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From: BrYan Westbrook <
[email protected] >
Newsgroups: alt.fan.woody-allen,alt.sex.woody-allen
Subject: Woody Allen FAQ
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It's not a complete update, but at least I've got the filmography
caught up.
Frequently Asked Questions About Woody Allen
version 2.2
November 27, 2000
Compiled by BrYan Westbrook
(
[email protected])
(please e-mail me with corrections and/or additions)
Disclaimer: I have no insider information and no connection to Woody
Allen, DreamWorks, Fine Line Features, or Miramax Films (though I'm
certainly willing to entertain job offers from any of them).
Disclaimer #2: This FAQ is a travesty of a mockery of a sham of a
mockery of a travesty of two mockeries of a sham.
Upcoming and recent releases:
His next film is reportedly going to be titled The Curse of the Jade
Scorpion.
Q: Who is Woody Allen?
A: He was born Allen Stewart Konigsberg in Brooklyn, NY, December 1,
1935. He dropped out (flunked out?) of both New York University and
City College of New York. He began his comedic career writing
one-liners for gossip columns at age 15, and during college was a joke
writer for Bob Hope. In 1961 he finally began performing his own
material in Greenwich Village cafes, and soon moved up to nightclubs
and talk shows. He also had a stint as a writer/actor on Alan Funt's
original Candid Camera. In 1965 he sold his first screenplay, What's
New, Pussycat? and also acted a supporting role in the movie.
Q: How many times has Allen been married?
A: He has two ex-wives: Harlene Rosen (March 25, 1956 to 1962) and
Louise Lasser (February 2, 1966 to 1969) who co-starred in some of his
early, funny movies and was best known as tv's Mary Hartman, Mary
Hartman. He dated Diane Keaton prior to writing Annie Hall, and their
romance is the basis for much of that script.
On December 22, 1997 in Venice, Italy, Allen married his girlfriend of
several years, Soon-Yi Previn, the adopted daughter of Mia Farrow and
her second ex-husband Andre Previn (her first ex-husband was Frank
Sinatra who is rumored to have threatened to beat up Allen over his
affair with Soon-Yi). The secret wedding was attended by only friends
and relatives (though not Mia Farrow) and was officiated by Massimo
Cacciari, the mayor of Venice.
Woody has one biological son, Satchel Farrow; an adopted son, Moses
Farrow; and adopted daughter, Dylan Farrow, with ex-lover Mia Farrow.
Since their breakup, Ms. Farrow has changed Satchel's name to Seamus
and Dylan's to Eliza.
Q: Where does Woody Allen live?
A: 930 5th Avenue, New York, NY
(As far as I know this information is public knowledge, so please no
e-mail about me jeopardizing Mr. Allen's security.)
Q: How can I get an autograph from Mr. Allen?
A: There is no guarantee that you will actually receive one, but you
can send your request to his New York office. Write to:
Norma Lee Clark
130 W. 57th St.
New York City, NY 10019
Q: How tall is Mr. Allen?
A: According to Eric Lax, when Allen was in high school he was a
"slight five-foot-six redhead."
Q: Why does Woody Allen never attend the Academy Awards?
A: Mr. Allen is deeply private and not a "joiner." Every year the
Academy invites him to join, and every year he respectfully declines.
He plays clarinet every Monday night when not shooting a movie, so he
always has a prior commitment. He has, however, received many
nominations and received a few Academy Awards.
Q: Why did Woody have an affair with his daughter?
A: First off, Soon-Yi Previn was not his daughter. She is the adopted
daughter of Mia Farrow (whom Woody never married) and conductor Andre
Previn. Why Allen had an affair with the adopted daughter of his
girlfriend is a matter between the three of them and has no direct
relevence on the worth of his artistic output.
Q: What biographies of Woody Allen are there?
A:
* Altman, Mark. Woody Allen Encyclopedia. Pioneer Books, 199?.
* Benayoun, Robert. Woody Allen : Beyond Words.
* Bendazzi, G. The Films of Woody Allen. Gruppo Editoriale Fabbri
Spa, 1984-1987.
* Bj�rkman, Stig. Woody Allen on Woody Allen. Faber and Faber,
1994.
* Blake, Richard. Woody Allen, Profane and Sacred.
* Brode, Douglas. Woody Allen : His Films and Career. Secaucus:
Citadel Press, 1985.
* Carroll, Tim. Woody and His Women. Little, Brown and Company,
1993.
* Cowie, Peter. (a book about Annie Hall)
* Curry, Renee R. Perspectives on Woody Allen. G.K. Hall & Co.,
1996.
