Documentary

‘Diane von Furstenberg: Woman in Charge’ streams on HULU

Posted on by Francine Brokaw

Women around the world know the name Diane von Furstenberg, or DVF. With one little dress she changed the industry and the world, basically. Diane von Furstenberg: Woman in Charge explores the life and career of this woman with interviews with Diane herself as well as others in the industry and in pop culture.

At age 22 DVF invented the wrap dress and it is still in style today. This iconic fashion transformed the closets of millions of women as well as Diane’s life trajectory. Her life has been interesting, to say the least. At 76 she says she embraces age. “I’ve had a full life,” she states.

Her mother was a survivor of Auschwitz and when she was freed she weighed a whopping 44 pounds. After regaining her weight and her health, she went on to have a baby and raised Diane to be independent and unafraid. Diane believes everyone should “take responsibility for yourself,” and “be true to yourself.” These ideas still rule her life. 

At 18 she met Egon von Furstenberg, a German prince. At 22 she married him and instantly became a princess. They moved to New York City where they were the “it” couple of the day. They later divorced and to Diane it was freedom. She was now completely in charge of her destiny and her life. 

The wrap dress was inspired by the wrap tops ballerinas wear over their leotards. Initially Diane designed wrap tops and skirts, but after seeing Julie Nixon on TV wearing her wrap top and matching skirt, Diane had the ingenious idea to meld them into a single dress, which for the women of the day was a “uniform for freedom.” They were able to be feminine while still being respected. No longer were women relegated to wearing male-style suits to gain respect. This little wrap dress was all they needed. 

At one time DVF was making 25000 dresses a week. This dress was iconic and is still in style and in closets around the world.

At a time when women were models, not designers, DVF changed the industry. 

Today she is very close to her children and is still an advocate for women. She says she is not afraid of death. “Life is a journey and death is a destination.” Diane enjoys her life and is grateful her mother went against the doctors advice and got pregnant giving life to little Diane. 

From the time of her birth to now, Diane von Furstenberg has and is making a statement with her life. This documentary is a deep dive into her history, her family, her career, and her philosophies.

Diane Von Furstenberg: Woman in Charge begins streaming on HULU beginning June 25, 2024. 

About the Author
Francine Brokaw has been covering all aspects of the entertainment industry for over 30 years. She also writes about products and travel. She has been published in national and international newspapers and magazines as well as Internet websites. She has written her own book, Beyond the Red Carpet The World of Entertainment Journalists, is the entertainment correspondent for Good Day Orange County, and has her own TV show, Beyond the Red Carpet, on Village Television in Orange County. She is a longstanding member of the Television Critics Association and is accredited by the MPAA.

Courtesy image HULU

‘The Queen Mother’s Blitz’ looks at this extraordinary woman

Posted on by Francine Brokaw


Queen Elizabeth II is the last leader who served in World War II. Her family famously refused to give into any fear thrust upon the country by Hitler. Her mother, Queen Elizabeth aka the Queen Mother, stood valiantly by her husband the king during the war years and during the famous London Blitz she showed her inner strength and courage.

The documentary The Queen Mother’s Blitz looks at this woman and delves into her courage, which lifted up the country during that horrible time. She refused to leave Buckingham Palace even though the advisors suggested she go to Canada to wait out the war. She said steadfastly that her daughters (Elizabeth and Margaret) would not leave without her and she would not leave without the king, and the king was definitely not going to leave. This is similar to what Jacqueline Kennedy said during the Cuban Missile Crisis when she was advised to leave the East Coast in case of a nuclear attack. She said she would go out on the front lawn of the White House with her children if a launch were detected. In this way she also held up the morale of the country.

Hitler once said the Queen Mother was the most dangerous woman in the world. Her intelligence, cunning, wit, and dedication to freedom endeared her to the nation. She definitely showed her mettle during the blitz. She survived assassination attempts and the bombing of Buckingham Palace. She went out into the streets to be with the public. She showed that she, although privileged to be in her position, was just as much a target as the rest of the population.

The documentary is a look at how her words and actions lifted up the country and the morale of the people of not only the U.K. but also the world. With Hitler advancing through Europe, Britain stood firm. And the king was a source of consistency for the country. Standing right next to him was Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Consort, aka the Queen Mother.

The Queen Mother’s Blitz is available to stream on True Royalty TV.

About the Author

Francine Brokaw has been covering all aspects of the entertainment industry for over 25 years. She also writes about products and travel. She has been published in national and international newspapers and magazines as well as Internet websites. She has written her own book, Beyond the Red Carpet The World of Entertainment Journalists, is the entertainment correspondent for Good Day Orange County, and has her own TV show, Beyond the Red Carpet, on Village Television in Orange County. She is a longstanding member of the Television Critics Association, was a longstanding member of the Los Angeles Press Club, and is accredited by the MPAA. Follow her on Twitter.

