John Paget's Blog

ALCATRAZ REUNION Wins Best Documentary at Iowa City Film Festival

Alcatraz Reunion won best documentary at the 2nd annual Landlocked Film Festival in Iowa City, IA (August 21-24, 2008).
It initially screened at the kickoff of the festival on August 21st at the historic Englert Theatre in downtown Iowa City, and was given an encore screening on August 24th after winning the top prize for feature-length documentary.

Elvis Week...Again!

That's right - it's Elvis Week again.  The 31st annual.

The highlight of opening day (besides shopping run to the Wal-Mart on Elvis Presley Blvd. with contest MC Ronny Craig) was Elvis Junior (the 2006 world champion from Belgium) singing Marc Cohn's "Walkin in Memphis."  Understand: Elvis impersonators NEVER sing anything Elvis did not sing.  It's like preaching the Word at a baptist church and quoting from the Apocrypha.  But Cohn's song truly captures the spirit of Elvis and Memphis even if it is technically outside the Elvis canon.  It was great to hear this sung Elvis style.

Also, Justin Shandor gave a commanding performance of "Surrender" – a song rarely heard on the Elvis circuit due to its high difficulty rating.  Check out his vocal chops and perfect mannerisms: when he retreats from the mic at the end he appears to experience an exorcism of Elvis' very ghost.

I posted them both on the Blue Suede Films YouTube channel.