June 4, 2025 • 34 mins
Alex Stone, Mohamed Soliman told police he had tried to make Sunday's long planned attack an active shooter situation but that he could not buy guns because he is in the country illegally. That is when he turned to learning on YouTube how to make Molotov cocktails and a flame thrower to make it a firebombing attack. Now ABC News has learned that Soliman did, in fact, try to buy a handgun at a sporting goods store in Colorado Springs on November 22 but was denied by the National Instant Criminal Background Check System. .// BREAKING News a minor was killed by car at Campbell Hall in Studio City. FBI arrests 2nd suspect linked to Palm Springs fertility clinic explosion // Guest, Prudence Fenton, Prudence is in two documentaries that are on Max right now. One is about Pee-wee Herman and it’s powerful and amazing. The other is about Allee Willis, the prolific songwriter who wrote the theme to friends and wrote September with Earth, wind and fire, neutron dance from the pointer sisters, etc.// Guest, Prudence Fenton on documentary “World According to Allee Willis”
#PeeWeeHerman #CampbellHall #BoulderAttack #PalmSprings #AlleeWillis
#PeeWeeHerman #CampbellHall #BoulderAttack #PalmSprings #AlleeWillis
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
It's k if I AM sixty and you're listening to
The Conway Show on demand on the iHeartRadio app.
Speaker 2 (00:08):
KFI AM six forty Live everywhere on the iHeartRadio app.
Mark Thompson sitting in for Tim Conway Junior, who continues ailing,
We've got a lot of stuff going on with the
show today. A wild story out of the world of Meta,
you know, Facebook, a new deal involving AI which will
(00:28):
very much determine the future.
Speaker 3 (00:30):
We have breaking news out of a local school. There is.
Speaker 2 (00:36):
Fatality of a local school. We'll tell you about that next.
And we have Alex Stone off the top. It can
never be a bad thing when you have ABC's Alex
Stone off the top.
Speaker 3 (00:46):
I know it's true. I'm well, I'm better for you
being here.
Speaker 4 (00:49):
Oh, I'm better for talking to you.
Speaker 3 (00:53):
I love it. Well.
Speaker 2 (00:53):
With the pleasantries out of the way, let's talk about
this Mohammed Solomon, who apparently it's interesting how chirpy these
guys are, and in the things that he said, he's
indicated that he'd actually wanted to buy a gun and
do more damage than he did with the Molotov cocktails.
Speaker 5 (01:14):
Yeah, he wanted to do an active shooter scenario and
tried and tried to get guns but couldn't buy them
because he's in the country illegally.
Speaker 4 (01:22):
So what we know.
Speaker 5 (01:24):
Is he was born in Egypt, he lived in Kuwait
for seventeen years, came to Colorado Springs about three years
ago on a visa with his family, his wife and
five children, and they overstayed that that expired in twenty
twenty three, a year after they got it in.
Speaker 4 (01:40):
Twenty twenty two.
Speaker 5 (01:41):
And so we know now that in November of last year,
November twenty second, went into a sporting goods store in
Colorado Springs and tried to buy a handgun, but it
was denied in an instant background check that was done
and they don't give a reason why, but it's believed
because he's an illegal immigrant, that it was denied immediately.
(02:05):
That should have sent an automatic notification to ICE that
here is somebody who's in the country illegally.
Speaker 4 (02:12):
Here is their name, here is their address, here's where
you find them. But nothing came of that.
Speaker 5 (02:16):
We don't know if it didn't go to ICE, if
ICE got a bunch of them and just you know,
it didn't act on them that these were coming in
all the time, but nothing was done on that. Then
on December thirtieth, the Colorado Bureau of Investigation turned him
down for a concealed weapons permit and all of that.
At that point, he has told police, he decided he
(02:37):
had to pivot, that he wanted to carry this out.
It wasn't going to be a mass shooting, it would
be a fire bombing. And he went on YouTube and
he researched how to build molotov cocktails and blow torch
and began putting it together that way. The US Attorney
in Colorado saying this.
Speaker 6 (02:54):
Mister Solomon stated that he had been planning this attack
for a year, and he acted because he hated what
he called the Zionist group.
Speaker 5 (03:02):
So he put together this plan, been working on it
for a year, studying how to do all this really
no connection to the group in Boulder. He googled where
pro Israeli events were happening, and up came Boulder, Colorado.
In on every Sunday that they would do this march
down the Pearl Street Mall, the big outdoor walking mall,
(03:22):
and that he knew at one o'clock they would be
outside the old County Courthouse. That's now kind of more
a symbolic building, and he would meet them there dressed
up like a gardener and said he did that so
nobody would think he was out of place. Even bought
flowers to look like he was planting flowers. They arrived
and he was waiting for them, and then he carried
(03:43):
it out.
Speaker 2 (03:43):
Gosh, it's really just sick, you know, the way that
he did think about it and planet for so long.
And it's weird also that just looking at his life
the way you've described it, he kind of made it
all happen here. He'd been here for a while. I
understand overstate his visa, but I just can't the idea
that you're so motivated to do this kind of damage
that you would just destroy your life and the life
(04:04):
of your family.
Speaker 3 (04:05):
Jesus.
Speaker 5 (04:06):
Yeah, and even waited until his eighteen year old daughter
graduated from high school just a week before carrying this
out on Sunday. So didn't want it. He thought he
was going to die. He told police he went in
there to die. He wanted to kill, and he wanted
to die or planned on dying in it, and so
he waited for her to graduate and didn't want to
do it before then. Once she graduated, he went ahead
(04:29):
and carried it out. Now, he claims that the family
didn't know anything about it, that this was so rudimentary
in many ways. I mean, despite all the planning, it's
not hard to build a Molotov cocktail. You need gasoline
and a Canistery about the canisters, the little glass containers
at Target. Bought the gasoline on his way up to Boulder.
He claims, though, that they didn't know about it. We
(04:51):
don't know if they did, Christ you know, the DHS
secretary saying this.
Speaker 7 (04:56):
Mohammed's despicable actions will be prosecuted to the fullest extent
of the law. But we're also investigating to what extent
his family knew about this horrific attack, if they had
any knowledge of it, or if they provided support to it.
Speaker 5 (05:09):
So they had been ordered deport it because I said, well,
here's a family, a wife and five children who are
here illegally and dad allegedly committed what the FBI sees
as a terrorist attack, but either way a hate crime,
and the White House even putting out messages on x
last night saying that they could be gone by the
end of last night. About two hours ago, a federal
(05:32):
judge said nope, because the family is suing now to
stop being deported. So now a federal judge and the
Tenth Circuit is saying they cannot be deported right now.
So it looks like they're not going to go anywhere.
They're still in custody, but at least for now not
going anywhere.
Speaker 3 (05:46):
Wow, that's very interesting.
Speaker 2 (05:47):
I was going to ask you about this because that
seemed to be draconian, but maybe you know, you could
argue it was still warranted as an action, and now
you're saying, there'll have to be some kind of due
process whereby the courts will be involved and they'll ultimately
be an adjudication on this.
Speaker 4 (06:05):
Yeah.
Speaker 5 (06:05):
The judge didn't explain any of his ruling today except
saying they shall not be deported and then that will
be on hold unless he says otherwise, or the ten
Circuld Court of Appeals says otherwise. That the government planned on,
you know, just ripping off the band aid and saying, well,
you're here illegally, your husband is accused of this, You're
going back to Egypt. But the judge is saying, no,
(06:27):
that's not how it works, and they're suing, and so
they remain.
Speaker 2 (06:30):
So again the number of victims in this, i'd seen
that it actually went up.
Speaker 5 (06:34):
Yeah, I went up today, fifteen today because Boulder Police
have gone out and said, anybody, no matter how minor
the injury, we want to know that you are a victim,
because that adds on to they're going to charge him
officially tomorrow, he's going to be in court that they
will add on what they've already been charging him with,
so it'll be more attempted murder accounts more of the
(06:55):
other charges that they've got, but most of them have
been minor. Three have more serious burns. They're in a
burn unit in Aurora outside of Denver, but all of
the others are minor. Most didn't even go to the hospital.