* de Navacelle, Thierry. Woody Allen on Location. Sidgwick &
Jackson, 1987.
* Fuchs, Wolfgang. Die Vielen Gesichter des Woody Allen. Taschen
Verlag, 1986.
* Girgus, Sam B. The Films of Woody Allen. Cambridge University
Press, 1993.
* Groteke, Kristi and Marjorie Rosen. Mia & Woody: Love and
Betrayal. New York: Carroll & Graf Publishers, 1994.
* He Said/She Said Comics: The Woody Allen Story/The Mia Farrow
Story. Publisher: First Ammendment Comics
* Hirsch, Foster. Love, Sex, Death, and the Meaning of Life: Woody
Allen's Comedy. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1981.
* I Dream of Woody (Collects reports from a bunch of fans on actual
dreams they have had.)
* Jacobs, Diane. ...But We Need The Eggs: The Magic Of Woody Allen.
St. Martin's Press, 1982.
* Lax, Eric. On Being Funny: Woody Allen and Comedy.
* Lax, Eric. Woody Allen: A Biography. Vintage Books, 1992.
* Lee, Sander H. Woody Allen's Angst: Philosophical Commentaires on
His Serious Films. Jefferson: McFarland & Company, Inc., 1997.
* McCann, Graham. Woody Allen: New Yorker.
* McKnight, Gerald. Woody Allen: Joking Aside.
* Murphy, Diana (ed). Woody Allen at Work: The Photographs of Brian
Hamill. New York: Harry M. Abrams, Inc., Publishers, 1995.
* Palmer, Miles. Woody Allen an Illustrated Biography. Proteus,
1980.
* Pogel, Nancy. Woody Allen. Boston: G.K. Hall & Co., 1987.
* Rosenblum, Ralph and Robert Karen. When the Shooting Stops...the
Cutting Begins.
* Sinyard, Neil. The Films of Woody Allen.
* Spignesi, Stephen J. The Woody Allen Companion. Universal Press
Syndicate Company, 1992.
* Sunshine, Linda. Illustrated Woody Allen Reader. New York: Knopf,
1993.
* Wernblad, Annette. Brooklyn Is Not Expanding: Woody Allen's Comic
Universe. New Jersey: Associated University Presses, 1992.
* Yacowar, Maurice. Loser Take All. The Comic Art of Woody Allen,
new expanded edition. New York: Continuum, 1991.
Q: What Woody Allen Resources are there on the Internet?
A: There are two Usenet groups:
alt.fan.woody-allen and alt.sex.woody-allen
To subscribe to the Woody Allen mailing list, send the following
message to
[email protected]:
subscribe WOODY-L First name Last name
Woody Allen pages:
http://omni.cc.purdue.edu/~royald/allen.htm
The Woody Allen FAQ (this document in hypertext):
http://www.geocities.com/~madcap/Woody/iindex.html
The Woody Allen Chat Page:
http://www.geocities.com/~madcap/Woody/iwoodchat.htm
(no appearances from Allen himself--just fans)
For comprehensive information on all of his films, check the Internet
Movie Database:
http://us.imdb.com/Name?Allen,+Woody.
Additional information on some of his movies (from Husbands and Wives
through Everybody Says I Love You) can be found at the Miramax Caf�:
http://www.miramax.com/
Promotional material for Deconstructing Harry can be found at the Fine
Line Features page:
http://www.flf.com/harry/index.html
The banjo player from Woody's jazz band, Cynthia Sayer, has a homepage
at
http://home.earthlink.net/~cynth/
Mighty Aphrodite "Exploring Issues of Identity and Anonymity on the
Internet":
http://www.obs-us.com/obs/english/films/mx/aphro/top.htm
"The Whore of Mensa":
http://www.ariz.com:80/mensa/humor/whore.html
Woody Allen Ate My Balls:
http://www.geocities.com/Hollywood/4165/woody.html
(Please note that the management of this FAQ does not reccomend the
above mentioned page, but merely lists it here for the sake of
thoroughness.)
Driveways of the Rich and Famous' interview with Allen's doorman:
http://www.driveways.com/newyork.htm
Q: Where can I find some Woody Allen .wav's?
A: All you need is a soundcard (the files want do you any good anyway
if you don't have one), a battery powered tape recorder, a connector
cord (headphone-type jack on both ends), and a recording program.
