Goldfinger Class Cancelled

My deepest apologies to those who signed up, but we've had to cancel this weekend's class.

I'll be rescheduling the Goldfinger class to sometime in January.

Have a great holiday season and see you then, I hope.

The Class: O Brother, Where Art Thou?

THE CLASS:
Jailbird BBQ Chicken Wings
Pappy O'Daniel's Buttermilk Biscuits 'n' Honey Butter
Grilled Boneless Rib Eye Steak with “Gratinated” Potatoes
Sauteed Greens & Corn
Strawberry-Rhubarb Pie


First things first... Wow, what a great class. Full house. Thanks all who came and especially the staff and volunteers at Central Market for a great job in making it happen.

I'm gonna say it one more time, though I've said it in the last few posts, that if you've been following this adventure, you'll know I got myself a herniated disc at the end of February which pretty much put me out of commission for almost two months. After that, my life was pretty much focused on physical therapy and getting myself functional again. The biggest problem, and remains so, is that sitting for long periods of time is not beneficial for me (as if it ever was!). So I took a break from it all in for the sake of my health.

And as I have for the last half decade now, I hightailed it up to Montreal to get away from the Texas heat of summer. This summer, because being in Montreal affords me a lot of opportunity to walk, I decided to take a longer than usual trip. I also took on more work than I usually do which meant more sitting on my duff than I wanted, but everyone's gotta work and thankfully, so far, I haven't had any recurring issues, though I'm still not all back (in my back) yet.

Hopefully, you've been following me on either Facebook or Twitter as I've been posting some cool links, to try and keep you amused, of food and/or movie related articles, as well as some of the articles I've written over the summer. If not, here are some links to them (shameless self-promotion time) which I hope you will enjoy reading.

New Class Tickets Now Available - O Brother, Where Art Thou?

Time: Saturday September 14, 2013 · 6:30pm - 9:30pm
Location: Central Market North, 4001 North Lamar, Austin, TX
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE

For my 20th class and 3rd anniversary teaching, I will be presenting a 3-course meal inspired by the Oscar-nominated adventure O Brother, Where Art Thou? Directed by the Coen Brothers, the film is a depression-era retelling of Homer's The Odyssey. The film stars George Clooney, John Turturro, and Tim Blake Nelson as three escaped convicts in 1920's Mississippi on a quest to find a hidden treasure. The film co-stars' former Austinite blues guitarist Chris Thomas King, Holly Hunter, and Charles Durning.

The Menu:
Jailbird BBQ Chicken Wings
Pappy O'Daniel's Buttermilk Biscuits 'n' Honey Butter
Grilled Boneless Rib Eye Steak with “Gratinated” Potatoes
Sauteed Greens & Corn
Strawberry-Rhubarb Pie

Interviews & Reviews! Chef du Cinema Live on KOOP Radio's Lights Camera Austin & A Nice Write-Up in the Chronicle!

First up, my interview with Robert Sims from KOOP Radio's Lights Camera Austin from a couple of weeks ago. Click the image to hear the interview!


Also, a great little write up in the Austin Chronicle from back in April I haven't posted!


Chef du Cinema Presents 'American Graffiti'
Also: Bourbon root beer
By Joey Keeton, 12:41PM, Wed. Apr. 3

Chef du Cinema, aka Ron Deutsch, makes me wish that I were dating somebody. And had money.

If you happen to have the relationship/money combo, or are just extremely into food and/or American Graffiti – George Lucas' nostalgic classic from 1973 about a group of kids on their last night before college in 1962 – you'd be doing yourself a favor to check out Deutsch's presentation of the two at Central Market this Saturday, April 6.

The word "unique" has a tendency to be tossed around all too haphazardly in the entertainment industry, but when somebody's résumé includes concert engineer for the Dead Kennedys, 10 years as a screenwriter and story analyst, documentary filmmaker, journalist, and renowned chef, I feel relatively safe in using it. Ron Deutsch, and his cooking class, are unique.

read more.....

