Trivia

Known at San Francisco State University for his high standards on essay work and requiring a manual of style in addition to other textbooks.

Learned how to write screenplays by reading François Truffaut's book on Alfred Hitchcock, "Hitchcock/Truffaut".

Now an assistant professor in the Cinema Dept. at San Francisco State University. (July 2005)

Now an associate professor in the Cinema Department at San Francisco State University. (March 2009)

He achieved his first renown as a film critic whilst living in Madison, Wisconsin, where he was also a film society organizer. He relocated to Los Angeles following the break-up of his first marriage and determined to get into films if possible, making a point of interviewing as many film directors as possible (many of these were published in film magazines).

He has published biographies of John Ford, Frank Capra and Steven Spielberg, as well as several books covering various aspects of the career and life of Orson Welles.