PITTSBURGH, PA. ENTERTAINMENT CAPITOL OF THE WORLD? CHECK OUT SIX DEGREES OF PITTSBURGH, A BLOG ON THE POST-GAZETTE.
"A movie that is timely, moving, and - above all - entertaining. You can't get an entire city into therapy - but this film is the next best thing." -- Mitch Teich, Milwaukee Public Radio
".... a story of comebacks, coming back and what a beautiful day in the neighborhood can mean." --Barb Vancheri, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
GET ALL PITTSBURGH'ED UP FOR THE PLAYOFFS. The new SPECIAL EDITION DVD of MY TALE OF TWO CITIES makes the PERFECT PITTSBURGH PRESENT.
Just click here: www.shopwqed.org or call 800 274-1307.
The Special Edition DVD is also now available on Amazon.com.
And find the DVD at Kards Unlimited, The Heinz History Center, and select Giant Eagles.
"A wry and funny tale... A cross between Woody Allen and Fred Rogers, (Kurlander) reminds us that our cities are the real "Real America" because they are the creative, connected places in which we can best renew ourselves, our country, and our hope for all humanity." -- Howard Fineman, Newsweek
MY TALE OF TWO CITIES IN THE NEWS:
Watch this special conversation on WQED about Pittsburgh with Tale stars Franco Harris, Dok Harris, Paul O' Neill, Joanne Rogers, Pittsburgh Foundation President Grant Oliphant, and Michael Bartley Click here.
Read the "Thanks, Pittsburgh" Post-Gazette article Click here.
Read the Trib piece on "Tale" star Paul O' Neill Click here.
City Council Declares "My Tale of Two Cities" Day in Pittsburgh celebrating the "national attention" the film has received and how this "funny and hopeful film about coming home again... addresses how people and communities going through tough times can redefine who they are."
SEE WHAT EVERYONE HAS BEEN TALKING ABOUT:
From Windsor, Ontario, to Santa Fe, New Mexico to Capitol Hill, audiences in over 25 cities across North America cannot enough get of this funny and hopeful comeback story about coming home and people and cities reinventing themselves for a new age, "Tale" captures the timely, inspiring resurgence of the city of Pittsburgh--the real life "Mister Rogers' Neighborhood"-- while also exploring a more universal story about how we must confront our past in order to move on to our future.
THE TRAILER:
ABOUT THE MOVIE:
When St. Elmo's Fire screenwriter and Saved By The Bell producer Carl Kurlander left Los Angeles for what he thought would be a one year Hollywood sabbatical to teach at the University of Pittsburgh, little did he think the journey would lead him to become a guest on The Oprah Winfrey Show on a program about people who had changed their lives, much less inspire this unlikely feature documentary. But shortly after Kurlander told Oprah how happy he and his wife were raising their daughter in Pittsburgh-- the real-life "Mister Rogers' Neighborhood" where Fred Rogers had produced his TV show for 40 years, Fred Rogers passed away and the City of Pittsburgh went bankrupt. With both himself and his hometown in a mid-life crisis, Kurlander set out on a Don Quixote quest to make a film to help the city he had grown up in.
Armed with a cranky cameraman, funded by his dermatologist, (a scene actually shown in the Film) and often battling his wife who longs to return to the sunny West Coast, Kurlander and his film crew explore whether you really can go home again and how post-industrial cities like Pittsburgh can remake themselves. Because the movie uses the metaphor of "Mister Rogers' Neighborhood" to represent neighborhoods everywhere, the film has been called not a "Roger & Me," but a "Mr. Rogers & Me" which inspires each neighbor to think of how they can make a difference in their communities.
REVIEWS:
Read this op-ed from the York Daily Record on how "My Tale of Two Cities" helped inspire at the York, PA Economic and Community Summit.
Film Critic Paul Hood gives the film FOUR STARS as he writes: "Tale is the type of refreshing documentary film that exposes the realities of life on top as well as the bottom... With Kurlander's witty, heartfelt look at his conflicted life.... leaves you wanting to know more... My Tale of Two Cities breeds hope for ailing cities" Read the rest of Hood's review here.
"Delightfully quirky..." Chicago Reader. Read the review by clicking here.
"If you believe in miraculous comebacks, you've got to catch this film." -- Franco Harris, Hall of Fame Steeler
"A delightful, quirky, heartwarming film that is as funny as it is revealing..." -- Don Roy King, director, "Saturday Night Live"
Email Marketing Director Kat Weiler at mytaleoftwocities@gmail.com for any questions about the movie.
Listen to the WKSU "All Things Considered" NPR story which aired the day of the SOLD OUT Cleveland premiere. "The answer to all of Cleveland's problems will be shown on the silver screen tonight... It may be the answer for Canton, Youngstown, and Akron too..." CLICK HERE TO LISTEN. Read the article in the Cleveland Jewish News.