There are very simple programs to do this. A lot of computers come
with a program called Sound Recorder. If you don't have that one (I'm
assuming you're using an IBM (or clone) and not a MAC), go to
http://www.shareware.com and download Sonic Screwdriver. Once you've
got the program set up, record the sound you want to sample on a
cassette tape, plug one end of the cord into the headphone jack of the
tape recorder and the other into the "line in" jack of your soundcard
(next to where the speakers plug in). Just play the tape and hit the
record button on the program. If you are using Windows 95, you
will need to click on that little speaker icon in the bottom right of
the screen and adjust the settings for recording levels (I don't
remember the exact settings at this time, but you should be able to
figure it out).
BTW, the appropriate newsgroup for posting such files is
alt.binaries.sounds.movies and not here (but please leave an
announcement here if you do post any Woody Allen wav's). The place to
post pictures is alt.binaries.pictures.celebrities.
Q: What is Woody Allen's e-mail address?
A: Although he has "appeared" at least twice on America Online as a
celebrity guest (with someone else typing for him), Mr. Allen does not
have any known e-mail address, and is not known to even own a
computer. It is said that he still uses the manual typewriter on which
he wrote his first screenplay.
Q: What movies has Woody Allen done?
A:
1965
What's New, Pussycat?
actor, writer
1966
What's Up, Tiger Lily?
director, host, producer, voice-over actor, writer
1967
Casino Royale
actor
1969
Don't Drink the Water
writer
Take the Money and Run
actor, director, writer
1971
Bananas
actor, director, co-writer)
1972
Play It Again, Sam
actor, writer
Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex But Were Afraid to
Ask
actor, director, writer
1973
Sleeper
actor, director, composer, co-writer
1975
Love and Death
actor, director, writer
1976
The Front
actor
1977
Annie Hall
actor, director, co-writer
1978
Interiors
director, writer
1979
Manhattan
actor, director, co-writer
1980
Stardust Memories
actor, director, writer
1982
A Midsummer Night's Sex Comedy
actor, director, writer
1983
Zelig
actor, director, writer
1984
Broadway Danny Rose
actor, director, writer
1985
The Purple Rose of Cairo
director, writer
1986
Hannah and Her Sisters
actor, director, writer
1987
Radio Days
narrator, director, writer
September
director, writer
King Lear
actor
1988
Another Woman
director, writer
1989
"Oedipus Wrecks" from New York Stories
actor, director, writer
Crimes and Misdemeanors
actor, director, writer
1990
Alice
director, writer
1991
Scenes from a Mall
actor
1992
Shadows and Fog
actor, director, writer
Husbands and Wives
actor, director, writer
1993
Manhattan Murder Mystery
actor,director, writer
1994
Bullets Over Broadway
director, co-writer
Don't Drink the Water
actor, director, writer
1995
Mighty Aphrodite
actor, director, writer
The Sunshine Boys
actor
1996
Everyone Says I Love You
actor,director, writer
1997
Cannes... les 400 coups
actor
Deconstructing Harry
actor,director, writer
1998
Wild Man Blues
documentary subject
The Imposters
actor
Antz
voice-over actor
1999
Sweet and Lowdown
actor, director, writer
2000
Company Man
actor
Small Time Crooks
actor, director, writer
Picking Up the Pieces
actor
Q: What movies have featured Woody Allen as a character?
A:
Love and Betrayal: The Mia Farrow Story (1995)
The Royal Scam (1996)
Cannes... les 400 coups (1997)
Q: How come I never hear much about Allen's upcoming movies?
A: He is very secretive about his works in progress and is so paranoid
about leaks that the actors and actresses are only allowed to see
their own pages of the script. (Although there had been alleged leaks
from the set of Everybody Says I Love You.)
Q: What Woody Allen scripts have been published?
A: Annie Hall, Interiors, Manhattan, Stardust Memories (published in a
single volume)
Zelig, Broadway Danny Rose, The Purple Rose of Cairo (single volume)
Hannah and Her Sisters
Q: Did anybody ever notice how movie "x" imitates a Woody Allen movie?
A: Recognized Woody imitations:
Moon Over Parador -- Bananas
When Harry Met Sally -- Annie Hall
The Last Action Hero -- The Purple Rose of Cairo (which itself bears
much resemblence to Buster Keaton's Sherlock, Jr. although Allen
denies any connection)
Q: Didn't some of Woody's earlier movies predict things about the
future?
A: In Bananas: J. Edgar Hoover was depicted in drag, a couple decades
before he was "outed" as a transvestite by the press.
In the same film Howard Cossell gives a play-by-play color analysis of
an assassination. On December 8, 1980, during a Monday Night Football
broadcast, Cossell announced to the world the assassination of John
Lennon
Many people try to make a point of Alvy's "Impeach Ronald Reagan"
button in Annie Hall which was released 3 years prior to Reagan's
Presidential election, but that could have been left over from his
days as governor of California.
