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Ballad of an Unsung Hero

Sep 16, 1983

0h 30m

★ 0.0

Overview

Using rare historical footage, vintage musical recordings, and interviews with 88-year-old Pedro J. Gonzalez and his wife, this film chronicles Gonzalez’s long and colorful life, from his early days with Pancho Villa during the Mexican Revolution, to his career as a popular radio personality in Los Angeles in the 1930s, to the controversial court case that sent him to San Prison, a victim of the repressive forces operating against the Chicano/Mexicano community during that period.

Genres

Documentary

Production Companies

Cineast Productions

Espinosa Productions

Ballad of an Unsung Hero Trailers

Cast

Self

Pedro J. Gonzalez

Self - Narrator

Julio Medina

On August 1, 1942, a 22-year-old Mexican American man was stabbed to death at a party. To white Los Angelenos, the murder was just more proof that Mexican American crime was spiraling out of control. The police fanned out across LA, netting 600 young Mexican American suspects. Almost all those taken into custody were wearing the distinctive uniform of their generation: Zoot Suits. The tragic murder and the injustice of the trial that followed, coupled with sensational news coverage of both, fanned the flames of the racial hostility that was already running rife in the city. Within months of the verdict, Los Angeles was in the grip of some of the worst violence in its history.

6.2

Mexico: The Frozen Revolution

May 10, 1973

A thorough analysis of the socio-politics of Mexico, within the historical context of the Mexican Revolution reality. Includes footage from the 1910s, interviews with farmers, politicians, intellectuals, middle class, union, etc, as well as scenes from the life of an Indian family in Chiapas, their religious rituals, their crops, trials and bilingual schools. The film ends with the slaughter in the Plaza de Tlatelolco in 1968, during the infamous Olympics.

7.3

Restrepo

Jun 25, 2010

Directors Hetherington and Junger spend a year with the 2nd Battalion of the United States Army located in one of Afghanistan's most dangerous valleys. The documentary provides insight and empathy on how to win the battle through hard work, deadly gunfights and mutual friendships while the unit must push back the Taliban.

0.0

A Double Life

Oct 8, 2023

The grim news made international headlines: On August 21, 1971, prison authorities discovered a gun on famed Soledad Brother author, activist and San Quentin inmate George Jackson. A shootout ensued, killing Jackson, two other inmates and three guards, and wounding three more officers. Authorities asserted that only lawyer Stephen Bingham could have smuggled the weapon into the prison. Fearing that a conviction for abetting the guards’ deaths would lead to his own murder, the attorney fled, beginning a long, strange odyssey of pseudonymous exile. Strange indeed for the Yale-graduate scion of politically prominent New England elites.

0.0

Pirates of the Airwaves

Jul 27, 2014

In 1966 a group of determined young men defied the New Zealand government and launched a pirate radio station aboard a ship in the Hauraki Gulf.

6.9

Bombshell: The Hedy Lamarr Story

Jun 6, 2018

The life and career of the hailed Hollywood movie star and underappreciated genius inventor, Hedy Lamarr.

6.7

Kick Out the Jams: The Story of XFM

Aug 31, 2022

Titled after the first-ever song to play on their airwaves, Kick Out the Jams follows the development of XFM from its rebellious pirate radio roots in the early 90’s, through to its official FM radio launch in 1997 as a major platform for launching alternative talent into the mainstream. The doc deep-dives into the struggles and influence of the station which gave rise to the likes of Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant, whose global hits The Office and The Ricky Gervais Show were originally developed while working at the radio station.

0.0

Guaco: Semblanza

Oct 20, 2017

Dcumentary directed by Alberto Arvelo, which is a record for the posterity of as the first five decades of the career as the projection into the future of "La Super Banda de Venezuela". It is related from the present with interesting testimonies and electrifying performances in concert.

6.4

Sex and Broadcasting

Nov 15, 2014

SEX AND BROADCASTING is a feature length documentary about New Jersey's WFMU, the world's strangest and most unique radio station, and one man's attempt to keep it alive in the face of recession, the persistent threat of commercial media, and the challenges that come with keeping a rebellious group of outsiders together.

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0.0

Untitled KROQ Documentary

Invalid Date

The history and enduring legacy of one of the world's biggest and most influential radio stations.

8.0

Nueva York: A Musical History of Latin New York

Dec 10, 2021

When the film West Side Story was released in 1961, New York's reviled Puerto Rican community gained some visibility and, over time, both in Spanish Harlem and the Bronx, neighborhoods plagued by poverty, drugs and crime, Hispanic identity was reborn and strengthened, thanks to a syncretic and intentionally popular music that eventually conquered the entire city.

7.0

Patria y Vida: The Power of Music

Mar 5, 2023

The film explores how “Patria Y Vida” became a rallying cry that Cubans shouted in the streets during unprecedented demonstrations on the island.

4.0

Sex, Maracas & Chihuahuas

May 2, 2016

A joyful tale filled with music. The rise of radio. The jazz big bands. The legendary clubs and ballrooms. The soundtracks of the great musical films and TV shows. Sex and romance, gangsters, luxury cars and palm trees. From Barcelona to New York, with a stop in Cuba. The birth of Las Vegas. The sound of the maracas. Chihuahuas everywhere. The incredible life story of Xavier Cugat (1900-90).

0.0

Con Esperanza

Apr 25, 2020

When Ruben, a young Chicano musician, is caught between his mother’s expectations and his own hopes, he is forced to make a decision that will change his life forever. Based on true events, “Con Esperanza” follows Ruben on his journey of pursuing his dreams, balancing both the traditional and financial expectations of his Mother.

7.6

Radio Unnameable

Sep 19, 2012

The story of legendary New York City disc jockey Bob Fass who pioneered free expression on the airwaves with his long running FM program 'Radio Unnameable'.

7.0

Birth of a Nation: 4.29.92

Jan 1, 1993

First hand footage from the LA uprising following the acquittals of the 4 officers in the Rodney King beating.

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0.0

Life Under The Horseshoe

Nov 21, 2015

Life Under the Horseshoe is a fun, entertaining and historical look at Spring City, Utah's only live FM stage radio show. The film teaches us a little about history while taking us back to the golden age of radio. The documentary interviews Mark and Vicki Allen, the show hosts while learning more about their interesting, but opposite family history. The film also highlights the historical Victory Hall, a one-hundred-year-old restored vaudeville theater on Main Street, and "Spit & Whittle" Avenue, where Charlie (1885-1936), son of Simon Beck, had a bench the women of the town called the "Bummer's Bench." The men claimed it was where important community events were discussed and decisions made. Simon's son Charlie, paralyzed at an early age, presided at the bench providing advice and wisdom to all comers.

7.0

A Message to the Stars

Oct 23, 2021

For more than 50 years, we’ve been unsuccessfully searching for any evidence of intelligent extraterrestrial life. But, the discovery of thousands of exoplanets has meant the hope of finding them is higher than ever. If any messages could eventually be decoded and answered in any far, far away star, it could radically transform our consciousness as species and our place in the universe. A message from the stars changes life on Earth… forever.

8.0

Our Latin Thing (Nuestra Cosa)

Jan 1, 1972

Leon Gast's musical documentary reveals New York City's Latin culture and features live performances of salsa greats The Fania All Stars and The Spanish Speaking People of New York. A document of urban American Hispanic culture, Gast's film captures the rhythms of New York's Spanish Harlem, from illegal cockfights and Santeria rituals to the rooftops and backstreets of El Barrio and the legendary musicians performing at the Cheetah club.

Ballad of an Unsung Hero

Overview

Genres

Production Companies

Ballad of an Unsung Hero Trailers