But you know, for the planning that went into this
and that he wanted to kill, thank goodness that it
didn't work.
Speaker 2 (07:14):
Now that right, Yeah, that's an amazing thing that this
guy worked so hard google the right things, lay in wait,
disguised himself. I mean, there was so much going on
here and he actually couldn't in a sense pull it
off to the extent that he'd wanted to.
Speaker 5 (07:29):
Had that been a gun, this would have been very different.
And yeah, you can say that the system I know that. Yeah,
they didn't work, sending a dice and getting them out
of the country and all of that, but for stopping
him from buying a gun.
Speaker 4 (07:40):
That instant background check made it so he couldn't do that.
Speaker 2 (07:43):
Here here, good stuff, Alex, thanks so much. Always love
talking about Yeah. See Alex Stone from ABC News when
we come back. There was a major accident at Campbell
Hall and that local school. Used to seeing them in
the headlines, but certainly not in the headlines this way.
(08:06):
We'll tell you what happened there as we continue.
Speaker 8 (08:10):
You're listening to Tim Conway Junior on demand from KFI
AM six forty.
Speaker 3 (08:17):
And What's party people.
Speaker 2 (08:19):
It is Wednesday on KFI AM six forty live everywhere
in the iHeartRadio app. It is The Conway Show. Tim
is still ill. Mark Thompson sitting in for him today.
Hopefully he'll be back tomorrow. There was a piece of
breaking news really is just the last hour or so.
A minor pedestrian that is to say, I don't know,
(08:41):
we have so few details on this, but it's a
Campbell Hall and studio city and this pedestrian, again, a
minor was struck by a car and killed. The fire
department called no one transported from the and they've set
(09:02):
up an investigation there at the scene. But we'll give
you more details as they come in. But a juvenile
pedestrian struck by a car at Campbell Hill, at Campbell
Hall I should stay in Studio City and killed in
that accident. And it's extraordinary listen, it was in a
parking lot. Just a brutal, brutal piece of news. On
(09:26):
this Wednesday afternoon, they have arrested and made arrest along
the lines of two people now in that Palm Spring's
fertility clinic bombing. One of the suspects on his way
to Europe, really fled to Europe after dropping off a
(09:48):
lot of the chemicals and the means by which they
use these chemicals to make explosives for last month's bombing
of that fertility clinic in Palm Springs. And Steffush, will
you turn this on here so that all the boys
and girls can hear this report.
Speaker 3 (10:05):
Thank you.
Speaker 9 (10:06):
This new defendant allegedly provided parts and explosive materials to
the suspect that was involved in that bombing in Palm Springs.
Speaker 4 (10:13):
And this new suspect was.
Speaker 9 (10:14):
Arrested yesterday afternoon in New York after he was deported
from Poland and arrived at JFK Airport. Officials say this
is the new defendant, thirty two year old Daniel Park,
a resident of Washington State. He is facing charges of
conspiracy in this case for shipping and paying for large
quantities of ammonium nitrate. Park also allegedly spent time at
the California home of the primary suspect, twenty five year
(10:37):
old Guy Edward Bartkas. He was running experiments there, according
to the affidavit. Now Barcas was found dead next to
the vehicle that exploded.
Speaker 3 (10:46):
He is believed to.
Speaker 2 (10:46):
Have detonated the bomb, as he caused by a lot
of that ammonium nitrate. One hundred and eighty pounds of
ammonium NITRATEE was what was shipped to the bomb.
Speaker 9 (11:00):
He is believed to have detonated the bomb at the
American Reproductive Centers in Palm Springs and died in the blast.
At least five other people were injured. Officials say Park
and Barcas are part of a group that simply doesn't
believe people should exist. They're described as pro mortalism and
anti pro life. They believe individuals should not be born
without their consent. They say Park provided bomb parts of
(11:22):
the suspect and helped them purchase some of the materials.
Speaker 2 (11:24):
Man, I mean, just talk about losing your way. I
don't understand this. I've never heard of this, these anti natalists.
This is a true fringe theory. They opposed childbirth and
population growth of all kinds. They believe that people should
not continue to reproduce, and this fertility clinic was the
(11:46):
target of their terrorism.
Speaker 6 (11:48):
Mister Park, who shares Barcas's extremist beliefs, is accused of
shipping approximately one hundred and eighty pounds of ammonium nitrate
and explosive pre are commonly used to construct homemade bombs
to Barkas. Park paid for an additional ninety pounds of
(12:08):
ammonium nitrate that was shipped to Barcas in the days
leading up to the Palm Springs attack.
Speaker 9 (12:14):
An officials say the quantities of explosives are quite large,
and the formula and the methodology was similar to that
in the nineteen ninety five Oklahoma City bombing by Timothy
McVeigh that destroyed part of the Federal building and left
one hundred and sixty eight people dead and six hundred
and eighty four others injured. Now, in this case, they
say that Park left for Poland four days after the
(12:35):
bombing in Palm Springs, but they aren't saying if he
was trying.
Speaker 3 (12:37):
To escape the country.
Speaker 9 (12:39):
The suspect is now expected to appear in a Brooklyn
federal court later this afternoon, before he has moved to California,
but they say that could take several weeks.
Speaker 3 (12:47):
Reporting live in y I thank you. I did mean
to cut you off there.
Speaker 2 (12:51):
I'm sure anyway, it was a live report and at
some point it was live.
Speaker 3 (12:55):
We were not. Yeah, it's true. The suspect is now
expected to go I feel bad for him optilate this afternoon.
Speaker 9 (13:01):
Before he has moved to California, but they say that
could take several weeks. Now in Westwood, I'm Colonel Scrandness.
Speaker 3 (13:09):
Don't want to cut Carlos off ever.
Speaker 2 (13:11):
It really is an extraordinary thing, though, But you see
how you know, these fringe theories and activists along the
fringes can be activated to the point that they you know,
they put together a bomb of this ferocity.
Speaker 3 (13:27):
I mean, this is a brutal thing.
Speaker 2 (13:31):
So these guys are behind bars and it looks like,
you know, they may not see the light of day
for a long long time. Daniel Park again charged with
providing and attempting to provide material support to a terrorist.
The other guy is is under arrest as well, and
they had two hundred and seventy pounds total of ammonium nitrate.
(13:53):
Just an extraordinary thing, but that's the situation. And he
had a whole escape route, you know, through the in Poland.
He was gonna it seems to me it was clear
that he was going to escape to the European Union.
But again cops hunted him down and made the arrest.
(14:15):
So two kicked him out to poland kicked him out. Yeah, yeah,
they stayed back. Yeah, that was the extradition agreement that
they had with the with the with the US.
Speaker 1 (14:24):
How much of an agreement they had. But yeah, they
kicked him out.
Speaker 2 (14:28):
I mean they they found out who he was and
who was involved in this by looking at what CROs
did you see? Was it because he had mailed these
materials and so once you mail this stuff, it becomes
clear sort of the trail of breadcrumbs leads back to him.
Speaker 1 (14:45):
Yeah, I think it's all one of those you know,
look at it, look at Barcas's online history and all
that sort of stuff, and they just, you know, they
connect the dots man.
Speaker 3 (14:53):
Yeah, they saw, they saw.
Speaker 1 (14:55):
They look at the interaction between those two as apparently
it was online similar ideology and yeah, the shipping.
Speaker 2 (15:01):
Yeah yeah, yeah, wild how the technology can be your
friend and technology can shine a light on all the
nasty stuff you have planned.
Speaker 3 (15:12):
And in this case, it was the latter.
Speaker 2 (15:14):
So I mentioned with John Cobalt and you heard him
talk about how much he loved it, and I loved
it too. It's the Pee Wee Herman documentary that's on
HBO Max. It's two parts and it's brilliant, and it's
brilliant because he's brilliant, and you see the creative magic
that Paul Rubins had and in the documentary and they
(15:35):
take you through all of it and you see how
he puts together the character of Pee Wee Herman based
on a lot of stuff that he was doing with
the Groundling. So he takes a lot of characters and
character traits from Groundling's characters that he created and he
sort of puts them all together in Peewee. It was brilliance.