HELP US SPREAD THE WORD:
Please join this FACEBOOK GROUP for "My Tale of Two Cities" to help us spread the word about the movie. And tell your friends and family about it.
Part of the proceeds of these screenings benefit the "youth and media program" of the Steeltown Entertainment Project, which works with at risk youths helping them tell their own stories on film and exposing them to careers in the entertainment industry.
Having become the first film ever invited to play the U.S. Capitol at the new U.S. Capitol Visitor's Center on March 23rd where Congressman Mike Doyle called the film "a comeback story that can inspire cities around the country", My Tale of Two Cities has gone on to play in theaters in Harrisburg, New Haven, Cleveland, Boston, and Portland, Maine, The Gene Siskel Film Center in Chicago, and the Temecula Valley Film Festival and the Detroit Institute of Art.
My Tale of Two Cities has received national attention in The Washington Post, USA Today, and on The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer. Having sold out 1300 seats at its Pittsburgh premiere, My Tale of Two Cities has played in film festivals around the country and, for international audiences at the G-20 Media Center, and conventions for MENSA and the International Downtown Association. The film was HELD OVER at the SouthSide Works in Pittsburgh and attracted an audience of over 400 who showed up at The Capitol Theater in Windsor Ontario to hear the film's hopeful message. Read The Article in the Windsor Star: "Believing in Ourselves"
To book the film in your neighborhood, please contact Stuart Strutin of Panorama Entertainment at (914) 937 1603 or panent@aol.com.
MORE OF WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING ABOUT PITTSBURGH AND "MY TALE OF TWO CITIES":
Read the article from San Antonio Business Journal about My Tale of Two Cities: "Film Plays Role In Re-Energizing Cities"
LISTEN TO THE INTERVIEW ON "LAKE EFFECT" on MILWAUKEE PUBLIC RADIO ABOUT "My Tale of Two Cities" and rust belt cities reinventing themselves by clicking here.
The Washington Post mentions "My Tale of Two Cities" in its article on "Pittsburgh Shows How Rust Belt Can Be Polished Up" Also, read this Newsweek article: "Pittsburgh shows other countries visiting it for the G20 how postindustrial America can still bounce back."
"Whether you're a boomerang, comeback kid, recent transplant, or dyed-in-the-wool Burgher, you won't want to miss "My Tale of Two Cities," the much-buzzed about new film by St. Elmo's Fire screenwriter Carl Kurlander, which proves once and for all, that yes, you can go home again. With 1,300 people packing the film's sold-out debut (and delivering a standing ovation!),... ("My Tale of Two Cities" is)... a sort of collective cinematic homecoming for Pittsburghers everywhere... the film stars beloved local icons like Franco Harris and Mr. McFeely, and traces the city's storied role in building America's steel, conquering polio, and inventing everything from aluminum to the Big Mac. A classic comeback tale for a town in transition, the film follows the witty and charming Kurlander as he tosses a football with Franco Harris, shops with Teresa Heinz Kerry, has breakfast with Paul O' Neill, and ponders the time honored question: Can you go home again? Dubbed a "funny valentine to Pittsburgh,"... you know you'll cry black and gold tears as Pittsburghers from Times Square to Beverly Hills to Point State Park sing in unison to the city's anthem, "Won't You Be My Neighbor?" Pop City Media.
-- Jennifer Baron, Pop City Media
Read the full article here:
Talk about a "comeback story." Despite the economic headlines, there are over 20,000 jobs listed in the Pittsburgh region at www.imaginemynewjob.com
PIECES ON NPR, CNN, THE AP, AND THE NEW YORK TIMES ABOUT THE PITTSBURGH COMEBACK STORY AS A MODEL FOR THE NATION:
Wall Street Journal
Pittsburgh Scores the G20 Summit
NPR: "Factory and auto towns shift gears"
AP: "Despite recession, Pittsburgh on a building boom"
Randi Kaye of Anderson 360 on CNN: "Can Pittsburgh Save Detroit?
New York Times: The Greening of Pittsburgh
Visit the Pittsburgh Comeback Story Blog.
THE SOUNDTRACK:
The "My Tale of Two Cities" SOUNDTRACK FEATURING SOME OF PITTSBURGH'S FINEST MUSICIANS, INCLUDING DONORA'S GREAT COVER OF FRED ROGERS' "IT'S SUCH A GOOD FEELING" IS AVAILABLE NOW AT CD BABY. CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO SOME SAMPLES.
THANKS:
We hope you enjoy this film that proves "it's never too late to come back" and that the whole world really is "Mister Rogers' Neighborhood."
