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Rex Reed appears in the 2009 documentary ''[[For the Love of Movies: The Story of American Film Criticism]]'' explaining how important film critics were in the 1970s, and complaining about the proliferation of unqualified critical voices on the Internet.<ref>[http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title.jsp?stid=775058 ''For the Love of Movies: The Story of American Film Criticism''] at the [[Turner Classic Movies|TCM Movie Database]]</ref>
Rex Reed appears in the 2009 documentary ''[[For the Love of Movies: The Story of American Film Criticism]]'' explaining how important film critics were in the 1970s, and complaining about the proliferation of unqualified critical voices on the Internet.<ref>[http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title.jsp?stid=775058 ''For the Love of Movies: The Story of American Film Criticism''] at the [[Turner Classic Movies|TCM Movie Database]]</ref>


He lives at the [[the Dakota|Dakota]] apartment building in [[New York City]]. Reed is good friends with gossip columnist [[Liz Smith (journalist)|Liz Smith]].<ref>Tribune Media Services via ''[[Buffalo News]]'', June 9, 2006</ref> He is a member of [[New York Film Critics Circle]] and, because his reviews appear on the Internet, he is a member of [[New York Film Critics Online]].
He lives at the [[the Dakota|Dakota]] apartment building in [[New York City]]. Reed is good friends with gossip columnist [[Liz Smith (journalist)|Liz Smith]].<ref>Tribune Media Services via ''[[Buffalo News]]'', June 9, 2006</ref> He is a member of [[New York Film Critics Circle]] and, because his reviews appear on the Internet, he is a member of [[New York Film Critics
Online]].

Reed's greatest acclaim as a masterful writer of celebrity profiles came in the late 1960's with the publication of his first collection of articles, Do You Sleep in the Nude?, which was a best-seller. He published three other books of his profiles: Conversations in the Raw, People Are Crazy Here, and Valentines & Vitriol. One of his earliest champions was writer Tom Wolfe who believed Reed's style was one of the best examples of The New Journalism as applied to the once mundane form of celebrity interviews, long considered one of the lowest forms of journalism. Wolfe included Reed's classic article on Ava Gardner in her decline in his widely influential Anthology of New Journalism. In large part to restore the reputation of Rex Reed as a writer of brilliance and sensitivity as compared with Truman Capote and Kenneth Tynan, Devault-Graves Digital Editions republished all four of Reed's collections of profiles in 2013 with text unabridged and the cover designs lovingly restored. Shortly after the republication of these works The New York Times, in the article In Praise of the Profile, Before the Age of Public Relations, brought renewed attention to Reed's work.


==Controversies==
==Controversies==

Revision as of 00:30, 24 April 2013

Rex Reed
BornRex Taylor Reed
(1938-10-02) October 2, 1938 (age 86)
Fort Worth, Texas, U.S.
OccupationFilm critic
Years active1967–present

Rex Taylor Reed (born October 2, 1938) is an American film critic and former co-host of the syndicated television show At the Movies. He currently writes the column "On the Town with Rex Reed" for The New York Observer.

Life and career

Reed was born in Fort Worth, Texas, the son of Jewell (née Smith) and James M. Reed, an oil company supervisor.[1][2]

Reed has acted occasionally, such as in the movie version of Gore Vidal's Myra Breckinridge. Reed also appeared in the films Inchon! and Superman (as himself), and was a regular on the TV show The Gong Show in the late 1970s. Reed additionally served on the jury at the 21st Berlin International Film Festival in 1971,[3] and guest voiced as himself on the animated series The Critic.

Rex Reed appears in the 2009 documentary For the Love of Movies: The Story of American Film Criticism explaining how important film critics were in the 1970s, and complaining about the proliferation of unqualified critical voices on the Internet.[4]

He lives at the Dakota apartment building in New York City. Reed is good friends with gossip columnist Liz Smith.[5] He is a member of New York Film Critics Circle and, because his reviews appear on the Internet, he is a member of [[New York Film Critics Online]].

Reed's greatest acclaim as a masterful writer of celebrity profiles came in the late 1960's with the publication of his first collection of articles, Do You Sleep in the Nude?, which was a best-seller. He published three other books of his profiles: Conversations in the Raw, People Are Crazy Here, and Valentines & Vitriol. One of his earliest champions was writer Tom Wolfe who believed Reed's style was one of the best examples of The New Journalism as applied to the once mundane form of celebrity interviews, long considered one of the lowest forms of journalism. Wolfe included Reed's classic article on Ava Gardner in her decline in his widely influential Anthology of New Journalism. In large part to restore the reputation of Rex Reed as a writer of brilliance and sensitivity as compared with Truman Capote and Kenneth Tynan, Devault-Graves Digital Editions republished all four of Reed's collections of profiles in 2013 with text unabridged and the cover designs lovingly restored. Shortly after the republication of these works The New York Times, in the article In Praise of the Profile, Before the Age of Public Relations, brought renewed attention to Reed's work.

Controversies

Marisa Tomei Academy Awards rumor

After Jack Palance presented the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress to Marisa Tomei in 1992, Reed started a rumour that Palance had erroneously called out the wrong name because he was unable to read the printing on the card inside the envelope, became confused or was too "drunk" or "stoned" to announce the winner properly. By 1997, Reed was espousing on television his claim that a "massive cover-up" was underway to prevent the public from finding out about the mistake.[6]

Film critic Roger Ebert commented on his website that "Not only is the rumor untrue, it is unfair to Marisa Tomei, and Rex Reed owes her an apology."[7] The Academy stated that if such a mistake had occurred, representatives from Price Waterhouse would have stepped onstage to correct it.