Q: Why does Woody Allen keep using the same actors and crew?
A: Woody's actors and crew are very loyal to him (they like working
with the best), and he to them. With the probable exception of Mia
Farrow, the only actress to ever publicly state she would not work
with him again is Meryl Streep.
Here is what Meryl Streep had to say about her experience:
"I don't think Woody Allen even remembers me. I went to see Manhattan
and I felt like I wasn't even in it. I was pleased with the film
because I looked pretty in it and I thought it was entertaining. But I
only worked on the film for three days and I didn't get to know Woody.
Who gets to know Woody? He's very much of a womanizer; very
self-involved. On a certain level, the film offends me because it's
about all these people whose sole concern is discussing their
emotional states or their neuroses. It's sad because Woody has the
potential to be America's Chekhov. But instead, he's still caught up
in the jet-set crowd type of life, trivializing his talent."
She was also upset that she was only given the portions of the script
that contained her part (standard operating procedure on a security
conscious Woody Allen set).
Q: What is Allen's stand on letterboxing of videotapes?
Manhattan is generally considered to have been the first movie ever
released in letterbox format. Although Mr. Allen has not issued an
official statement on the issue, he did sue a European television
station for broadcasting a panned-and scanned version of Manhattan.
No other Woody Allen films were shot in the wide screen Panavision
process.
Allen is also notorious for his movies having boom mikes in the "safe
area" above the top of the screen. This is a part of the frame that is
not visible in normal film presentation but appears during
panned-and-scanned video transfers. For an example, watch closely
during the cabin scenes in Annie Hall.
Q: What themes are repeated in Woody's movies?
A: Characters obsessed with death, the JFK assassination, and Ingmar
Bergman movies.
Also, the theme of illusion (manifested in things like magic, the
supernatural, movies, memories, mystical healers like Mr Yang in
Alice) versus "reality" is something he likes to use often.
He often talks directly to the camera.
Frequently plays movie directors.
Usually gives his characters short names because they're quicker to
type.
Q: What movies are shown within Woody's movies?
A:
Annie Hall
The Sorrow and the Pity
Crimes and Misdemeanors
Happy Go Lucky
Mr. and Mrs. Smith
20,000 Years in Sing Sing
Francis
Singing in the Rain
This Gun for Hire
Hannah and Her Sisters
Duck Soup
Manhattan Murder Mystery
Double Indemnity
The Lady from Shanghai
Play It Again Sam
Casablanca
The Purple Rose of Cairo
the fictitious The Purple Rose of Cairo
Top Hat
Radio Days
Intermezzo
Stardust Memories
Ladri di biciclette (The Bicycle Thief)
What's Up, Tiger Lily?
Kagi no Kag
Zelig
the fictitious The Changing Man (which has a tongue-in-cheek
entry of its own in James Monaco's The Connoisseur's Guide to the
Movies)
Q: What is What's New, Pussycat? about?
A: The producer, Charles Feldman, gave Woody the instruction to "write
something where we can all go to Paris and chase girls." Warren Beatty
was originally supposed to star in the film (the title was his
standard greeting to any attractive female) but dropped out before
filming. The role went to Peter O'Toole.
Q: What was the original title of the movie that was made into What's
Up, Tiger Lily??
A: Kagi no Kagi (1964).
Q: Does anyone know the poem Michael Caine read to Barbara Hershey in
the bookshop (Hannah and Her Sisters)?
A: The poem is by e. e. cummings, and, according to his practice, has
no formal title. It can be found by its first line: "somewhere i have
never travelled, gladly beyond"
Q: Who is David Greenglass?
A: " 'I love him like a brother - David Greenglass', Cliff answers,
using a phrase that was a favourite of New York liberals in the 1950s.
Greenglass was the brother of Ethel Rosenberg, who with her husband,
Julius, was executed in 1953 for passing U.S. atomic secrets to the
Russians. Greenglass, who supplied them with the information, turned
prosecution witness and got off with fifteen years in prison."
Q: Why does Woody Allen use so few black actors and actresses?
A: Woody usually sticks to the world he knows: middle and upper-class
New Yorkers, especially Jewish ones. He has repeatedly expressed his
fondness for black artists and athletes, particularly jazz musicians,
but shies away from trying to write about a culture that he is not a
part of.
Q: What is the name of the font Allen uses for his title credits?
A: There are at least two different names for the font (multiple names
are a common practice): "Windsor" and "Clearface". (If you already
have one of these fonts installed, the WWW version of this FAQ should
appear in that font instead of the default.)
