The Front Row Network

Front Row Classics is proud to welcome back Patricia Ward Kelly for her fourth appearance. Patricia is the widow and biographer of Gene Kelly. Brandon and Patricia discuss a film that both feel needs to garner more attention: 1948's The Pirate. Alongside Gene, the film stars Judy Garland and features a score by Cole Porter. This musical farce directed by Vincente Minnelli is a feast for the eyes a...

Front Row Classics is celebrating the 50th anniversary of a true gem of 1970's cinema. We're taking a look at Peter Bogdonavich's Paper Moon from 1973. Matt Duffy from Reel Gold Rundown joins Brandon to discuss this road comedy-drama. The hosts discuss the tremendous chemistry between real life father and daughter, Ryan & Tatum O'Neal.  Tatum won an Oscar for what remains one of the greatest child...

Front Row Classics is pleased to welcome actor and social media personality, Brandon Johnston this week. We discuss his early love of classic film and how it had influenced his life and career. The advent of social media has been able to expose younger people to classic movies like never before. But, it has also paved the way for many myths and untruths about the era to spring forward. The two Bra...

We're celebrating the 50th anniversary of one of the seminal films of the 1970s. American Graffiti took audiences back to a more innocent era of malt shops and sock hops. Brandon is joined by Meghan Lowder-Paul and Jacqueline Keysear of "I Think You're Gonna Like This" to break down this ensemble dramedy. The hosts discuss the young cast of future stars including Richard Dreyfuss, Harrison Ford, R...

Front Row Classics is taking a look at the Best Picture winner of 1932, Grand Hotel. Emmett Stanton, once again, joins Brandon to discuss what may just be the very first all-star movie. MGM pulled out all the stops for this glamorous melodrama featuring the likes of Greta Garbo, Lionel Barrymore, John Barrymore and Joan Crawford. We discuss what still works about the film and why it may not be the...

Front Row Classics is thrilled to welcome Karie Bible to the podcast this week. Karie is a film historian, author and in-house tour guide for Hollywood Forever Cemetery. Brandon and Karie discuss her background and love for classic film. We discuss her experience as tour guide for Hollywood Forever Cemetery as well as some of it's most famous residents.

Hi Barbie! Hi Barbie! Join us in Barbieland as Jacqueline and Meghan finally get to tell you all about the Barbie movie. It's PINK, it's hilarious, it's wonderful and we are just Ken and that is enough. The ladies of Like This Pod tackle the hit of the summer!

We're taking a look at another great film from 1939 this week on Front Row Classics. Dark Victory is one the great triumphs in the career of Bette Davis. Brandon is joined, once again, by author and film historian Sloan De Forest to discuss this classic tear jerker from Warner Bros. The hosts discuss Davis' Oscar nominated performance of a reckless woman who has to confront her own mortality. Davi...

Before you head out to watch Barbenheimer, Front Row Flashbacks Host, Ryan Lootens gets all spoilery with one of the best movies of the summer. He is joined by Bryan Dressel from the After the Hype Network to discuss the most exhilarating entry in the Mission franchise to date.

Hello all you Lasso fans! Today we take a little timeout to discuss a matter of great importance to Hollywood and all of us that love entertainment. The WGA strike has been going on for over 70 days, and last week the writers were joined by SAG-AFTRA representing many of the actors in Hollywood on the picket line. We sat down with Marc Bernardin (Batman Beyond, Picard, Caste Rock) to discuss the i...

We're celebrating the 70th anniversary of one Brandon's favorite films this week on Front Row Classics. The Band Wagon is one of the crown jewels of the Arthur Freed unit at MGM. Author and film historian, John DiLeo also counts the musical comedy as one of his favorites. Brandon and John recount all of their favorite moments and musical numbers from Vincente Minnelli's love letter to show busines...

We recently sat down with super producers and writers Chris Miller, Phil Lord and Anthony King to talk about the 2nd Season of the hit Apple TV+ mystery-comedy "The Afterparty". This season returns stars Sam Richardson, Tiffany Haddish & Zoe Chao as a new murder at Zoe's sister's wedding brings a new cast of characters and suspects with their own unique stories to tell. We ask them how they keep t...

Front Row Classics celebrates one of the most acclaimed films of the 1940's, The Grapes of Wrath. Brandon and Emmett Stanton take a look John Ford's celebrated adaptation of the John Steinbeck novel. The hosts pay tribute to the legendary performance of Henry Fonda as Tom Joad. We also discuss Gregg Toland's cinematography, Nunnally Johnson's screenplay and the impressive supporting cast. Emmett a...

