Arlo Guthrie Movies

Folk troubadour Woody Guthrie immortalized the heartbreaking events of Christmas Eve, 1913 in his downbeat ballad "1913 Massacre". That evening, in Calumet, Michigan, a group of underpaid miners were having their annual Christmas ball with their families, when the thuggish union bosses who were lingering outside decided to play a joke by screaming "fire." In terror, dozens of celebrators rushed down the stairwell and attempted to escape from the building to avoid perishing in flame, but the union bosses held the door tightly shut. The crowd on the stairs quickly swelled to such frantic proportions that at least 73 children and many others were killed from suffocation. With the documentary 1913 Massacre, co-directors Louis Galdieri and Ken Ross incorporate a combination of archival footage and interviews to tell this sad story. Pete Seeger and Arlo Guthrie (Woody's son) are among the interviewees. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide

The reflective documentary Pete Seeger: The Power of Song explores the legacy of revered American folk singer and activist Seeger - written and directed by filmmaker Jim Brown when Seeger was in his late '80s. In lieu of recounting the narrative of Seeger's life note-for-note, however, Brown uses that individual biography as a contextual lens, through which he recounts decades of American social history. To tell his story, the filmmaker interpolates original, exclusive interviews with such Seeger contemporaries as Bob Dylan and Bruce Springsteen, archival footage of Seeger in concert, and extracts from Seeger's private home movies. In the process, Brown unveils the extent to which Seeger continually prompted societal change through his consciousness-raising music and offstage social efforts. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide

Woody Guthrie was a singer and songwriter who came of age in Oklahoma as the Dust Bowl and the Great Depression all but destroyed the homes and lives of many of those around him. A natural wordsmith who loved music, Guthrie turned the stories he saw all around him into songs -- some funny, some deadly serious, and nearly all dealing with his vision of a better and more just America. Guthrie roamed the country much of his life, performing with the left-wing Almanac Singers, writing a column for the Daily Worker, publishing a wildly entertaining autobiography called Bound for Glory, working as merchant seaman, and raising a family in between. A handful of the 3,000 songs Guthrie wrote have become standards (most notably "This Land Is Your Land," "Pastures of Plenty," "Deportees," and "Grand Coulee Dam"), and it's all but impossible to imagine the work of Bob Dylan or the rebirth of folk music in the '50s and '60s without his guiding influence. Woody Guthrie: This Machine Kills Fascists is a documentary which offers an honest and unblinking look at Guthrie's life and career, featuring interviews with friends, fans, and historians who offer insight into his music and the man behind it. Billy Bragg narrates. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Telecast on the Bravo cable network, this two-hour special zeroes in on the children of celebrated rock stars -- specifically, those children who have, for better or worse, attempted to launch musical careers of their own. Featured performers include Sally Taylor, daughter of Carly Simon and John Taylor; Simon Collins, son of Phil Collins; Julian Lennon, son of John Lennon; James Raymond, son of David Crosby (Raymond was unaware of his illustrious parentage until he was in his late twenties); Sarah Lee and Abe Guthrie, offspring of Arlo Guthrie (himself the son of folksinging icon Woody Guthrie); Teddy Richards, son of Aretha Franklin; Jason Everly, son of Phil Everly; and Louis Osbourne, the "other" son of Ozzy Osbourne. The message of Singing in the Shadow, which is hammered home at every opportunity, is twofold: Talent is not always inherited and celebrities are not always the best of parents. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

When First Unto This Country narrates the origins of American roots music and follows its development through the 1920s. When Africans and Europeans founded the new world in the 17th century, each ethnic group brought its unique musical heritage to the new world. It was the combination of these different heritages that created a uniquely American music, or, American roots music. At the beginning of the 20th century, scholars and musicians became more aware of this musical legacy. At first, traveling musicians had spread blues, folk songs, and "hillbilly" music. The Fisk Jubilee Singers traveled widely in the 1870s, popularizing African-American spirituals. Later, the phonograph and radio accelerated the process, carrying local sounds beyond their region of origin. Ralph Peer recorded both Jimmie Rogers and the Carter Family in 1927 in Bristol, TN, while WSM in Nashville began to broadcast a Saturday night barn dance in 1925, later to be called the Grand Ole Opry. When First Unto This Country includes rare footage of country music founder Rodgers and blues legend Son House, and interviews with Ricky Skaggs, Bonnie Raitt, and Pete Seeger. ~ Ronnie D. Lankford, Jr., All Movie Guide