I do not at this time know where to find any MacOS versions (which may
have an all together different name), but the Windows fonts can be
found at:
Windsor:
http://www.surfmadison.com/$webfile.send.FONTS./WINDSOR_.TTF
WindsorDemi.fog (which appears to be identical to Windsor):
http://www.surfmadison.com/$webfile.send.FONTS./WINDSO.ZIP
Clearface:
http://www.surfmadison.com/$webfile.send.FONTS./CLEARFA2.TTF
Clearface-Heavy-DTC:
http://www.surfmadison.com/$webfile.send.FONTS./CLEARFA5.TTF
Note: It has been my experience that the surfmadison server is
extremely slow.
Q: What is the story behind the "lost" PBS special?
A: In 1972, Allen was commisioned (though never paid) by the Public
Broadcasting System for a special titled The Politics of Woody Allen.
The network declined to air the special citing that it was too
controversial for an election year. The main complaint was against the
primary skit, Men of Crisis: The Harvey Wallinger Story, a satire of
Secretary of State Henry Kissinger. For years the tape was lost until
a tape of at least the Wallinger segment resurfaced in the PBS vaults
in late 1997.
Q: Didn't Allen do some TV Work?
In addition to being an actor on Candid Camera and That Was the Week
That Was, Woody wrote a pilot in 1962 entitled The Laughmakers. It was
about the professional lives of an improvisational group in New York
City. Among it's stars were Louise Sorel, Sandy Baron, Alan Alda, and
Louise Lasser. The group performed at "The Fruedian Slip" and hung out
at "Cafe Nervosa." A few of the gags turned up later in Woody's
stand-up and films. The Laughmakers was more sophisticated than
anything on television at that time so it's no surprise that the pilot
wasn't picked up. Woody starred in two variety show style specials in
the late sixties. Woody also appeared, along with Jonathan Winters,
Joanne Worley and Tom Smothers, in a short-lived (15 half-hours)
series for young people on NBC-TV called "HOT DOG" in 1970. The series
showed where every-day things come from - "How do they make a
baseball", "What's mustard?", "How do they get the toothpaste in the
toothpaste tube?, etc. - with comedic interjections by the stars. It
won critical raves, a Peabody Award and cancellation all in one
season.
Q: What albums has Woody Allen recorded?
A: The only stand-up album available in the USA is:
Woody Allen: Standup Comic, Casablanca Records
Available in Europe is:
Woody Allen: The Nightclub Years (1964-1968), EMI, CDP 7 93969 2, 0777
93968 2 5, UK: CDECC 31, LC 0542 (compact disk)
The New York Jazz Ensemble: The Bunk Project Music Master Jazz
0-1612-65098-2 (supposedly available only at Michael's Pub, so
possibly out
of print)
Soundtracks:
Woody Allen Classics, Sony Masterworks, SK 53549.
Q: Where does Woody play clarinet?
A: Since Micahel's Pub (where he played for more than 25 years) closed
in early 1997, The Eddie Davis Band, featuring Woody Allen, started
playing at the Cafe Carlyle (Seating capacity: 100) in the
Carlyle Hotel
Madison & 76th St.
(214) 744-1600
Woody plays on Monday night - first set only and only when his filming
or travel schedule allow.
Unlike Michael's Pub, the Carlyle has a policy of notifying
reservation holders if Mr. Allen will not appear.
Cover charge: $45 ($25 for the second set, sans Woody)
It is said that Woody began this practice to avoid attending the
Academy Awards which are always held on Monday nights. To hear a
sample of Woody's music, listen to the sound track to Sleeper which he
composed.
The banjo player from Woody's jazz band, Cynthia Sayer, has a homepage
at
http://home.earthlink.net/~cynth/
Q: What books has Woody Allen written?
A: Getting Even. 1971, ISBN: 0-030-32795-X
Side Effects
Without Feathers
These are available in a collected edition titled The Complete Prose
of Woody Allen, but the plays (which are technically not prose) are
omitted.
Q: What plays has Woody Allen written?
A: Don't Drink the Water
Central Park West (no relation to the CBS soap opera of the same name)
Play It Again, Sam
Death (the loose basis for Shadows and Fog)
Death Knocks
Don't Drink the Water
The Floating Lightbulb
God
Q: What was the Woody Allen comic strip back in the late 70's?
A: "Inside Woody Allen" drawn by Stuart Hample. There was a collection
published, titled Non-Being and Somethingness: Selections from the
Comic Strip "Inside Woody Allen" (ISBN: 0394735900) with an
introduction by Buckminster Fuller, but the book is long out of print.
