America Undercover
| America Undercover | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Documentary |
| Written by | Mark C. Baldwin |
| Directed by | Jon Alpert Fenton Bailey |
| Presented by | Oliver Stone |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 9 |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) | Sheila Nevins |
| Producer(s) | Brent Owens |
| Production company(s) | America Undercover |
| Broadcast | |
| Original channel | HBO |
| Original run | 1983 – present |
America Undercover is a television series of documentaries that airs on the cable television network HBO.[1] Within the series are several sub-series, such as "Autopsy", "Real Sex" and "Taxicab Confessions". The series began in 1983[2] and, after a brief time being broadcast weekly in 2001,[3] is now broadcast once per month.[4] In 2006, episodes edited to meet basic cable standards began being rebroadcast on A&E Network.[5]
Over the years, episodes have covered numerous subjects such as abortion,[6] organized crime,[7] and pedophilia.
The show won several awards for the 1998 production of Strippers: The Naked Stages. It was a look at the human side of a lucrative profession. The HBO exclusive explored the world of women who dance for dollars in strip clubs across the country. An honest and unflinching look at the human side of a lucrative, youth-driven profession, STRIPPERS: THE NAKED STAGES offered insights into women who bare everything in front of crowds of men. They gravitated to the business primarily for the money: In a good week, a stripper can make more than $6,000. Combining case studies with on-camera comments from a variety of successful strip "artists," the film examined four strippers at various stages of their careers:
• Jennifer and Angela - These two best friends in their twenties decided to make extra money to augment their day jobs—by going "all the way" at a local strip bar in Florida. They shop for sexy clothes, tell their friends and (in Jennifer's case) family about their decision, and head over to the Pure Platinum Club for an audition.
• Maya Devine—For an accomplished stripper, the best way to make good money is also the hardest: hit the road. To help her keep her popularity, Maya has "augmentation" work on her breasts and figure. A month after the procedure, she returns triumphantly to the stage.
• Avalon - Once, Avalon was like Maya, a striptease headliner who dominated the stages of the country's top venues. Today, at 35, Avalon is smart, shapely and experienced, yet she's finding it harder and harder even to get a gig. Watching a parade of younger, trimmer and more energetic women hit the stage, Avalon feels angry, embittered and, for the first time, old.
STRIPPERS: THE NAKED STAGES was produced and directed by Arkansas native Tom Golden who was an independent film producer in Hollywood at that time. The executive producer of HBO's America Undercover series was Sheila Nevins.
[edit] References
- ^ Rutenberg, Jim (2001-03-21). "Seamy or Serious, It's Now Center Stage". The New York Times. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9A0DE2DE1F3DF932A15750C0A9679C8B63. Retrieved 2007-11-13.
- ^ Finn, Robin (2001-04-15). "Want Pathos, Pain and Courage? Get Real". The New York Times: p. A1. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9F0CEFDE1131F936A25757C0A9679C8B63. Retrieved 2007-11-13.
- ^ Dempsey, John (2000-12-18). "HBO set to strip `Undercover'". Variety. http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-68913966.html. Retrieved 2007-11-13.
- ^ "New 'America Undercover' Weekly Documentary Series Scheduled for 11 Consecutive Sundays on HBO Beginning March 11" (Press release). Time Warner. 2001-01-19. http://www.timewarner.com/corp/newsroom/pr/0,20812,668403,00.html. Retrieved 2007-11-13.
- ^ Schneider, Michael (2006-02-01). "A&E goes 'Undercover'". Variety. http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_hb5143/is_200602/ai_n18587954. Retrieved 2007-11-13.[dead link]
- ^ Grahnke, Lon (1992-05-05). "`Abortion' examines the agony of choice". Chicago Sun-Times. http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=CSTB&p_theme=cstb&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0EB373AE85356453&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM. Retrieved 2007-11-13.
- ^ Marin, Rick (1993-03-08). "America Undercover Mob Stories". Variety. http://www.variety.com/review/VE1117900555.html?categoryid=32&cs=1. Retrieved 2007-11-13.