But it wasn't just the character. It was also his
(15:56):
attention to detail when it came to music, when it
came to other cares, when it came to writing, when
it came to jokes, when it came to the look.
And this magical guy was the subject of this jihad
on the part of law enforcement and the culture. It
was the saddest thing. When I say law enforcement, I mean,
you know, over zealous das, politically motivated Das, and they
(16:21):
destroyed him with the accusations of him being a deviant,
of being a sexual deviant. It was completely ridiculous, and
you'll see it all in the documentary. So it's one
of two documentaries that I'm really recommending to you. The
other is about a brilliant songwriter, brilliant lyricist, Ali Willis.
(16:44):
She wrote the theme to Friends, She wrote September with
Earth Wind and Fire, She wrote Neutron Dance with the
Pointer Sisters, and she herself led this kind of rebellious
creative life. She wrote the music and lyrics and helped
out with Brenda Russell who's also writing the music, and
(17:05):
there were a collaboration that went into The Color Purple,
the stage version of The Color Purple, the Broadway Show,
which is a Tony Award winning show. So both these
extraordinarily creative people are featured in documentaries on HBO Max.
And our next guest is in both the documentaries. Help
with the creative with pe Wee Herman and had a
(17:27):
strong relationship with Ali Willis. We'll talk about that, and
Prudence Fenton joins us as we continue.
Speaker 8 (17:36):
You're listening to Tim Conway Junior on demand from KFI
A six forty.
Speaker 2 (17:42):
I just finished seeing the two part pe Wee Hermann documentary.
You can find it on HBO Max, and it was
one of two documentaries that I found so moving and
so filled with information about literally two of the most
creative people I've ever encountered. And I didn't know pwe Herman,
didn't know Paul Rubens, but it just he was exploding
(18:04):
with creativity. And the other is Ali Willis, who I
did know and loved, and she wrote hit songs like
September and Boogie Wonderland with the Earth, Wind and Fires.
She wrote the theme song for the sitcom Friends with
the rem Brands, you Know I'll be there for You,
And in both the documentaries Ali's documentary is The Wonderful
(18:26):
World of Ali Willis and the Pee Wee Herman documentary
What is it called?
Speaker 3 (18:31):
Is it? My life?
Speaker 2 (18:32):
Should have that in front of me, but I don't.
Anyway you can find it. It's all over HBO Max.
In both the documentaries this he was as himself pee
Wee as himself, thank you and it is. That's a
great name for it because he does speak a lot
to camera. It was a documentary that he was very
very much part of for a long time and then
no spoilers, something happens. So in both the documentaries this
(18:55):
person appears and speaks and is a big part of
the histories of both Ali and of Paul Rubens. How
about it for Prudence Fentant and Prudence Welcome to KFI.
Speaker 10 (19:09):
Hi Mark, how are you?
Speaker 3 (19:11):
I'm well? I should full disclosure.
Speaker 2 (19:13):
I adore Prudence Ventan and I know her personally, and
she is also filled with the same creativity that was
played out on the screen. She's won three Emmy's, a
Grammy and a Clio and MTV Awards. So you're no slouch, Prudence,
and it's no wonder that you were. You were there
and featured in the film. I was interested in some
of the creative that went into Paul Rubens's work.
Speaker 3 (19:36):
That was the fascinating thing.
Speaker 2 (19:37):
He was very insistent on exactly what he wanted creatively
in the look and the feel of pee Wee's Playhouse
and the pee Wee character.
Speaker 10 (19:48):
Yeah, no, he was. He was the chief Indian and
I think that was why the show was so successful
because it really had a vision behind it and he
It's not that he didn't ca libory with like other
artists and everything he did, but he knew what was right.
He absolutely knew what would work, what was right, and
what he was looking for.
Speaker 2 (20:10):
You as a you know of filmmaker yourself as a producer,
you know, you helped with the creative visual look of
pee Wee's Playhouse. He brought in you and other heavy
hitters that he knew to create that.
Speaker 3 (20:26):
So what was that collaboration?
Speaker 2 (20:28):
Like, I mean, it seemed as though things started, at
least in the documentary that kind of suggest they didn't
have a lot of money and yet they had all
of you kind of heavy creative hitters involved.
Speaker 10 (20:40):
Well, the first season of Pee's Playhouse was then in
New York and in New York. He works for nothing
compared to what you got paid in California. And I
think the artists like Gary Panter was a longtime friend
of his and that was one of the main design designers,
designers for the whole look of the show. And Rick
(21:04):
Heitzman and Wayne White and you know, they they would
draw like it seemed like they'd make a thousand drawings
every day and Paul would come in and choose them.
I mean, it was, it was. It was a remarkable
It was a remarkable team. But I mean they were
like New York artists and and as New York artists,
(21:26):
we never got paid very much.
Speaker 3 (21:28):
I see.
Speaker 2 (21:29):
It was not really departure what you were used to. Yeah,
because they talked about the value. Once the show was
a hit, Uh, Paul Rubins said let's go to California.
Let's do it out there, and yeah he.
Speaker 10 (21:38):
Didn't he I think CBS sort of set up the
relationship between him and the first production company and that
that didn't really end well. And the next season it
was all under Paul and was in California, and it
was it was it was still similar, you know, the
same team. I mean, I use a whole different set
of animators, but it was ultimately the same design team.
Speaker 2 (22:03):
The look of the show and the feel of the
show has played out by the look of the show
is to me, part of the magical thing, the wonderment
of Peewee's Playhouse. You know, it was both a show
for kids. It was a kid's show, it ran at
a kid's show time, but it had a huge adult following.
And the whimsy of the show has played out with
(22:25):
the visuals I felt right from the beginning, Yeah.
Speaker 10 (22:28):
Nobody had ever seen visuals like that on television before.
It was just completely it was completely whagged out, I mean,
and in such a good way. And Paul would say, well,
the show is for people from three to seventy.
Speaker 2 (22:46):
I mean, it really did land so beautifully, and so
of course that became the springboard to the movie, and
they detail in the film and the documentary on HBO
the way in which the movie exploded.
Speaker 3 (22:58):
His popularity exploded.
Speaker 2 (23:00):
But it wasn't like like all lives and like all careers,
it wasn't completely a smooth sailing, you know. I mean
he once he got into the creative for his second film,
it struggled. He struggled, but I must say, he seems
like the sweetest guy and you knew him for so
many years. I it was very hard for us as
(23:21):
we watched together. Courtney was in tears at the end
of the movie, and I was really, I guess, super
bummed out. I mean I just was. I felt there
was kind of a jihad against him for and they
painted him as this kind of deviant in the end
of his life, and I thought it was devastating to see.
Speaker 10 (23:40):
I think it was. I mean, it was devastating for him.
It was, it was, it was un it was unbelievable,
and especially when he got blasted in social media, and
it was it was incredibly hurtful. I I I still
am scratching my head for how that could have ever.
Speaker 2 (24:00):
Happened, especially with a guy who had so many friends.
I mean, he really seems surrounded by people who celebrated
his creativity. I mean it was off the scale creativity.
And then even some in that circle sort of just
began to he had a radioactivity about him, and it
was based on nothing he did. Was it was completely concocted.
Speaker 10 (24:24):
Yeah, I mean you're saying radioactivity from producers and people
like that, or I feel like his friends stood by him.
Speaker 2 (24:35):
Yeah, And again that close group of which you are
a member may be what he details and he talks
about he uses the word pariah in the movie. I mean,
so he felt the sting was real. So I don't
know exactly who it was or what group, but it
was significant enough a group that he just couldn't, you know,
he couldn't get traction. Again, I think largely because of that.
Speaker 10 (25:00):
Yeah, there was always a sort of shadow over it,
except for like you know, Johns and Demi did the
movie Blow sure, and you know, and that was after
all that and he completely you know, stole the show
as it were, I mean it was. It was an
amazing film, and he was an amazing character in that.
