{"id":8444,"date":"2010-05-16T23:27:23","date_gmt":"2010-05-16T22:27:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.filmdetail.com\/?p=8444"},"modified":"2010-05-16T23:27:23","modified_gmt":"2010-05-16T22:27:23","slug":"interview-matt-harlock-and-paul-thomas-on-american-the-bill-hicks-story","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.filmdetail.com\/2010\/05\/16\/interview-matt-harlock-and-paul-thomas-on-american-the-bill-hicks-story\/","title":{"rendered":"Interview: Matt Harlock and Paul Thomas on American The Bill Hicks Story"},"content":{"rendered":"

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American: The Bill Hicks Story<\/a><\/strong> is a new documentary about the late comedian<\/a> whose observations on politics, culture and society still resonate years after his untimely death in 1994.<\/p>\n

Although he met with considerable acclaim on the comedy circuit, with an especially passionate following in the UK, Hicks’ stinging observations on issues such as US foreign policy<\/a>, consumerism<\/a>, religion<\/a>, and abortion<\/a> meant that he never really achieved the mainstream breakthrough of some of his contemporaries.<\/p>\n

However, with the release of his work on albums such as Rant in E-Minor<\/a> and Arizona Bay<\/a>, he achieved a lasting posthumous success and a significant legacy as a truth-teller, which reached full circle when a second President Bush started another war in Iraq.<\/p>\n

I recently spoke with Matt Harlock<\/a> and Paul Thomas<\/a> about Hicks, his impact as a comedian, how they tracked down a lot of the previously unseen footage and his appeal in the UK.<\/p>\n

You can listen to the interview here:<\/p>\n[audio:http:\/\/filmdetail.receptionmedia.com\/Matt_Harlock_and_Paul_Thomas_on_American_The_Bill_Hicks_Story.mp3]\n

You can download this interview as a podcast via iTunes by clicking here<\/a><\/p>\n

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American: The Bill Hicks Story<\/strong> is out now in the UK and w<\/em>ill be screening at the following cinemas<\/em>:<\/p>\n