CHICAGO – It began with a boy and his dream (nightmare?). John LaFlamboy, to be exact, as he took an idea he had in college and made it his life’s work. He owns and operates the HellsGate Haunted House in Lockport (Illinois), which was designed, built and put together by Haunted House experts expressly for the spookiest month of the year. For info on how to purchase tickets, click HellsGate.
Michael Spike Walters
Film Feature: HollywoodChicago.com Remembers Sidney Poitier
Submitted by PatrickMcD on January 10, 2022 - 2:34pm- 94
- A Raisin in the Sun
- Blackboard Jungle
- Dead
- Dies
- Film News
- Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner
- HollywoodChicago.com Content
- In the Heat of the Night
- Jon Lennon Espino
- Let’s Do it Again
- Lilies of the Field
- Michael Spike Walters
- No Way Out
- Obituary
- Passed Away
- Patrick McDonald
- Sidney Poitier is Dead
- Sneakers
- The Defiant Ones
- To Sir with Love
CHICAGO – With the passing of actor Sidney Poitier at the age of 94 on January 6th, 2022, another lion of the cinema – who represented succinctly an era of the movies – has left the mortal coil. HollywoodChicago.com presents the following appreciation through three film essays in retrospect by Patrick McDonald, Spike Walters and Jon Lennon Espino.
Film Feature: HollywoodChicago.com Remembers Rutger Hauer
Submitted by PatrickMcD on August 7, 2019 - 6:50pmCHICAGO – Cult character actor Rutger Hauer passed away late last month, but the mark he made with his array of performances carried through two generation of admirers, even receiving the honor of Best Dutch Actor of the (20th) Century in 1999. He died on July 19th, 2019, in his native Netherlands. He was 75.
Film Feature: HollywoodChicago.com Remembers Albert Finney
Submitted by PatrickMcD on February 26, 2019 - 8:07am- 82
- Albert Finney
- Albert Finney is Dead
- Charlie Bubbles
- Dead
- Dies
- Erin Brockovich
- Film News
- HollywoodChicago.com Content
- James Bond
- Jon Espino
- Michael Spike Walters
- Miller’s Crossing
- Murder on the Orient Express
- Obituary
- Passed Away
- Patrick McDonald
- Scrooge
- Skyfall
- The Bourne Ultimatum
- The Dresser
- The Entertainer
- Tom Jones
- Two for the Road
- Under the Volcano
CHICAGO – He moved deftly from British matinee idol to formidable movie star to reliable character actor, and was nominated four times for an Academy Award (no wins). Albert Finney had a nearly 50 year stage and screen career that encompassed virtually all types and genres of acting. He died in London on February 7th, 2019. He was 82.
Feature: HollywoodChicago.com’s Overrated & Worst Films of 2018
Submitted by PatrickMcD on January 8, 2019 - 10:54amCHICAGO – It’s easy to bohemian rhapsodize about the best films in any particular year… it’s why we go to the movies. But what about those times when 1) everybody loves something, and you think, “huh?” or 2) the film is just plain “the worst”? Jon Lennon Espino, Spike Walters and Patrick McDonald of HollywoodChicago.com can relate.
Film Feature: HollywoodChicago.com Remembers Penny Marshall
Submitted by PatrickMcD on December 26, 2018 - 6:14pm- 75
- A League of Their Own
- Big
- Dead
- Dies
- Film News
- Garry Marshall
- Happy Days
- HollywoodChicago.com Content
- Jon Espino
- Jumpin’ Jack Flash
- Laverne & Shirley
- Michael Spike Walters
- Obituary
- Passed Away
- Patrick McDonald
- Penny Marshall
- Penny Marshall is Dead
- Riding in Cars with Boys
- Rob Reiner
- The Odd Couple
- The Preacher’s Wife
CHICAGO – Penny Marshall was somewhat of an enigma, and admittedly not comfortable in the spotlight. The 1970s sitcom legend who evolved into a top American film director never seemed quite sure of her legacy, but she left behind a superior body of work that defined her as a filmmaker. Ms. Marshall died from complications due to diabetes on December 17th, 2018, at the age of 75.