And there were subsequent shows he was he was in
(25:22):
which which were fantastic, but not to the level of
what pee Wee's Playhouse or pee Wee the character was.
Speaker 2 (25:30):
Yeah, and not to the level. And this is to
take nothing away from it, because you're right, he really
did some like tour de force acting, but not to
the level creatively that I would have liked to have
seen him permitted to achieve. And again, it was all
because of that the movie theater thing and then that
turned into an investigation with no charges, and it was
just it's really brutal to see what what happened.
Speaker 3 (25:50):
Now, I have a question for you.
Speaker 2 (25:53):
Can you stay over because I want the other documentary
is about Ali Willis, who I adored and you did
as well. I know you had a real relationship with
Ali and she was a songwriter of such a terrific
cultural cornerstones like earth Wind and Fire, September and Boogie
Wonderland and the theme from Friends. I want to talk
(26:15):
a little bit about her if you would hang out
for a little while. Sure, okay, cool, Prudence? All right,
Prudence will hang out through the commercials and we will continue.
Speaker 8 (26:26):
You're listening to Tim conwaytun You're on demand from kf
I am six forty.
Speaker 2 (26:32):
We're talking to Prudence Fenton, an award winning creative visualist.
She's got Emmy, she's got Grammy, she's got Clio's, and
she is featured in two documentaries. I mentioned the pe
Wee Herman documentary. It's a two part documentary, and there's
another awesome documentary.
Speaker 3 (26:48):
I saw.
Speaker 2 (26:48):
They theater, the thing the place you go where it's
a big screen.
Speaker 3 (26:52):
Yeah, the theater.
Speaker 2 (26:55):
It's called The World according to Ali Willis and Ali
brilliant songwriter, as I'm mentioned collaborating with earthwund and Fire
on September writing Bookie Wonderland with them, writing the theme
to friends, I'll Be There for You with the Rembrandts.
I mean, just a brilliant, brilliant mind and also a
visualist kind of like you, Prudence, tell me about the
(27:18):
movie The World according to Ali Willison, again your featured
prominently in that.
Speaker 10 (27:23):
You know Ali, Ali always wanted to make a documentary,
so it never happened in her lifetime, and she left.
She left this desire in her will. So I took
up the challenge and found a great director, Alexis minus
Break and her husband Nickole is a producing team. I mean,
(27:44):
they were just the perfect people to take on this
documentary for Ali and I. You know, we know when
it was COVID, you think, you know, it's a perfect
time to do a documentary, especially Ali, who had over
ten thousand hours of archival footage.
Speaker 6 (28:04):
You don't need to.
Speaker 10 (28:05):
Be out, you know, in the world with a whole
camera crew. You need those with this archival footage of
which Ali, you know, is the star. She'd been sort
of filming herself since she was a nine year old.
Speaker 2 (28:18):
It is crazy, just just just to interject. I mean,
it is wild that she was way ahead of her
time in so many different ways creatively. And one of
the ways she was out of her time was the
way that she was documenting her life. The way people
now document their life with a cell phone, she was
doing it when it was far less convenient.
Speaker 10 (28:37):
Yeah. No, I mean she had video cameras, like, there
are all kinds of formats that she was doing. But
she really felt that her life and her creative process
would be of interest of future generations. And I have
to say, for someone who had the depth of talent
of songwriting that she had, I mean, she wrote over
twelve hundred songs. She would she would write four songs
(29:01):
to day for like ten years. I mean, it was
it was staggering. And so she felt that documenting it
how it came together. She would record the sessions as
they came together. She saved every iteration of every song
she ever wrote. I mean, it is phenomenal. And you know,
there's great archival footage not only of Ali creating, but
(29:26):
just Ali living life and having these parties at her
house and.
Speaker 3 (29:31):
Well Her parties were legend.
Speaker 2 (29:33):
Her Hollywood parties were like the things that people tried to,
you know, get their way into because they were featured
in like People magazine, and there was a sort of
a shimmer around Alli's just just the parties that.
Speaker 10 (29:47):
She threw, right, And you know it wasn't just because
you were famous. You got in if you were creatively
you know, a fantastic electrician, or you could solider like
no one else. You know, you had this big vision,
you were invited to that party.
Speaker 2 (30:03):
Yeah, she wasn't an elitist in the in the least.
She came out of Detroit at a time when you know,
so much was changing in America through civil rights and
you know, even the music was changing, and all of
that is documented in this film. And the other thing
about how Ali beyond the songwriting was this kitsch collection.
And then I noticed in pee Wee's documentary that pee
(30:25):
Wee was a collector of so much and I thought,
oh my god. And of course I didn't know Paul
Rubens at all, So when I saw it, I thought, well,
that's an extraordinary area of overlap between those two.
Speaker 10 (30:36):
Oh no, we've actually cut together some pieces of them
thristing together then fighting over a kitch that they wanted,
and it was a it was a bonus contention, I mean,
and I really think they felt them they were a
stores of kitsch and it was their mission to sort
(30:58):
of collect and highlight America. Huh, because people when they
started collecting, of course, no one was really in tune
with it, but they were. They really understood the genesis
and importance of it.
Speaker 3 (31:11):
Yeah, it's true.
Speaker 2 (31:13):
And I love that you said Americana because it does
feel as though, well, each piece of kitsch in that
collection of Ali willis and you see a bit of
it with Peewee as well in the Paul Rubens collection,
but each piece sort of reflects a bit of the time,
a facet of America at that time.
Speaker 3 (31:32):
And so she.
Speaker 2 (31:35):
Had a sad you know, died too young. Sad tragic
was the word I was going to use, ending sudden
ending to her life. But she did get to realize
a lot of the success and the magic of that creativity.
Speaker 3 (31:49):
I felt always, Prudence, do you agree?
Speaker 10 (31:51):
Oh no, she packed a lot in that life, She
really packed a lot in But you know, she had
a lot more to do too. I mean, she had
so many plans for twenty twenty. It was just shocking
that she left us in twenty nineteen.
Speaker 2 (32:08):
Yeah, the world, according to Ali Willis, can be seen
I think virtually everywhere. I know, Hulu, YouTube, Amazon, Where
can people It's on Hulu.
Speaker 10 (32:18):
And yeah, you can buy it on Amazon and Apple TV.
And yeah, I think there is a live screening June
fifteenth at the Astro Theater on Vine Street, promoted by
the Infinity Pride Festival. Tickets are on sale now.
Speaker 2 (32:39):
Yeah, where are tickets on sale? Google it all right,
just look it up, jump on the internet.
Speaker 3 (32:49):
June fifteenth.
Speaker 2 (32:50):
The world, according to Ali Willis, there'll be a special
screening at the Astro Theater and at.
Speaker 10 (32:55):
Seven pm, and there'll be a Q and A with
me in the director and Mark Mothers Though and Julie Brown.
Speaker 3 (33:03):
Oh that's great.
Speaker 10 (33:05):
In the Pridelive Hollywood dot Com.
Speaker 2 (33:08):
Okay, Pridelive Hollywood dot Com. And that sounds great. I
actually may go to that myself. Yeah, I forgot, you know,
and all of the creative people. It's so wild. Paul Rubins, Ali,
you you surround yourself with this just it's a it's
a murderer's row of incredible creativity. Congratulations on everything and
the films. Both of them are great, but I love
(33:29):
what you did with the world, according to Ali willis
brilliant movie. Well, thank you, good Prudence, Thank you for
spending some time with us. Appreciated Prudence Fenton. Yeah, the
films I recommend again, Crows. You've got to jump on these.
They're real winners.
Speaker 1 (33:44):
What's the trailer for the pe Wee Himself? Just last night,
so I'm definitely up for it. It's great. Just a
trailer alone's fantastic.
Speaker 2 (33:51):
You know, if John Coleblt and I both like it,
it's got to be right. I mean that covers a
lot of territory, so bookend opinions, right, Yeah, that's right,
So good stuff. It is the Tim Conway Junior Show,
Tim ailing Mark Thompson sitting in on KFI AM six forty.