(shameless self-promotion time!) New Interview with 20 Feet from Stardom director Morgan Neville

Unsung Heroes: 'Twenty Feet from Stardom' Hails the Singers behind the Hits
by Ron Deutsch
Documentary Magazine, Summer 2013

For nearly two decades, Morgan Neville has defined himself as one of the most prolific documentary producer/directors of American pop culture. Beginning with his 1995 film Shotgun Freeway, which imagined a history of Los Angeles through the eyes of its denizens like James Elroy and Buck Henry, Neville has explored the lives and work of such artists as Muddy Waters, Hank Williams, James Brown, James Taylor, Iggy Pop and a host of others. His latest film,Twenty Feet from Stardom, profiles the unsung songstresses of rock 'n' roll—the backup singers you've heard but not heard of.

"What I realized early on is that telling the unfamiliar story behind the familiar is something that has always been of interest to me," Neville maintains. "Even going back to Shotgun Freeway. It was a way of retelling LA history from a kind of microscopic point of view. Everybody has an idea of Hollywood or LA history, but let's find out what the invisible history is about it, so when you think about LA, you will think about it differently.

"That's certainly been happening with Twenty Feet from Stardom," Neville continues. "It changed how I hear music and hopefully it changes the way others will. I spent a couple of years while working on this with the radio on, suddenly hearing vocals in songs I've heard a thousand times and realizing just how they were constructed and how important those background vocals were. Being able to take a song and share it anew—I love that. It just adds so much more depth to things we take for granted."

more....

The Class: Time Bandits

THE CLASS:
Ginger Ale Battered Fried Prawns w/Cilantro-Lime Tartar Sauce
RMS Titanic Asparagus Salad w/Champagne-Saffron Vinaigrette
Petto d' Anatra Arrosto con Mostarda di agrumi (Italian Roast Duck w/Citrus-Mustard Preserves)
Polenta Cremosa (Creamy Polenta)
Greek Fruit Salad w/Feta Cheese


If you follow this blog I don't have to tell you that I've been recuperating from a herniated disc which is why I haven't been posting much. Also, real work beckons, and so I've been trying to catch up with that work I'd taken on before I got infirmed now that I can sit and am off the pain meds.

And I was on the radio this week. KOOP Radio's Lights.Camera.Austin with your host Robert Sims interviewed me. It's posted here.

The idea for this class came from one the chefs who works with me at the Cooking School, Scot Loranc, who was leaving working full time at the school and opening a food trailer. Since we wouldn't be working together any more, I asked him if there was a favorite film of his he'd like to have me do... provided, of course, it would be a movie I would want to do teach. He responded, "Time Bandits." My eyes lit up and I said instantly, "But, of course. Time Bandits, it is, amigo." So off I went to rewatch the film to figure out what the menu would be. And it came quite easily.

Class went very well. Smaller than I hoped (no pun intended), but everyone left quite pleased.

TV Bites: The Wanderers

THE SNACK:
City Island Clam Fritters


I'm still slowly recuperating from my herniated disc, which has kept me from doing much for the last month other than laying in bed, popping pain killers, and getting acupuncture. But now I'm off the pain killers, I'm on to physical therapy, and hoping to rejoin the human race soon.

But here we are with part two of "The 70's Looks Back at the 50's" double bill.

I initially chose this film because I've always been fond of it, and I thought it would make a good double-bill with American Graffiti. But in putting this post together, I got to watch it several times, and I've come to really fall in love with it. Also, I was quite surprised by how much they were connected. I see the movies like cousins, one from California and the other from New York. American Graffiti takes place in 1962 and Richard Price's book The Wanderers also takes place in 1962, though the Kaufmans bumped it up a year for the movie to 1963. Rolling Stone magazine said of Richard Price's book The Wanderers, from which the movie is based, that it is "the flip side of American Graffiti."

But there's more connections. Between 1973, when American Graffiti was made, and 1979, when The Wanderers was made, George Lucas and Philip Kaufman worked for a while on a screenplay together. If you follow this blog (or are just a movie fan) you'll know that movie was (previous Chef du Cinema pick) Raiders of the Lost Ark (which, like today's pick, costars Karen Allen). Also in Price's book (but didn't make it into the movie), there's a somewhat older character whom the lead character (Richie) seeks out for advice known as "The Wolfman." In American Graffiti, there's Wolfman Jack who offers up advice for Curt, the lead character.

