Harvey Brownstone Interviews David Fantle & Tom Johnson, Authors, “C’mon, Get Happy: The Making of Summer Stock”

Harvey Brownstone conducts an in-depth interview with David Fantle & Tom Johnson, Authors, “C’mon, Get Happy: The Making of Summer Stock”

About Harvey's guest:

Today’s guests,  David Fantle & Tom Johnson, are co-authors who last appeared on our show to discuss their landmark book entitled, “Hollywood Heyday: 75 Candid Interviews with Golden Age Legends”.   The interviews contained in that book were conducted when our guests were mere teenagers living in Minnesota, visiting Hollywood in the hopes of meeting movie stars.  And boy, did they ever!  

Since then, our guests have gone on to have distinguished careers.   David Fantle has been interviewing, writing, and speaking about Hollywood’s Golden Age stars for 45 years, and he’s an adjunct professor of film at Marquette University.  Tom Johnson is a former senior editor at Netflix, and he’s written movie reviews and features for many publications including E! Online, Movie-phone, and People magazine. His writing has been recognized with a Minnesota Newspaper Association achievement award and a National Hearst Foundation award.  

They’re here today to discuss their brand new book entitled, “C’mon, Get Happy: The Making of Summer Stock”.   This well-researched and illuminating book chronicles how Judy Garland’s last MGM movie, and her 3rd and final film with co-star Gene Kelly, was conceived, cast and filmed, despite the troubled atmosphere of drama and heartache, and the sometimes overwhelming obstacles and challenges surrounding the production.  

The book is jam-packed with little-known and newly uncovered details about the people in front of and behind the cameras, and it examines the enduring legacy of the movie, including some fascinating insights provided by Judy Garland’s daughter Lorna Luft, Gene Kelly’s daughter Kerry Kelly Novick, and other celebrities including Savion Glover, Ben Vereen, Tommy Tune and Michael Finestine.   

For more interviews and podcasts go to: https://www.harveybrownstoneinterviews.com/

To see more about David Fantle and Tom Johnson, go to:

https://www.upress.state.ms.us/Books/C/C-mon-Get-Happy

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