We're live everywhere on the iHeartRadio app.
It's k if I AM sixty and you're listening to
The Conway Show on demand on the iHeartRadio app.
Speaker 2 (00:08):
KFI AM six forty Live everywhere on the iHeartRadio app.
Mark Thompson sitting in for Tim Conway Junior, who continues ailing,
We've got a lot of stuff going on with the
show today. A wild story out of the world of Meta,
you know, Facebook, a new deal involving AI which will
(00:28):
very much determine the future.
Speaker 3 (00:30):
We have breaking news out of a local school. There is.
Speaker 2 (00:36):
Fatality of a local school. We'll tell you about that next.
And we have Alex Stone off the top. It can
never be a bad thing when you have ABC's Alex
Stone off the top.
Speaker 3 (00:46):
I know it's true. I'm well, I'm better for you
being here.
Speaker 4 (00:49):
Oh, I'm better for talking to you.
Speaker 3 (00:53):
I love it. Well.
Speaker 2 (00:53):
With the pleasantries out of the way, let's talk about
this Mohammed Solomon, who apparently it's interesting how chirpy these
guys are, and in the things that he said, he's
indicated that he'd actually wanted to buy a gun and
do more damage than he did with the Molotov cocktails.
Speaker 5 (01:14):
Yeah, he wanted to do an active shooter scenario and
tried and tried to get guns but couldn't buy them
because he's in the country illegally.
Speaker 4 (01:22):
So what we know.
Speaker 5 (01:24):
Is he was born in Egypt, he lived in Kuwait
for seventeen years, came to Colorado Springs about three years
ago on a visa with his family, his wife and
five children, and they overstayed that that expired in twenty
twenty three, a year after they got it in.
Speaker 4 (01:40):
Twenty twenty two.
Speaker 5 (01:41):
And so we know now that in November of last year,
November twenty second, went into a sporting goods store in
Colorado Springs and tried to buy a handgun, but it
was denied in an instant background check that was done
and they don't give a reason why, but it's believed
because he's an illegal immigrant, that it was denied immediately.
(02:05):
That should have sent an automatic notification to ICE that
here is somebody who's in the country illegally.
Speaker 4 (02:12):
Here is their name, here is their address, here's where
you find them. But nothing came of that.
Speaker 5 (02:16):
We don't know if it didn't go to ICE, if
ICE got a bunch of them and just you know,
it didn't act on them that these were coming in
all the time, but nothing was done on that. Then
on December thirtieth, the Colorado Bureau of Investigation turned him
down for a concealed weapons permit and all of that.
At that point, he has told police, he decided he
(02:37):
had to pivot, that he wanted to carry this out.
It wasn't going to be a mass shooting, it would
be a fire bombing. And he went on YouTube and
he researched how to build molotov cocktails and blow torch
and began putting it together that way. The US Attorney
in Colorado saying this.
Speaker 6 (02:54):
Mister Solomon stated that he had been planning this attack
for a year, and he acted because he hated what
he called the Zionist group.
Speaker 5 (03:02):
So he put together this plan, been working on it
for a year, studying how to do all this really
no connection to the group in Boulder. He googled where
pro Israeli events were happening, and up came Boulder, Colorado.
In on every Sunday that they would do this march
down the Pearl Street Mall, the big outdoor walking mall,
(03:22):
and that he knew at one o'clock they would be
outside the old County Courthouse. That's now kind of more
a symbolic building, and he would meet them there dressed
up like a gardener and said he did that so
nobody would think he was out of place. Even bought
flowers to look like he was planting flowers. They arrived
and he was waiting for them, and then he carried
(03:43):
it out.
Speaker 2 (03:43):
Gosh, it's really just sick, you know, the way that
he did think about it and planet for so long.
And it's weird also that just looking at his life
the way you've described it, he kind of made it
all happen here. He'd been here for a while. I
understand overstate his visa, but I just can't the idea
that you're so motivated to do this kind of damage
that you would just destroy your life and the life
(04:04):
of your family.
Speaker 3 (04:05):
Jesus.
Speaker 5 (04:06):
Yeah, and even waited until his eighteen year old daughter
graduated from high school just a week before carrying this
out on Sunday. So didn't want it. He thought he
was going to die. He told police he went in
there to die. He wanted to kill, and he wanted
to die or planned on dying in it, and so
he waited for her to graduate and didn't want to
do it before then. Once she graduated, he went ahead
(04:29):
and carried it out. Now, he claims that the family
didn't know anything about it, that this was so rudimentary
in many ways. I mean, despite all the planning, it's
not hard to build a Molotov cocktail. You need gasoline
and a Canistery about the canisters, the little glass containers
at Target. Bought the gasoline on his way up to Boulder.
He claims, though, that they didn't know about it. We
(04:51):
don't know if they did, Christ you know, the DHS
secretary saying this.
Speaker 7 (04:56):
Mohammed's despicable actions will be prosecuted to the fullest extent
of the law. But we're also investigating to what extent
his family knew about this horrific attack, if they had
any knowledge of it, or if they provided support to it.
Speaker 5 (05:09):
So they had been ordered deport it because I said, well,
here's a family, a wife and five children who are
here illegally and dad allegedly committed what the FBI sees
as a terrorist attack, but either way a hate crime,
and the White House even putting out messages on x
last night saying that they could be gone by the
end of last night. About two hours ago, a federal
(05:32):
judge said nope, because the family is suing now to
stop being deported. So now a federal judge and the
Tenth Circuit is saying they cannot be deported right now.
So it looks like they're not going to go anywhere.
They're still in custody, but at least for now not
going anywhere.
Speaker 3 (05:46):
Wow, that's very interesting.
Speaker 2 (05:47):
I was going to ask you about this because that
seemed to be draconian, but maybe you know, you could
argue it was still warranted as an action, and now
you're saying, there'll have to be some kind of due
process whereby the courts will be involved and they'll ultimately
be an adjudication on this.
Speaker 4 (06:05):
Yeah.
Speaker 5 (06:05):
The judge didn't explain any of his ruling today except
saying they shall not be deported and then that will
be on hold unless he says otherwise, or the ten
Circuld Court of Appeals says otherwise. That the government planned on,
you know, just ripping off the band aid and saying, well,
you're here illegally, your husband is accused of this, You're
going back to Egypt. But the judge is saying, no,
(06:27):
that's not how it works, and they're suing, and so
they remain.
Speaker 2 (06:30):
So again the number of victims in this, i'd seen
that it actually went up.
Speaker 5 (06:34):
Yeah, I went up today, fifteen today because Boulder Police
have gone out and said, anybody, no matter how minor
the injury, we want to know that you are a victim,
because that adds on to they're going to charge him
officially tomorrow, he's going to be in court that they
will add on what they've already been charging him with,
so it'll be more attempted murder accounts more of the
(06:55):
other charges that they've got, but most of them have
been minor. Three have more serious burns. They're in a
burn unit in Aurora outside of Denver, but all of
the others are minor. Most didn't even go to the hospital.
But you know, for the planning that went into this
and that he wanted to kill, thank goodness that it
didn't work.
Speaker 2 (07:14):
Now that right, Yeah, that's an amazing thing that this
guy worked so hard google the right things, lay in wait,
disguised himself. I mean, there was so much going on
here and he actually couldn't in a sense pull it
off to the extent that he'd wanted to.
Speaker 5 (07:29):
Had that been a gun, this would have been very different.
And yeah, you can say that the system I know that. Yeah,
they didn't work, sending a dice and getting them out
of the country and all of that, but for stopping
him from buying a gun.
Speaker 4 (07:40):
That instant background check made it so he couldn't do that.
Speaker 2 (07:43):
Here here, good stuff, Alex, thanks so much. Always love
talking about Yeah. See Alex Stone from ABC News when
we come back. There was a major accident at Campbell
Hall and that local school. Used to seeing them in
the headlines, but certainly not in the headlines this way.
