbara Morgan.

“The Austin Film Festival is quite proud of the new series, and we’re so happy to be working with KLRU on it,” says Barbara Morgan. “We’ve been working on concept for a while and are thrilled to finally be able to give local audiences a taste of the Festival.”

The filmmakers and screenwriters appearing on the show include Lawrence Kasdan (Empire Strikes Back), Shane Black (Lethal Weapon), Ed Burns (The Brothers McMullen), Randall Wallace (Braveheart), John Lee Hancock (The Blind Side), David Peoples (Blade Runner), Judd Apatow (Knocked Up), Ron Howard, and more.

PROGRAM SCHEDULE
April 16, 2011 at 7:30pm: Episode 1
(footage from Lawrence Kasdan, Shane Black, and Randall Wallace at Austin Film Festival, short film: Frente Noreste by Angela Torres Camarena)

April 23, 2011 at 7:30pm: Episode 2
April 30, 2011 at 7:30pm: Episode 3
May 7, 2011 at 7:30pm: Episode 4
May 14, 2011 at 7:30pm: Episode 5
May 21, 2011 at 7:30pm: Episode 6
May 28, 2011 at 7:30pm: Episode 7
June 4, 2011 at 7:30pm: Episode 8
June 11, 2011 at 7:30pm: Episode 9
June 18, 2011 at 7:30pm: Episode 10
June 25, 2011 at 7:30pm: Episode 11
July 2, 2011 at 7:30pm: Episode 12

The show airs on KLRU-Q broadcast channel 18.3, which is available free over the air in KLRU’s 18 county viewing area including Travis, Hayes, Bastrop, Williamson and Caldwell counties. KLRU-Q is also available to digital cable subscribers of Time Warner (channel 20 or 255) or Grande (channel 284).

Episodes will also be available online at klru.org shortly following the broadcast.

For more information on the Austin Film Festival, visit austinfilmfestival.com. And, go to klru.org to find out more about the station and for programming schedules.

About Austin Film Festival
The Austin Film Festival (AFF) is a non-profit organization dedicated to furthering the art and craft of filmmaking by inspiring and championing the work of screenwriters, filmmakers, and all artists who use the language of film to tell a story. The Austin Film Festival is funded and supported in part by the City of Austin through the Cultural Arts Division and by a grant from the Texas Commission on the Arts and an award from the National Endowment for the Arts, which believes that a great nation deserves great art. Special support is provided to the Austin Film Festival by Continental Airlines, KVUE, KUT 90.5, and Dos Equis.

About KLRU
KLRU-TV, Austin PBS, reflects, celebrates and inspires Central Texas through creative excellence, community engagement and lifelong learning. In addition to providing locally produced and quality national television programming, KLRU is also a non-profit organization helping to build a stronger community through educational workshops, community engagement projects and public events. Known as the producing station of the longest-running live music television show AUSTIN CITY LIMITS, KLRU has also worked on several other national productions including the documentaries CITIZEN ARCHITECT and LAST BEST HOPE. Get more information about KLRU at klru.org

Posted on March 15th, 2011

KLRU Q will begin Q Night at the Movies starting April 2 and we want you to choose our first feature film.

Classic films, local commentary, new short films and reviews will all be part of this new Saturday night lineup designed just for Austin. Choose between Bonnie and Clyde, Doctor Zhivago and The Entertainer. Vote here

Film descriptions
Bonnie and Clyde: Acclaimed account of the gun-toting bank robbers (Warren Beatty, Faye Dunaway) and the trail of terror they blazed through the Southwest in the ’30s.

Doctor Zhivago: Boris Pasternak’s story of a poet/doctor (Omar Sharif), his wife (Geraldine Chaplin) and his lover (Julie Christie) unfolds during the Russian Revolution.

The Entertainer: British song-and-dance man Archie (Laurence Olivier) knows he’s a failure, and so does his alcoholic wife (Brenda de Banzie).

Vote here