Arrest

In February 2000, Reed was arrested for shoplifting after leaving a Tower Records, in Manhattan, with CDs by Mel Tormé, Peggy Lee, and Carmen McRae in his jacket pockets. Reed, who had just purchased two other CDs, says he forgot about the other three CDs and his offer to pay for them was refused. The charges were later dropped.[8] According to Reed, several days after the arrest Peggy Lee sent him her entire catalog of CDs, because "she was so thrilled I wanted one of her CDs enough to put myself through so much hell."[9]

Oldboy review

In a 2005 review of the South Korean movie Oldboy, Reed wrote: "What else can you expect from a nation weaned on kimchi, a mixture of raw garlic and cabbage buried underground until it rots, dug up from the grave and then served in earthenware pots sold at the Seoul airport as souvenirs?" The Village Voice, which stated that "online forums erupted in protest" at the review, then mocked Reed by imagining him applying similar logic to films from other countries.[10]

The Cabin in the Woods review

Reed's 2012 review for The Cabin in the Woods[11] contains many factual errors when summarizing the plot of the movie, which caught the ire of fans and internet bloggers that questioned his professionalism.[12][13] Reed also used the review as an opportunity to voice his opinion on youth culture,[citation needed] saying, "The rest of the movie is the kind of time-wasting drivel designed to appeal to electronics nerds and skateboarders addicted to Xbox 360 video games whose knowledge of the arts begins and ends with MTV2."[11]

Identity Thief review

In a 2013 review of Identity Thief, Reed made several references to Melissa McCarthy's weight, referring to her as "tractor-sized", "humongous", "obese", and a "hippo".[14][15] Film critic Richard Roeper said, "This just smacks of mean-spirited name-calling in lieu of genuine criticism."[16] On Twitter, Paul Feig, who directed McCarthy in Bridesmaids and The Heat, wrote, "I cordially invite Mr. Rex Reed to go fuck himself."[16] The review was referenced at the 85th Academy Awards on February 24, 2013 by the host, Seth MacFarlane, who jokingly said that Reed will review Adele for singing "Skyfall" at the ceremony.[17] In a column for the Huffington Post, Candy Spelling linkened Rex's review to bullying.[18]

Bibliography

  • Reed, Rex (1969). Do you sleep in the nude?. London: Allen. ISBN 0-491-00043-X.
  • Reed, Rex (1974). People are crazy here. New York: Delacorte Press. ISBN 0-440-07365-0.
  • Reed, Rex (1977). Valentines & vitriol. New York: Delacorte Press. ISBN 0-440-09336-8.
  • Reed, Rex (1987). Personal Effects. New York: Jove Books. ISBN 0-441-66220-X.
  • Reed, Rex (1992). Rex Reed's Guide to Movies on TV and Video, 1992-1993. Warner Books. ISBN 0-446-36206-9.

References

  1. ^ "Rex Reed Biography (1938-)". Filmreference.com. 1938-10-02. Retrieved 2010-09-17.
  2. ^ "Rex Reed". Contemporary Authors Online, Gale, 2006. Reproduced in Biography Resource Center. Farmington Hills, Mich.: Thomson Gale. 2006
  3. ^ "Berlinale 1971: Juries". berlinale.de. Retrieved 2010-03-13.
  4. ^ For the Love of Movies: The Story of American Film Criticism at the TCM Movie Database
  5. ^ Tribune Media Services via Buffalo News, June 9, 2006
  6. ^ Truth and rumors: the reality behind TV's most famous myths. Books.google.com. Retrieved 2010-09-17.
  7. ^ "The Questions That Will Not Die :: rogerebert.com :: Answer Man". Rogerebert.suntimes.com. Retrieved 2010-09-17.
  8. ^ "Rex Reed blames his arrest on fever of forgetfulness", USA Today, February 17, 2000
  9. ^ St. Louis Post-Dispatch, February 26, 2000
  10. ^ "Rex is Comedy", Village Voice, April 19, 2005
  11. ^ a b "The Cabin in the Woods Is a Pixelated Nightmare". observer.com.
  12. ^ "How I lost my Respect for Rex Reed".
  13. ^ "Unprofessional Inaccuracies in Rex Reed's Review of Cabin in the Woods".
  14. ^ Reed, Rex. "Declined: In Identity Thief, Bateman's Bankable Billing Can't Lift This Flick out of the Red". New York Observer. Retrieved 15 February 2013.
  15. ^ "Critic calls Melissa McCarthy 'tractor-sized', 'hippo' in review of new film", Today, February 7, 2013
  16. ^ a b "Melissa McCarthy Identity Thief Review Is "Mean-Spirited," Says Film Critic Richard Roeper". Us Weekly. February 8, 2013. Retrieved February 8, 2013. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  17. ^ Grant, Drew (February 25, 2013). "Rex Reed Got a Shout-Out in Last Night's Oscar Telecast". New York Observer. Retrieved March 4, 2013.
  18. ^ Candy Spelling, 15 Minutes of Fame, The Huffington Post, February 19, 2013

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