(08:06):
We'll tell you what happened there as we continue.
Speaker 8 (08:10):
You're listening to Tim Conway Junior on demand from KFI
AM six forty.
Speaker 3 (08:17):
And What's party people.
Speaker 2 (08:19):
It is Wednesday on KFI AM six forty live everywhere
in the iHeartRadio app. It is The Conway Show. Tim
is still ill. Mark Thompson sitting in for him today.
Hopefully he'll be back tomorrow. There was a piece of
breaking news really is just the last hour or so.
A minor pedestrian that is to say, I don't know,
(08:41):
we have so few details on this, but it's a
Campbell Hall and studio city and this pedestrian, again, a
minor was struck by a car and killed. The fire
department called no one transported from the and they've set
(09:02):
up an investigation there at the scene. But we'll give
you more details as they come in. But a juvenile
pedestrian struck by a car at Campbell Hill, at Campbell
Hall I should stay in Studio City and killed in
that accident. And it's extraordinary listen, it was in a
parking lot. Just a brutal, brutal piece of news. On
(09:26):
this Wednesday afternoon, they have arrested and made arrest along
the lines of two people now in that Palm Spring's
fertility clinic bombing. One of the suspects on his way
to Europe, really fled to Europe after dropping off a
(09:48):
lot of the chemicals and the means by which they
use these chemicals to make explosives for last month's bombing
of that fertility clinic in Palm Springs. And Steffush, will
you turn this on here so that all the boys
and girls can hear this report.
Speaker 3 (10:05):
Thank you.
Speaker 9 (10:06):
This new defendant allegedly provided parts and explosive materials to
the suspect that was involved in that bombing in Palm Springs.
Speaker 4 (10:13):
And this new suspect was.
Speaker 9 (10:14):
Arrested yesterday afternoon in New York after he was deported
from Poland and arrived at JFK Airport. Officials say this
is the new defendant, thirty two year old Daniel Park,
a resident of Washington State. He is facing charges of
conspiracy in this case for shipping and paying for large
quantities of ammonium nitrate. Park also allegedly spent time at
the California home of the primary suspect, twenty five year
(10:37):
old Guy Edward Bartkas. He was running experiments there, according
to the affidavit. Now Barcas was found dead next to
the vehicle that exploded.
Speaker 3 (10:46):
He is believed to.
Speaker 2 (10:46):
Have detonated the bomb, as he caused by a lot
of that ammonium nitrate. One hundred and eighty pounds of
ammonium NITRATEE was what was shipped to the bomb.
Speaker 9 (11:00):
He is believed to have detonated the bomb at the
American Reproductive Centers in Palm Springs and died in the blast.
At least five other people were injured. Officials say Park
and Barcas are part of a group that simply doesn't
believe people should exist. They're described as pro mortalism and
anti pro life. They believe individuals should not be born
without their consent. They say Park provided bomb parts of
(11:22):
the suspect and helped them purchase some of the materials.
Speaker 2 (11:24):
Man, I mean, just talk about losing your way. I
don't understand this. I've never heard of this, these anti natalists.
This is a true fringe theory. They opposed childbirth and
population growth of all kinds. They believe that people should
not continue to reproduce, and this fertility clinic was the
(11:46):
target of their terrorism.
Speaker 6 (11:48):
Mister Park, who shares Barcas's extremist beliefs, is accused of
shipping approximately one hundred and eighty pounds of ammonium nitrate
and explosive pre are commonly used to construct homemade bombs
to Barkas. Park paid for an additional ninety pounds of
(12:08):
ammonium nitrate that was shipped to Barcas in the days
leading up to the Palm Springs attack.
Speaker 9 (12:14):
An officials say the quantities of explosives are quite large,
and the formula and the methodology was similar to that
in the nineteen ninety five Oklahoma City bombing by Timothy
McVeigh that destroyed part of the Federal building and left
one hundred and sixty eight people dead and six hundred
and eighty four others injured. Now, in this case, they
say that Park left for Poland four days after the
(12:35):
bombing in Palm Springs, but they aren't saying if he
was trying.
Speaker 3 (12:37):
To escape the country.
Speaker 9 (12:39):
The suspect is now expected to appear in a Brooklyn
federal court later this afternoon, before he has moved to California,
but they say that could take several weeks.
Speaker 3 (12:47):
Reporting live in y I thank you. I did mean
to cut you off there.
Speaker 2 (12:51):
I'm sure anyway, it was a live report and at
some point it was live.
Speaker 3 (12:55):
We were not. Yeah, it's true. The suspect is now
expected to go I feel bad for him optilate this afternoon.
Speaker 9 (13:01):
Before he has moved to California, but they say that
could take several weeks. Now in Westwood, I'm Colonel Scrandness.
Speaker 3 (13:09):
Don't want to cut Carlos off ever.
Speaker 2 (13:11):
It really is an extraordinary thing, though, But you see
how you know, these fringe theories and activists along the
fringes can be activated to the point that they you know,
they put together a bomb of this ferocity.
Speaker 3 (13:27):
I mean, this is a brutal thing.
Speaker 2 (13:31):
So these guys are behind bars and it looks like,
you know, they may not see the light of day
for a long long time. Daniel Park again charged with
providing and attempting to provide material support to a terrorist.
The other guy is is under arrest as well, and
they had two hundred and seventy pounds total of ammonium nitrate.
(13:53):
Just an extraordinary thing, but that's the situation. And he
had a whole escape route, you know, through the in Poland.
He was gonna it seems to me it was clear
that he was going to escape to the European Union.
But again cops hunted him down and made the arrest.
(14:15):
So two kicked him out to poland kicked him out. Yeah, yeah,
they stayed back. Yeah, that was the extradition agreement that
they had with the with the with the US.
Speaker 1 (14:24):
How much of an agreement they had. But yeah, they
kicked him out.
Speaker 2 (14:28):
I mean they they found out who he was and
who was involved in this by looking at what CROs
did you see? Was it because he had mailed these
materials and so once you mail this stuff, it becomes
clear sort of the trail of breadcrumbs leads back to him.
Speaker 1 (14:45):
Yeah, I think it's all one of those you know,
look at it, look at Barcas's online history and all
that sort of stuff, and they just, you know, they
connect the dots man.
Speaker 3 (14:53):
Yeah, they saw, they saw.
Speaker 1 (14:55):
They look at the interaction between those two as apparently
it was online similar ideology and yeah, the shipping.
Speaker 2 (15:01):
Yeah yeah, yeah, wild how the technology can be your
friend and technology can shine a light on all the
nasty stuff you have planned.
Speaker 3 (15:12):
And in this case, it was the latter.
Speaker 2 (15:14):
So I mentioned with John Cobalt and you heard him
talk about how much he loved it, and I loved
it too. It's the Pee Wee Herman documentary that's on
HBO Max. It's two parts and it's brilliant, and it's
brilliant because he's brilliant, and you see the creative magic
that Paul Rubins had and in the documentary and they
(15:35):
take you through all of it and you see how
he puts together the character of Pee Wee Herman based
on a lot of stuff that he was doing with
the Groundling. So he takes a lot of characters and
character traits from Groundling's characters that he created and he
sort of puts them all together in Peewee. It was brilliance.
But it wasn't just the character. It was also his
(15:56):
attention to detail when it came to music, when it
came to other cares, when it came to writing, when
it came to jokes, when it came to the look.
And this magical guy was the subject of this jihad
on the part of law enforcement and the culture. It
was the saddest thing. When I say law enforcement, I mean,
you know, over zealous das, politically motivated Das, and they
(16:21):
destroyed him with the accusations of him being a deviant,
of being a sexual deviant. It was completely ridiculous, and
you'll see it all in the documentary. So it's one
of two documentaries that I'm really recommending to you. The
other is about a brilliant songwriter, brilliant lyricist, Ali Willis.