Film Feature: HollywoodChicago.com Remembers Burt Reynolds
Submitted by PatrickMcD on October 9, 2018 - 10:26amCHICAGO – The Bandit. Gator. The Man Who Loved Women. Jack Horner. Burt Reynolds played all these roles, in a roller coaster career that encompassed three eras of film and television. Reynolds died last month at age 82, taking with him a different breed of movie star, one that stole a scene with a self assured wink, mischievous smile and high pitched laugh.
Film Feature: HollywoodChicago.com Remembers Neil Simon
Submitted by PatrickMcD on September 1, 2018 - 8:19am- 91
- Academy Award
- Barefoot in the Park
- Dead
- Dies
- Felix
- Film News
- HollywoodChicago.com Content
- Jack Lemmon
- Jon Espino
- Lost in Yonkers
- Michael Spike Walters
- Neil Simon
- Neil Simon is Dead
- Obituary
- Oscar
- Passed Away
- Patrick McDonald
- Richard Dreyfuss
- The Goodbye Girl
- The Odd Couple
- Walter Matthau
- Your Show of Shows
CHICAGO – Writer Neil Simon was an American treasure, and created humor that anchored his often neurotic characters into our consciousness. From his early days in 1950s TV (“Your Show of Shows”) to winning a 1990s Pulitzer Prize for “Lost in Yonkers,” he refined and produced “the laugh.” Simon died on August 26th, 2018, at age 91, in New York City.
Film Feature: HollywoodChicago.com Remembers John Mahoney
Submitted by PatrickMcD on February 9, 2018 - 8:54am- 77
- Barton Fink
- David Hyde Pierce
- Dead
- Dies
- Film News
- Frasier
- HollywoodChicago.com Content
- House of Blue Leaves
- John Mahoney is Dead
- Jon Espino
- Kelsey Grammar
- Martin Crane
- Michael Spike Walters
- Obituary
- Orphans
- Passed Away
- Patrick McDonald
- Say Anything
- Steppenwolf Theatre
- The American President
- Tony Award
CHICAGO – The actor John Mahoney, the son of Chicago that came here from England, died on February 4th, 2018 at his home in nearby Oak Park. He was 77. He had a varied career of stage and screen roles, but he is best remembered as Dad Martin Crane to sons Niles and “Frasier,” on that long running series.
Feature: HollywoodChicago.com’s Overrated & Worst Films of 2017
Submitted by PatrickMcD on January 9, 2018 - 12:55pmCHICAGO – Opinions are like certain orifices, everybody has one. The contributors to HollywoodChicago.com – Patrick McDonald, Jon Lennon Espino and Spike Walters – are no strangers to opinions on the film scene, so why not offer judgement on the most overrated and worst films of the year 2017.
Film Feature: HollywoodChicago.com Tackles Pro Football Films
Submitted by PatrickMcD on September 10, 2017 - 8:44pm- Al Pacino
- Any Given Sunday
- Best Football Films
- Billy Dee Williams
- Brian Piccolo
- Brian’s Song
- Chicago Bears
- Cuba Gooding Jr
- Film Feature
- Gale Sayers
- HollywoodChicago.com Content
- James Caan
- Jerry Maguire
- Jon Espino
- Michael Spike Walters
- Oliver Stone
- Patrick McDonald
- Renee Zellweger
- Tom Cruise
- Über-Critic
CHICAGO – It’s the opening Sunday of the NFL, and what better time to celebrate the films that celebrate the sport that celebrate the ballers. Film history has a steroid-free stack of pro football films in all categories. Patrick McDonald, Jon Lennon Espino and Spike Walters of HollywoodChicago.com take on three prime examples.
