Episode 05 - Roderick Thorp's Nothing Lasts Forever
Release Date: 12/10/2018
Episode 06 - It's a Christmas movie. So why do we care?
Die Hard With a Podcast
If you're going to talk Die Hard, you cannot avoid the meme/debate over whether or not it's a Christmas movie. We discuss why it is (and okay, a few reasons why not), but more importantly, why we care about the question in the first place. What does Christmas mean to us, and how do pop culture traditions factor in? Let us know what you think! Drop us a line at [email protected], or visit our site at www.diehardwithapodcast.com
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Episode 05 - Roderick Thorp's Nothing Lasts Forever
Die Hard With a Podcast
Almost a decade before there was Die Hard, there was the book. Roderick Thorp was a crime novelist who met success with 1966's The Detective, which first spawned a movie adaptation, and then a sequel: Nothing Lasts Forever. We discuss the life of Roderick Thorp, the origins of Nothing Lasts Forever, and how the movie aligns with – and deviates from – the book that inspired it. Let us know what you think! Drop us a line at [email protected], or visit our site at www.diehardwithapodcast.co
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Episode 04 - Holly Gennaro (and Holly McClane)
Die Hard With a Podcast
Holly Gennaro McClane: portrayed in Die Hard by Bonnie Bedelia, John McClane's estranged wife reflects the conflicts and contradictions facing women at the time the film was made – and even still today. She's a working woman, a mother, and a wife. But there’s no consensus on whether she’s also a damsel in distress, or if she – like so many other conventions that Die Hard challenges – goes beyond your typical 80s action movie female lead.
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Episode 03 - John McClane: Analyzing a Barefoot Hero
Die Hard With a Podcast
To many, the secret ingredient to Die Hard's success was Bruce Willis and his portrayal of John McClane, an everyman police officer from New York, in the wrong place at the wrong time – without even shoes on his feet. We discuss what makes John McClane so special. How much of it is his character, how much of it is the influence of other legendary heroes, and how much of it is Willis bringing the role to life? Drop us a line at [email protected], or visit our site at www.diehardwithapodcast.c
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Episode 02 - Breaking the 80s action movie mold
Die Hard With a Podcast
Every film is both a product of its environment, and a rebellion against it. Artists (and audiences) search for something new and fresh, but cannot escape the world as it exists around them. Die Hard is no exception. While Die Hard is often marked as a turning point in American action cinema, we must first look at the state of action cinema as it existed before 1988. What does a “typical” 80s action movie look like? What artistic and societal pressures shaped that mold? And how does Die Hard break it?
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Episode 01 - The Making of Die Hard
Die Hard With a Podcast
For the first episode of Die Hard With a Podcast, we're taking a look at the making of Die Hard: from acquiring the rights to the story, crewing up the film, writing the script, casting its stars, and rolling at the Fox Plaza building in Los Angeles. Learn why Die Hard was expected to flop, why Bruce Willis's salary was controversial, and how they pulled off Hans's fall from the 30th floor. Drop us a line at [email protected], or visit our site at www.diehardwithapodcast.com.
info_outlineAlmost a decade before there was Die Hard, there was Nothing Lasts Forever. While it sounds like a lost James Bond film, it's actually the book that Die Hard was based on. That's right – Die Hard was based on a book. Roderick Thorp was a crime novelist who met success with 1966's The Detective, which first spawned a movie adaptation, and then a sequel: Nothing Lasts Forever. Simone and special in-studio guest Daniel Walker (who is special because he actually read the damn book) discuss the life of Roderick Thorp, the origins of Nothing Lasts Forever, and how the movie aligns with – and deviates from – the book that inspired it.
Let us know what you think! Drop us a line at [email protected], or visit our site at www.diehardwithapodcast.com
Links
- ScreenRant: Brake Director Talks Making "Die Hard in the Trunk of a Car"
- Star Trek: The Next Generation's own take on Die Hard with the episode "Starship Mine"
- Trailer for the movie version of The Detective
- The Dollop's episode on the Symbionese Liberation Army
Source Links
- AV Club, The novel that inspired Die Hard has its structure, but none of its holiday spirit
- Kirkus Reviews, Nothing Lasts Forever review
- Los Angeles Times, Obituary: Roderick Thorp; Writer of 'Die Hard,' 'The Detective'
- New York Times, Obituary: Roderick Thorp, 62, a Detective Turned Popular Crime Novelist
- NY Daily News, Before Bruce Willis' ‘Die Hard’ there was the book ‘Nothing Lasts Forever’
- SlashFilm, Nothing Lasts Forever: Comparing ‘Die Hard’ to the 1979 Novel That Inspired It
- The Daily Beast, Seriously, ‘Die Hard’ Was a Novel Before It Was a Movie and a Good One
- The Hollywood Reporter, Novel That Inspired 'Die Hard' Returns to Print After 20 Years
- Writer's Bone, Tough Guy Lit: Roderick Thorp's Nothing Lasts Forever
Guests