(16:44):
She wrote the theme to Friends, She wrote September with
Earth Wind and Fire, She wrote Neutron Dance with the
Pointer Sisters, and she herself led this kind of rebellious
creative life. She wrote the music and lyrics and helped
out with Brenda Russell who's also writing the music, and
(17:05):
there were a collaboration that went into The Color Purple,
the stage version of The Color Purple, the Broadway Show,
which is a Tony Award winning show. So both these
extraordinarily creative people are featured in documentaries on HBO Max.
And our next guest is in both the documentaries. Help
with the creative with pe Wee Herman and had a
(17:27):
strong relationship with Ali Willis. We'll talk about that, and
Prudence Fenton joins us as we continue.
Speaker 8 (17:36):
You're listening to Tim Conway Junior on demand from KFI
A six forty.
Speaker 2 (17:42):
I just finished seeing the two part pe Wee Hermann documentary.
You can find it on HBO Max, and it was
one of two documentaries that I found so moving and
so filled with information about literally two of the most
creative people I've ever encountered. And I didn't know pwe Herman,
didn't know Paul Rubens, but it just he was exploding
(18:04):
with creativity. And the other is Ali Willis, who I
did know and loved, and she wrote hit songs like
September and Boogie Wonderland with the Earth, Wind and Fires.
She wrote the theme song for the sitcom Friends with
the rem Brands, you Know I'll be there for You,
And in both the documentaries Ali's documentary is The Wonderful
(18:26):
World of Ali Willis and the Pee Wee Herman documentary
What is it called?
Speaker 3 (18:31):
Is it? My life?
Speaker 2 (18:32):
Should have that in front of me, but I don't.
Anyway you can find it. It's all over HBO Max.
In both the documentaries this he was as himself pee
Wee as himself, thank you and it is. That's a
great name for it because he does speak a lot
to camera. It was a documentary that he was very
very much part of for a long time and then
no spoilers, something happens. So in both the documentaries this
(18:55):
person appears and speaks and is a big part of
the histories of both Ali and of Paul Rubens. How
about it for Prudence Fentant and Prudence Welcome to KFI.
Speaker 10 (19:09):
Hi Mark, how are you?
Speaker 3 (19:11):
I'm well? I should full disclosure.
Speaker 2 (19:13):
I adore Prudence Ventan and I know her personally, and
she is also filled with the same creativity that was
played out on the screen. She's won three Emmy's, a
Grammy and a Clio and MTV Awards. So you're no slouch, Prudence,
and it's no wonder that you were. You were there
and featured in the film. I was interested in some
of the creative that went into Paul Rubens's work.
Speaker 3 (19:36):
That was the fascinating thing.
Speaker 2 (19:37):
He was very insistent on exactly what he wanted creatively
in the look and the feel of pee Wee's Playhouse
and the pee Wee character.
Speaker 10 (19:48):
Yeah, no, he was. He was the chief Indian and
I think that was why the show was so successful
because it really had a vision behind it and he
It's not that he didn't ca libory with like other
artists and everything he did, but he knew what was right.
He absolutely knew what would work, what was right, and
what he was looking for.
Speaker 2 (20:10):
You as a you know of filmmaker yourself as a producer,
you know, you helped with the creative visual look of
pee Wee's Playhouse. He brought in you and other heavy
hitters that he knew to create that.
Speaker 3 (20:26):
So what was that collaboration?
Speaker 2 (20:28):
Like, I mean, it seemed as though things started, at
least in the documentary that kind of suggest they didn't
have a lot of money and yet they had all
of you kind of heavy creative hitters involved.
Speaker 10 (20:40):
Well, the first season of Pee's Playhouse was then in
New York and in New York. He works for nothing
compared to what you got paid in California. And I
think the artists like Gary Panter was a longtime friend
of his and that was one of the main design designers,
designers for the whole look of the show. And Rick
(21:04):
Heitzman and Wayne White and you know, they they would
draw like it seemed like they'd make a thousand drawings
every day and Paul would come in and choose them.
I mean, it was, it was. It was a remarkable
It was a remarkable team. But I mean they were
like New York artists and and as New York artists,
(21:26):
we never got paid very much.
Speaker 3 (21:28):
I see.
Speaker 2 (21:29):
It was not really departure what you were used to. Yeah,
because they talked about the value. Once the show was
a hit, Uh, Paul Rubins said let's go to California.
Let's do it out there, and yeah he.
Speaker 10 (21:38):
Didn't he I think CBS sort of set up the
relationship between him and the first production company and that
that didn't really end well. And the next season it
was all under Paul and was in California, and it
was it was it was still similar, you know, the
same team. I mean, I use a whole different set
of animators, but it was ultimately the same design team.
Speaker 2 (22:03):
The look of the show and the feel of the
show has played out by the look of the show
is to me, part of the magical thing, the wonderment
of Peewee's Playhouse. You know, it was both a show
for kids. It was a kid's show, it ran at
a kid's show time, but it had a huge adult following.
And the whimsy of the show has played out with
(22:25):
the visuals I felt right from the beginning, Yeah.
Speaker 10 (22:28):
Nobody had ever seen visuals like that on television before.
It was just completely it was completely whagged out, I mean,
and in such a good way. And Paul would say, well,
the show is for people from three to seventy.
Speaker 2 (22:46):
I mean, it really did land so beautifully, and so
of course that became the springboard to the movie, and
they detail in the film and the documentary on HBO
the way in which the movie exploded.
Speaker 3 (22:58):
His popularity exploded.
Speaker 2 (23:00):
But it wasn't like like all lives and like all careers,
it wasn't completely a smooth sailing, you know. I mean
he once he got into the creative for his second film,
it struggled. He struggled, but I must say, he seems
like the sweetest guy and you knew him for so
many years. I it was very hard for us as
(23:21):
we watched together. Courtney was in tears at the end
of the movie, and I was really, I guess, super
bummed out. I mean I just was. I felt there
was kind of a jihad against him for and they
painted him as this kind of deviant in the end
of his life, and I thought it was devastating to see.
Speaker 10 (23:40):
I think it was. I mean, it was devastating for him.
It was, it was, it was un it was unbelievable,
and especially when he got blasted in social media, and
it was it was incredibly hurtful. I I I still
am scratching my head for how that could have ever.
Speaker 2 (24:00):
Happened, especially with a guy who had so many friends.
I mean, he really seems surrounded by people who celebrated
his creativity. I mean it was off the scale creativity.
And then even some in that circle sort of just
began to he had a radioactivity about him, and it
was based on nothing he did. Was it was completely concocted.
Speaker 10 (24:24):
Yeah, I mean you're saying radioactivity from producers and people
like that, or I feel like his friends stood by him.
Speaker 2 (24:35):
Yeah, And again that close group of which you are
a member may be what he details and he talks
about he uses the word pariah in the movie. I mean,
so he felt the sting was real. So I don't
know exactly who it was or what group, but it
was significant enough a group that he just couldn't, you know,
he couldn't get traction. Again, I think largely because of that.
Speaker 10 (25:00):
Yeah, there was always a sort of shadow over it,
except for like you know, Johns and Demi did the
movie Blow sure, and you know, and that was after
all that and he completely you know, stole the show
as it were, I mean it was. It was an
amazing film, and he was an amazing character in that.
And there were subsequent shows he was he was in
(25:22):
which which were fantastic, but not to the level of
what pee Wee's Playhouse or pee Wee the character was.
Speaker 2 (25:30):
Yeah, and not to the level. And this is to
take nothing away from it, because you're right, he really
did some like tour de force acting, but not to
the level creatively that I would have liked to have
seen him permitted to achieve. And again, it was all
because of that the movie theater thing and then that
turned into an investigation with no charges, and it was
just it's really brutal to see what what happened.
Speaker 3 (25:50):
Now, I have a question for you.
Speaker 2 (25:53):
Can you stay over because I want the other documentary
is about Ali Willis, who I adored and you did
as well. I know you had a real relationship with
Ali and she was a songwriter of such a terrific
cultural cornerstones like earth Wind and Fire, September and Boogie
Wonderland and the theme from Friends. I want to talk
(26:15):
a little bit about her if you would hang out
for a little while. Sure, okay, cool, Prudence? All right,
Prudence will hang out through the commercials and we will continue.