‘Hindenburg: The New Evidence’ settles an unsolved mystery

Posted on by Francine Brokaw

In 1937 the airship Hindenburg burst into flames while landing in New Jersey. The new NOVA documentary, Hindenburg: The New Evidence, uses modern technology to finally put to rest the reason for this disaster.

Up until relatively recently, all the film footage of the crash was from one angle. But a newly discovered piece of film shows the incident from a different side. “Thanks to this stunning new footage, we were able to revive a cold case investigation surrounding one of the most iconic disasters of the 20th century,” said Hindenburg: The New Evidence Executive Producer Gary Tarpinian.

While many thought it was sabotage that destroyed Germany’s popular airship, there were others that thought there was a more natural reason for the disaster. The ship was filled with hydrogen gas. Helium would have been preferable since it does not explode, however it was limited to the United States and not allowed to be sold outside of the country. So the Germans stayed with their standby modus operandi – hydrogen gas. Although other Zeppelins had exploded, for the most part the country had a good history when it came to their airships.

So, what exactly happened on that fateful day?

With careful examination of the new footage as well as technological experiments with recreations of the material that was used on the Hindenburg, the conclusion is clear. They finally put to rest the mystery surrounding the explosion of the Hindenburg. And it is really quite simple, when looking at it from today’s perspective. A confluence of circumstances took part in this historic disaster.

“For over 80 years, experts have debated how and why the fire began,” added Writer/Producer Rushmore DeNooyer. “Using the tried and true scientific method, we were able to unravel a key part of one of history’s most famous and captivating unsolved mysteries.”

I could go into detail and thoroughly explain what the conclusion is, however you should watch the film for yourself and see how they came to solve the mystery.

“We went to a lot of places in search of answers—from the crash site in Lakehurst, New Jersey, to the Zeppelin Museum Friedrichshafen in Germany,” said Director Kirk Wolfinger. “This film not only reveals new insights into how this tragic event unfolded, but also illustrates the enormous scale of the disaster.”

Hindenburg: The New Evidence premieres May 19, 2021 on PBS.

About the Author

Francine Brokaw has been covering all aspects of the entertainment industry for over 25 years. She also writes about products and travel. She has been published in national and international newspapers and magazines as well as Internet websites. She has written her own book, Beyond the Red Carpet The World of Entertainment Journalists, is the entertainment correspondent for Good Day Orange County, and has her own TV show, Beyond the Red Carpet, on Village Television in Orange County. She is a longstanding member of the Los Angeles Press Club and the Television Critics Association and is accredited by the MPAA.

‘Best of Enemies’ on PBS

Posted on by Francine Brokaw


best_of_enemies-06-press
With today’s 24-hour news cycle with countless cable networks, we don’t think of the past when we had just the three main networks: NBC, CBS, and ABC. Today we take political commentaries and insolent attacks against others and their political views as the norm. But that really didn’t start until the late 1960s. And the two men who started this format were William F. Buckley and Gore Vidal, two gentlemen who had very different ideas about life and politics and both had superb knowledge of the English language.

In the Independent Lens documentary Best of Enemies, the rivalry between these two men and their imprints on today’s political landscape are examined. Back in the 1960s, ABC was third among the three networks. They didn’t have the finances to cover the political conventions gavel to gavel, as the other two did. So they reverted to employing Buckley and Vidal to debate the candidates and issues. This was a new tact and one that turned out to be successful for ABC.

What ultimately happened is that name-calling turned the tide and took a toll on Buckley. Both men were well versed in the language and could talk circles around anyone else, but when you put them together in a head-to-head matchup, the explosion was heard around the world, so to speak. Well, at least around the country.

This is a very interesting documentary. “In the focused light of the 1968 national television camera, the seeds were planted for our present media landscape, when the spectacle trumps the content of argument,” says director Robert Gordon. “Each side today, like these two men, sees the other as malignant, promulgating views catastrophic for America; strident partisanship is understood as virile patriotism and compromise is castration. These Vidal-Buckley debates forecast the present state of civic discourse, heated by camera lights and abbreviated by corporate sponsors.”

“Ultimately, this is a story about something I care about deeply; how the way we now ‘talk’ and ‘listen’ to each other through media is in fact corrosive to our society,” says director Morgan Neville. “Sometimes I look around and wonder, ‘What happened to the adults in our culture?’ This film, I hope, offers some clues.”

Once you see this and learn about the Buckley/Gore debates, you won’t look at today’s talking heads the same way.

Best of Enemies premiers October 3, 2016 on PBS.

About the Author

Francine Brokaw has been covering all aspects of the entertainment industry for 20 years. She also writes about products and travel. She has been published in national and international newspapers and magazines as well as Internet websites. She has written her own book, Beyond the Red Carpet The World of Entertainment Journalists, from Sourced Media Books.

Follow her on Twitter