New Class Tickets Now Available - Time Bandits - June 8th

Time: Saturday June 8, 2013 · 6:30pm - 9:30pm
Location: Central Market North, 4001 North Lamar, Austin, TX
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE

For my 19th class, I will be presenting a 4-course meal inspired by Terry Gilliam's fantasy/adventure classic, Time Bandits. It is a tale of a young boy who discovers his bedroom is a time-traveling portal when a band of wacky dwarfs crash through his armoire one evening. He joins up with them as they bounce around time and space, meeting up with the likes of Napoleon, Robin Hood, and King Agamemnon of Ancient Greece. The film stars Sean Connery, John Cleese, David Rappaport, Shelley Duvall, Michael Palin, and David Warner.

The Menu:
Ginger Ale Battered Fried Prawns w/Cilantro-Lime Tartar Sauce
RMS Titanic Asparagus Salad w/Champagne-Saffron Vinaigrette
Petto d' Anatra Arrosto con Mostarda di agrumi (Italian Roast Duck w/Citrus-Mustard Preserves)
Polenta Cremosa (Creamy Polenta)
Greek Fruit Salad w/Feta Cheese

The Class: American Graffiti

THE MEAL:
Classic California Caesar Salad
Open-Faced Meat Loaf Sandwich w/Brown Mushroom Gravy
French Fries
Homemade Ketchup
Bourbon-Root Beer & Vanilla Swirl Ice Cream w/The Great American Apple Pie


So what's been going on? Where've I been? Well.... just over a month ago I woke up with a herniated disc which basically crippled me in my right leg. But such is life. I was bedridden and on painkillers and ice packs for weeks. Got me one of them epidural steroid shots. And poco a poco I began to get better. Especially awesome has been the acupuncture treatments which have really helped get rid of the pain and inflammation. I also caught up on a bunch of films, though I had to spend almost all of South by Southwest in bed (I did manage to get out to see 5 films and highly recommend the Muscle Shoals documentary). So that's where I've been.

I hobbled over to teach class and I think some adrenalin kicked in because I was fully able to stand for the hour's worth of lecture. I was all prepared to have to sit on a stool, but I managed just fine. Great group and everything went without a hitch.

Now here we are at part one of "The 70's Looks Back at the 50's" double bill and I'm going to start out with a little rant about something Lucas has said in relation to this movie.

New Class Tickets Now Available: American Graffiti - April 6th

Time: Saturday April 6, 2013 · 6:30pm - 9:30pm
Location: Central Market North, 4001 North Lamar, Austin, TX
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE

For my 18th class, I will be presenting a great American classic movie with a great American classic diner meal. American Graffiti was co-written/directed by George Lucas, and features a cast of then mostly unknowns including Richard Dreyfuss, Ron Howard, Paul Le Mat, Harrison Ford, Charles Martin Smith, Cindy Williams, Candy Clark, Mackenzie Phillips and, and of course, Wolfman Jack. The Oscar-nominated film also features great-looking cars and a great soundtrack. It's a nostalgic trip back to the summer of 1962, and to the teenagers of Modesto, California, who have one last night before adult responsibilities close in.

Feel free to come dressed in 50's style!

The Menu:
Classic California Caesar Salad
Open-Faced Meat Loaf Sandwich w/Brown Mushroom Gravy
French Fries w/Homemade Ketchup
Bourbon-Root Beer & Vanilla Swirl Ice Cream w/The Great American Apple Pie

The Class: Once

THE MEAL:
Potato & Scallion Soup
Tomato-Cucumber Salad (Šopský salát)
Beef & Guinness Guláš (Goulash) w/Buttered Noodles
Ovocné Knedliky (Czech Fruit Dumplings) w/Irish Whiskey Butter Sauce



Wow, a sold out class tonight and a lot of new people. Everything went great except the movie froze twice (first time for everything, I guess). The food turned out quite well and most hadn't seen the movie before and it's always great to watch people seeing a movie you love for the first time.

The two characters in this film form a duet and, in real life, the two main actors/performers also formed a duet, both musically and romantically. But also this film is a duet. A few years after Once was made, a documentary was done which followed the two leads, Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova, on tour. The latter film, The Swell Season (also the name of Hansard and Irglova's group), shows the real life couple having both gone and going through a lot of changes since they made the former. Shot in black and white, The Swell Season plays almost like a Cassavetes movie with music. And while in some ways, I suppose, it yanks the fantasy out of Once, it also reaffirms the reality that love is something precious, often fleeting, and we must suck every ounce of joy from it while we can when it lets us take a sip from its crazy straw. And if you survive the pain of heartbreak, you might be able to enjoy how nice it was and honor its impermanent nature, which is a lot of what Once is about. And that's a sort of pragmatic Valentine's thought to offer, no? So, Happy belated Valentine's Day.