Speaker 8 (26:26):
You're listening to Tim conwaytun You're on demand from kf
I am six forty.
Speaker 2 (26:32):
We're talking to Prudence Fenton, an award winning creative visualist.
She's got Emmy, she's got Grammy, she's got Clio's, and
she is featured in two documentaries. I mentioned the pe
Wee Herman documentary. It's a two part documentary, and there's
another awesome documentary.
Speaker 3 (26:48):
I saw.
Speaker 2 (26:48):
They theater, the thing the place you go where it's
a big screen.
Speaker 3 (26:52):
Yeah, the theater.
Speaker 2 (26:55):
It's called The World according to Ali Willis and Ali
brilliant songwriter, as I'm mentioned collaborating with earthwund and Fire
on September writing Bookie Wonderland with them, writing the theme
to friends, I'll Be There for You with the Rembrandts.
I mean, just a brilliant, brilliant mind and also a
visualist kind of like you, Prudence, tell me about the
(27:18):
movie The World according to Ali Willison, again your featured
prominently in that.
Speaker 10 (27:23):
You know Ali, Ali always wanted to make a documentary,
so it never happened in her lifetime, and she left.
She left this desire in her will. So I took
up the challenge and found a great director, Alexis minus
Break and her husband Nickole is a producing team. I mean,
(27:44):
they were just the perfect people to take on this
documentary for Ali and I. You know, we know when
it was COVID, you think, you know, it's a perfect
time to do a documentary, especially Ali, who had over
ten thousand hours of archival footage.
Speaker 6 (28:04):
You don't need to.
Speaker 10 (28:05):
Be out, you know, in the world with a whole
camera crew. You need those with this archival footage of
which Ali, you know, is the star. She'd been sort
of filming herself since she was a nine year old.
Speaker 2 (28:18):
It is crazy, just just just to interject. I mean,
it is wild that she was way ahead of her
time in so many different ways creatively. And one of
the ways she was out of her time was the
way that she was documenting her life. The way people
now document their life with a cell phone, she was
doing it when it was far less convenient.
Speaker 10 (28:37):
Yeah. No, I mean she had video cameras, like, there
are all kinds of formats that she was doing. But
she really felt that her life and her creative process
would be of interest of future generations. And I have
to say, for someone who had the depth of talent
of songwriting that she had, I mean, she wrote over
twelve hundred songs. She would she would write four songs
(29:01):
to day for like ten years. I mean, it was
it was staggering. And so she felt that documenting it
how it came together. She would record the sessions as
they came together. She saved every iteration of every song
she ever wrote. I mean, it is phenomenal. And you know,
there's great archival footage not only of Ali creating, but
(29:26):
just Ali living life and having these parties at her
house and.
Speaker 3 (29:31):
Well Her parties were legend.
Speaker 2 (29:33):
Her Hollywood parties were like the things that people tried to,
you know, get their way into because they were featured
in like People magazine, and there was a sort of
a shimmer around Alli's just just the parties that.
Speaker 10 (29:47):
She threw, right, And you know it wasn't just because
you were famous. You got in if you were creatively
you know, a fantastic electrician, or you could solider like
no one else. You know, you had this big vision,
you were invited to that party.
Speaker 2 (30:03):
Yeah, she wasn't an elitist in the in the least.
She came out of Detroit at a time when you know,
so much was changing in America through civil rights and
you know, even the music was changing, and all of
that is documented in this film. And the other thing
about how Ali beyond the songwriting was this kitsch collection.
And then I noticed in pee Wee's documentary that pee
(30:25):
Wee was a collector of so much and I thought,
oh my god. And of course I didn't know Paul
Rubens at all, So when I saw it, I thought, well,
that's an extraordinary area of overlap between those two.
Speaker 10 (30:36):
Oh no, we've actually cut together some pieces of them
thristing together then fighting over a kitch that they wanted,
and it was a it was a bonus contention, I mean,
and I really think they felt them they were a
stores of kitsch and it was their mission to sort
(30:58):
of collect and highlight America. Huh, because people when they
started collecting, of course, no one was really in tune
with it, but they were. They really understood the genesis
and importance of it.
Speaker 3 (31:11):
Yeah, it's true.
Speaker 2 (31:13):
And I love that you said Americana because it does
feel as though, well, each piece of kitsch in that
collection of Ali willis and you see a bit of
it with Peewee as well in the Paul Rubens collection,
but each piece sort of reflects a bit of the time,
a facet of America at that time.
Speaker 3 (31:32):
And so she.
Speaker 2 (31:35):
Had a sad you know, died too young. Sad tragic
was the word I was going to use, ending sudden
ending to her life. But she did get to realize
a lot of the success and the magic of that creativity.
Speaker 3 (31:49):
I felt always, Prudence, do you agree?
Speaker 10 (31:51):
Oh no, she packed a lot in that life, She
really packed a lot in But you know, she had
a lot more to do too. I mean, she had
so many plans for twenty twenty. It was just shocking
that she left us in twenty nineteen.
Speaker 2 (32:08):
Yeah, the world, according to Ali Willis, can be seen
I think virtually everywhere. I know, Hulu, YouTube, Amazon, Where
can people It's on Hulu.
Speaker 10 (32:18):
And yeah, you can buy it on Amazon and Apple TV.
And yeah, I think there is a live screening June
fifteenth at the Astro Theater on Vine Street, promoted by
the Infinity Pride Festival. Tickets are on sale now.
Speaker 2 (32:39):
Yeah, where are tickets on sale? Google it all right,
just look it up, jump on the internet.
Speaker 3 (32:49):
June fifteenth.
Speaker 2 (32:50):
The world, according to Ali Willis, there'll be a special
screening at the Astro Theater and at.
Speaker 10 (32:55):
Seven pm, and there'll be a Q and A with
me in the director and Mark Mothers Though and Julie Brown.
Speaker 3 (33:03):
Oh that's great.
Speaker 10 (33:05):
In the Pridelive Hollywood dot Com.
Speaker 2 (33:08):
Okay, Pridelive Hollywood dot Com. And that sounds great. I
actually may go to that myself. Yeah, I forgot, you know,
and all of the creative people. It's so wild. Paul Rubins, Ali,
you you surround yourself with this just it's a it's
a murderer's row of incredible creativity. Congratulations on everything and
the films. Both of them are great, but I love
(33:29):
what you did with the world, according to Ali willis
brilliant movie. Well, thank you, good Prudence, Thank you for
spending some time with us. Appreciated Prudence Fenton. Yeah, the
films I recommend again, Crows. You've got to jump on these.
They're real winners.
Speaker 1 (33:44):
What's the trailer for the pe Wee Himself? Just last night,
so I'm definitely up for it. It's great. Just a
trailer alone's fantastic.
Speaker 2 (33:51):
You know, if John Coleblt and I both like it,
it's got to be right. I mean that covers a
lot of territory, so bookend opinions, right, Yeah, that's right,
So good stuff. It is the Tim Conway Junior Show,
Tim ailing Mark Thompson sitting in on KFI AM six forty.
We're live everywhere on the iHeartRadio app.
Popular Podcasts
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
The Joe Rogan Experience
The official podcast of comedian Joe Rogan.
True Crime Tonight
If you eat, sleep, and breathe true crime, TRUE CRIME TONIGHT is serving up your nightly fix. Five nights a week, KT STUDIOS & iHEART RADIO invite listeners to pull up a seat for an unfiltered look at the biggest cases making headlines, celebrity scandals, and the trials everyone is watching. With a mix of expert analysis, hot takes, and listener call-ins, TRUE CRIME TONIGHT goes beyond the headlines to uncover the twists, turns, and unanswered questions that keep us all obsessed—because, at TRUE CRIME TONIGHT, there’s a seat for everyone. Whether breaking down crime scene forensics, scrutinizing serial killers, or debating the most binge-worthy true crime docs, True Crime Tonight is the fresh, fast-paced, and slightly addictive home for true crime lovers.