Brandon recently had a chance to sit down for the fourth time with ,author and historian, Jeremy Arnold. On this special bonus episode, they'll be previewing Jeremy's latest stint on Turner Classic Movies. Jeremy, along with Ben Mankiewicz, will be presenting twenty B Movies every Thursday evening in July. Jeremy hand picked the twenty films which represent nine different studios. 8 of these films...

It's July 4th and Front Row Classics is taking a not-so-nice look at American government & politics. 1962's The Manchurian Candidate was an oddity when it was released. Yet, the ensuing decades have proven it to be eerily relevant and timeless. Ryan Lootens and Steve Sykes join Brandon to break down the political thriller. The hosts cover the unforgettable performances of Frank Sinatra, Laurence H...

Front Row Classics is delighted to welcome Turner Classic Movies' host, Alicia Malone to the podcast for the first time. Alicia has been a long time wish list guest and she was worth the wait. She and Brandon discuss he classic film origin story as well as he background in media. We also cover topics such as her hiring at TCM, some favorite films and women finding their place in film study & criti...

Front Row Classics is celebrating one of the finest war films ever made this week. Brandon is joined by Jessica Pickens to discuss 1949's Battleground. Jessica is the creator of "Comet Over Hollywood" a website and blog dedicated to celebrating classics film. Brandon and Jessica discuss the impressive ensemble cast of reliable MGM contract actors. Each player gets to shine in this realistic depict...

This week we prepare you to see the latest Pixar film, Elemental. We were given the tremendous opportunity by Disney/Pixar to screen the film in advance, as well as speak to the director Peter Sohn. Pete has been with Pixar for over 20 years and has worked on so many identifiable projects as an artist, director and even a voice actor. The crew breaks down their non-spoiler thoughts of the film to...

Jeremy has the opportunity to sit down with the star, producer and creator of the new Lionsgate horror film Devilreaux . They talk about the amazing way he got started in acting, the incredible way this character came to him, the inspirations for the look of the character and the larger themes at play in the story.  In this story by Ward ( The Walking Dead ) and featuring Tony Todd ( Candyman fran...

Front Row Classics is thrilled to welcome back the Czar of Noir himself, Eddie Muller. Brandon and Eddie discuss his latest book, "Noir Bar: Cocktails Inspired by the World of Film Noir". The book  highlights 50 film noir film favorites. Each are carefully paired with a cocktail that perfectly highlights the film in discussion. Carefully curated by Muller, 'Noir Bar' also features dozens of movie...

Front Row Classics is taking a look at the Best Picture winner of 1934, Frank Capra's It Happened One Night. Brandon is joined by Lauren Van De Vendel to pay tribute to the original romantic comedy. Lauren is the creator of her own Instagram account, Polka Dots and Moonbeams, which pays tribute to classic Hollywood. Brandon and Lauren discuss the many romantic comedy tropes invented by this film....

We were recently invited by Apple to speak to Jane Lynch about health security and data privacy. She provides the voice over for a new public service announcement style spot from Apple. Craig also speaks to Jane about her recent visit to Springfield and her time as a visiting artist at Illinois State University.  Apple Spot "The Waiting Room" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-7jSoINyq4

Front Row Classics is celebrating the 50th anniversary of The Sting. The Best Picture winner of 1973 is a perfect concoction of casting, direction and writing. Brandon welcomes back Reel Gold Rundown's Matt Duffy to discuss all aspects of the movie. We highlight the incomparable chemistry of Paul Newman and Robert Redford alongside a supporting cast of some of the best character actors in history....

We have a special release for you this week as we prepare for The Little Mermaid. We were invited by Disney to an early press screening and press conference for the film. We give you our non-spoiler thoughts as well as speak about our excitement for the upcoming release. We will be back next week with our Full Disclosure breaking down the latest reimagined classic!   Featuring: Craig McFarland, Va...

Front Row Classics is pleased to welcome Mark Vieira to the podcast this week. Brandon and Mark discuss his latest book, "Warner Bros: 100 Years of Storytelling". The book is the official centennial history of arguably the greatest studio in Hollywood's history. The complete Warner Bros story is chronicled through fascinating stories and glorious photographs from every era. Brandon and Mark discus...