TV Bites: The Good, The Bad, The Weird (좋은 놈, 나쁜 놈, 이상한 놈)

THE SNACK:
Grilled Pork Bulgogi Tacos w/Korean Slaw & Asian Pear/Cucumber Relish


Okay, here we are at part two of the "Good/Bad" double bill. Korean director Kim Jee-woon was inspired by Sergio Leone's classic The Good, The Bad & The Ugly (aka the part one of the double bill) to make his film.

I remember when I first saw this movie. It was during Fantastic Fest a few years ago. I sat down, the lights went down and within the first ten minutes I remember thinking, "Oh my god. This movie is amazing." But then a sudden feeling of dread came over me. "What if this is it? What if these ten minutes is all there is and the movie just goes downhill from here? There's no way it can sustain this awesomeness, can they?" But I comforted myself in the thought that at least these first ten minutes just rocked my world. But the movie completely did me in. It never went downhill and it sustained the aweseomeness throughout. As director Kim Jee-woon notes below, so many of the movies he loved growing up inform this, and apparently he and I have enjoyed a lot of the same movies. It's so rare these days to be able to just sit and let a movie not only wash over you but also carry you along on a great adventure. And while some critics panned it as too derivative or whatever, screw 'em. They tend to like movies than make your squirm or hate yourself or the world at the end - not that I don't like such things at times, but this is one of those "strap yourselves in and enjoy the ride" kind of movie. On repeated viewings it holds up and leaves me feeling like a happy 12 year old boy.

Meanwhile, while the east coast is being dumped on by another bout of winter, here in Austin it's already springtime. (And as I write that I have a sneezing fit, thanks to the springtime allergens). And, of course, springtime means one other thing here, time to get ready for South by Southwest. Hopefully, I will discover some great new films and new bands, but mostly it's an opportunity to spend time with out-of-town friends.

TV Bites: Elevator to the Gallows (Ascenseur pour l’échafaud)

THE SNACK:
Miles Davis' South Side Chicago Chili Mack


A version of this post can be found at The Criterion Collection website
Finally we arrive at the long-delayed (also procastinated) second half of the Paris, France double bill. And what a treat it is. With this movie, you get two wonderful things at the same time. First, the movie itself, but also you have one of the most wonderful soundtracks ever created for a film. Miles Davis (no relation to my new kitten) was intrigued to make an improvised recording for the film's soundtrack, but the outcome of that experiment would change not just his musical direction and influence the direction of jazz music in general. (More about this in the Background & Context section.)

And independent of the soundtrack, Elevator to the Gallows changed the cinema landscape, as well. The brilliant cinematography, the editing, the low budget simplicity of it.... The film was released merely moments before the first wave of the French New Wave films came out (though there is a lot of debate as to whether Malle was a member of this group, an honorary member, or not one at all). If Malle is not a card-carrying member of the New Wave (and he himself will argue that he isn't), he nevertheless set the stage for it and busted the doors open so that Truffaut and Goddard could saunter through. Malle's film is the bridge between the French films of the 1950's (Robert Bresson, Jean-Pierre Melville, and others) and the New Wave.

Otherwise, I hope the new year is doing you well. I just sent the Chef du Cinema book proposal out to an agent. Let's hope for the best. I'll be back shortly with the second half of the "good/bad" double bill.

TV Bites: The Good, The Bad & The Ugly (Il buono, il brutto, il cattivo)

THE SNACK:
Pozole Verde w/Pork


Okay, enough holiday - back to work. Hope you had a happy one and, like myself, looking forward to a good new year. And don't forget to include signing up for one my classes in the new year as one of your new year's resolutions.

So we're gonna start a "good/bad" double bill now, which will have the long-delayed part deux of the French double bill in between. Now you may ask, "Ron, you've done the first part of the 'Dollars Trilogy,' why are you skipping to the third? What's wrong with For A Few Dollars More?" Well, nothing's wrong with it. In fact, I'll say it's my favorite of the trio, but... I just wanted to do this double bill and I promise we'll get to it soon enough. Plus, pozole makes for a nice winter meal.