Reader Spotlight: Andy in Boston

It's Andy !It's "Reader Appreciation Month". So we're talking to a reader a day. Get to know The Film Experience community. Today we're talking to Andy Hoglund a '20something living that rock star life'. He writes for The Inclusive

What's your first movie memory?

ANDY: When I was 4 my dad took me to a screening of Pinocchio. I know I probably had watched movies before then (Mary Poppins on VHS), but this is my first legitimate memory of going to the movies. Sitting in a darkened theater, fully immersed -- there’s really nothing comparable to it, I’d say.

I was infatuated with the Universal Horror monster movies. Dracula, Frankenstein, The Wolf Man. I still remember – at 4 – watching AMC’s 2pm Monster movie every Saturday. It is rumored that I have seen Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man over 50 times.  I actually once sent Vincent Price a letter when I was in the first grade. He responded back with a signed autograph photo. I still have it hanging in my bedroom along with a picture I drew of him.  Can you imagine a kid who can’t even read knowing who Basil Rathbone and Lionel Atwill is? Or crying because his parents accidentally taped over The Alligator People (underrated Lon Chaney Jr. performance, by the way).

Talk about precocious….

You worked at a movie theater, read movie sites, studied film in college. What was the tipping point for you with movies? 

ANDY:  When I was in grade school, my friends and I formed our own production companies and made movies for the local cable access station. I made short films in high school that almost got me suspended from school – and made me a bona fide legend in the process. No hyperbole. 

So it’s always been a thread that’s followed me through adolescence until today. My college roommate once told me whatever you like to read about online is probably what you should be doing with your life. For me, it’s been about movies. I remember discovering sites like imdb and worldwideboxoffice, then boxofficereport (I see you Daniel Garris), boxofficeguru, and GoldDerby (I still remember Tom O’Neill’s great purge) back when I was 13. The Film Experience is  part of a great wave of Oscar coverage sites I stumbled upon shortly after finding Oscar Watch (now Awards Daily). They fill a real void, offering criticism and analysis of the sorts of things I – growing up – could only wait for EW’s annual Oscar issue to learn about. They are great gateway sites; accessible, but piquing the interest of novices to seek out more in depth material on what makes film great. 

I just love the richness of movies, how collaborative they are. Maybe, at the root of my interest, it’s the storytelling. Who knows?

Who are your three favorite actresses?

ANDY: Favorite? The GOAT? One answer needs saying here… Lori Loughlin. Dscovering "Full House" when I was 6. Life changing. Otherwise, let’s rattle off the usual suspects we all know about, shall we? Michelle Williams, Carey Mulligan and Jessica Chastain are the three greatest ‘Next Generation’ actresses working right now. Some all time favorite performances: Katharine Hepburn in Bringing Up Baby, Joanne Woodward in The Fugitive Kind, Susan Sarandon in Bull Durham. 

Have you ever dressed up as a movie character for Halloween?

ANDY: If this counts, I have spent a good portion of the Halloweens dressing up as some member of the Batman universe, beginning in preschool when I went as the Caped Crusader himself.

Andy at 6 ! Awwww

In the 6th grade I went as Alex from A Clockwork Orange. My classmates and teachers all thought I was a generic gangster. The tipoff is in the white overalls and derby. One year I also went as Butch from Pulp Fiction by wearing an old tan motorcycle jacket of my Dad’s and putting a red ball in my mouth (wattt upp mah fckas).

LOL. So inappropriate. Thanks for chatting, Andy. 

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Comments

[3rtful]

Hi Andy.

[NATHANIEL R]

Now I really want to see Alligator People. Chaney looks so sad in that poster ;)

[GayzoSam]

How do you choose whom to profile?

[nathanielr]

Gayzosam -- it's just random. mostly people that obviously read the site (the only way i know who is reading is through like "followers", emails and the like)