Ramblin' Jack Elliott, a self-styled folk musician, was an important transitional figure between Woody Guthrie and Bob Dylan. This documentary serves as both a chronicle of his colorful life and an attempt by his daughter, director Aiyanna Elliott, to reconnect with her often-absent father. Born Elliott Adnopoz in Brooklyn, Jack ran off as a teenager in 1947 to join a traveling rodeo troupe after seeing them perform in Madison Square Garden. He returned to New York and took up singing, first cowboy songs, then traditional and contemporary folk music. He and Woody Guthrie traveled through the South in the 1950s, learning songs from blues artists such as the Reverend Gary Davis, Elizabeth Cotton, and Jesse Fuller. Elliott remained one of Guthrie's truest friends all through Guthrie's long battle with Huntington's chorea, the congenital nerve disease that killed him in 1967. In 1955, Elliott and the first of his four wives decamped to England, where his reputation was made with fans of the skiffle music craze. He returned to New York in 1961, just as the folk music boom was producing its biggest hero, Bob Dylan, who aped both Guthrie and Elliott in his early recordings. Among the interviewees are Nora and Arlo Guthrie, singers Pete Seeger and Dave Van Ronk, and ex-wives and managers, who all agree on Elliott's carefree attitude toward schedules and money. His almost pathological determination not to conform to any kind of bourgeois lifestyle eventually crippled his chances for wider recognition, though in the mid-'90s, he won a Grammy and a National Medal of the Arts, awarded by President Bill Clinton. The vintage clips are interspersed with Aiyanna Elliott trailing her father around with a camera and microphone, hoping to capture some admission of past mistakes, but as always, Ramblin' Jack Elliott is a tough man to pin down. ~ Tom Wiener, All Movie Guide

Singer-songwriter Arlo Guthrie will be best known as the talented artist who sang the famous tune "Alice's Restaurant" back during the days of hippies and protest movements. On this video, he uses his lighthearted performance style while reading such children's classics as The Three Little Pigs, Henny Penny, and Little Red Riding Hood. The program, an adaptation of Kay Chorao's children's book, was animated by Michael Sporn. It's recommended for children up to age six. ~ Elizabeth Smith, All Movie Guide

Woodstock: The Lost Performances is a video collection of highlights from the 120 miles of footage used to make the original 1970 film. Included here are "Work Me Lord" by Janis Joplin, "We Shall Overcome" by Joan Baez, and "Let's Go Get Stoned" by Joe Cocker. This compilation also contains performance footage from Arlo Guthrie, Country Joe McDonald, and the Band. The video was compiled and released during the 20th anniversary of Woodstock. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide

Rare filmclips of folksinger Woody Guthrie at work and at play provide the highlights of this 74-minute documentary. Hard Travelin' places Guthrie's musical contributions within the context of their times, utilizing harrowing footage of the devastation wreaked by the Depression and the Dust Bowl. It goes without saying, perhaps, that Arlo Guthrie is called upon to assess his father, both as an artist and a man. Also appearing to perform and converse are Joan Baez, Hoyt Axton, Judy Collins and Pete Seeger. Woody Guthrie is the ideal "warm-up" for the 1976 Guthrie biopic Bound for Glory. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The highlight of this routine documentary on motorcycle racing meant for aficionados and not the average viewer, is an animated spoof of cycling by Jon Wokuluk, based on an Arlo Guthrie song. Otherwise, there are interviews with several champion motorcycle racers to try to get to the bottom of how they manage to win, and shots of races in progress, competitions, and trick riding. The music helps to enliven the subject matter but after awhile, anyone with a passing interest in motorcycles will probably be left in the dust. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide

Narrated by Tom DeWitt, this theatrical video explores the reality that is created in illusion in several short scenes. ~ All Movie Guide

Rory Calhoun stars as veteran gunfighter Brett Wade in Dawn at Socorro. In a lengthy flashback, the audience learns why Wade has hung up his guns and turned to gambling. Upon meeting dance-hall girl Rannah Hayes (Piper Laurie), he vows to take her out of the shady saloon run by Dick Braden (David Brian). He engages Braden in a card game, winner take all, with Rannah as the stakes--only to lose everything. Sorely tempted to strap on his guns again to claim Rannah, Wade is saved from this fateful decision by the timely arrival of another notorious fast gun, Jimmy Rapp (Alex Nicol). Less of a traditional western than a character study, Dawn at Socorro received better-than-usual reviews when it first came out in July of 1954. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide