Still free to subscribe to this nearly daily newsletter! Greg Mitchell is author of fourteen books and director of five films for PBS since 2022. His latest film “Woody Guthrie and The Ghost of Tom Joad Today” is now streaming via PBS.
Heather Cox Richardson:
In a major story for Public Citizen, Zach Everson examined the Trump family’s cryptocurrency products, reporting that Trump appears to have made at least $1.4 billion off crypto in 2025, although he put none of his own money into the ventures. The money, Everson says, comes from foreign governments, pardon seekers, corporate interests, and targets of government investigations.
It also comes from retirement accounts and MAGA supporters who believe Trump when he tells them his coins are a good investment. Everson reports that “Trump’s crypto schemes have left investors at least an estimated $4.7 billion underwater.” The losses reflect “wealth transferred to a small group of early buyers rather than money that simply vanished.
There’s an amazing NY Times story on how old friend Kai Bird could not get permission from the Rabert Mapplethorpe Foundation for use of his famous photo of Roy Cohn for the cover of Kai’s new bio of Cohn—because the foundation was afraid of Trump going after their non-profit status. Totally cowed. And then there’s the detail that Cohn himself liked the photo and even went to lunch with Mapplethorpe—Roy still closeted and with the openly gay Mapplethorpe. Both soon died of AIDs.
Films
A little belated housekeeping here re: three of my current doc films.
The new Springsteen Center in New Jersey just announced screening of “Woody Guthrie and the Ghost of Tom Joad” in its state of the art theater with me interviewed by the center’s head Robert Santelli (who is also a Guthrie scholar). It’s Friday, September 25, and see info here for tickets etc. Of course, Bruce’s song plays a key role in the film. Previously announced: screening and talk at the historic Mohonk Mountain House on Oct. 6
Meanwhile, my brand new film “Hollywood Bomb” has been selected for the Topanga Film Festival in the famous canyon outside L.A. and will screen on the evening of Sept. 6. Based on my award-winning book, “Ther Beginning or the End,” it explores how President Harry Truman and Gen. Leslie Groves sabotaged the first movie drama about the atomic bomb from MGM—and then covers issues with other nuke movies since, right down to “Oppenheimer.” It’s my first film edited by my son Andy Mitchell, and it is produced by my wife, Barbara Bedway. Here’s link to their program that day and poster below.
We’ve also just learned that the film is one of four non-fiction docs selected for the Lebanese International Film Festival in Beirut in two weeks, for which we are quite thrilled.
Meanwhile, my recent but still very timely film “The First Attack Ads: Hollywood vs. Upton Sinclair” will air over PBS stations and stream starting on Oct.1.
Music Pick
Amazing mid-’70s song by Dolly, “Down from Dover,” which—as she explains here (and then sings)—was banned from the radio because of its story about a pregnant teen abandoned by the father. Give it a close listen. (h/t Barbara Bedway)
From Tune to Toons
Anderson:
Ramirez:
Brodner:
deAdder:
Noth:
Bramhall:
Photo Finish
From my camera to you: “End of the Summer, Cape Cod.”
These political cartoonists are really brilliant! Of course, the story that it tells is totally revolting
Thank you so much for including that song by Dolly! I had never heard it before and it really shows another dimension of her art and talent. What a huge talent she was!