A GOOD JOB: STORIES OF THE FDNY, A FILM BY LIZ GARBUS AND STEVE BUSCEMI, EXPLORES THE DEMANDING LIVES OF NEW YORK CITY FIREFIGHTERS WHEN IT DEBUTS TODAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2014 EXCLUSIVELY ON HBO Our Coverage Sponsored by Hallak Cleaners the Couture Cleaner
FEATURED IN IMAGE: Steve Buscemi
Photo Credit: Courtesy of HBO
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FEATURED IN IMAGE: Steve Buscemi
Photo Credit: Courtesy of HBO
We've said many times that no one does as many documentaries as well as HBO, and we'll say it again. Steve Buscemi does a most admirable job himself with A Good Job, and even better, it's an inside story-this is about Whom Steve Knows- know they fight fires! How does he know them? Steve was a fireman himself prior to being an actor (he took the test once of age at the order of his father!) and we love that Steve returned to the fire department after 9/11/01 despite his illustrious success as an actor. You will be delighted to learn in this documentary that Steve is the complete opposite of all of the antagonistic characters he has been cast in, and his heartfelt story and the similarly sincere tales of the New York Fire Department will enrapture you in the latest and greatest by HBO, debuting tonight. Be there!
Photo Credit: Courtesy of HBO
Dying is in no one's plan when a day starts, and the courage these firefighters exhibit is even more stunning when it's told from the inside. Standards in this world are as high as they are in the military, despite the banter and joking that may go on in the kitchen to keep spirits high. Push ups in full gear does not look like fun to us, and all of the physical demands including being able to even see and breathe in a fire is also not what the average person may surmise we learn through Steve and HBO, and you gain insight into their true humanity.
From the get-go in Probie School (school for firefighters), these people, women included, define all that we should know about their industry. A Good Job means an extremely tough fire. Do you know the difference between a truck and an engine? A truck has tools like ladders, and an engine has the water and the hose that hooks up to the hydrant.
Traumatic events become cumulative, and of course everyone knows what happened on 9/11 and the sacrifices the FDNY made that day. Days consisted of working at the WTC site and going to funerals. You may intellectually appreciate what firefighters do on a daily basis, but what Steve and HBO bring you is an appreciation of what they go through mentally and emotionally. These people are pretty tough and rarely open up, and we think you'd only hear these kinds of stories from someone that is an insider like Steve. We liked the hockey game analogy used by one person. Additionally, the footage is incredible and breathtaking.
FEATURED IN IMAGE: John Dillion
Photo Credit: Courtesy of HBO
Happy moments include practical jokes played (the stories are excellent), celebrations of all kinds and we'd like to hear more about their culinary endeavors.
Many of us have good memories of firefighters in our lives, and that will make you enjoy this even more. From seeing firefighters we know march in local parades to eating breakfast at the West Springfield Fire House at the Big E, Peachy certainly has enjoyed being around this atmosphere.
FEATURED IN IMAGE: Steve Buscemi, Steve Bennet, Pete Metzger, Paul Acciarito, Rocco Battista, Charlie Mcelhone and John Powers
Photo Credit: Courtesy of HBO
A GOOD JOB: STORIES OF THE FDNY is Highly Recommended by Whom You Know!
See it tonight on HBO.
Our hats off to Director Liz Garbus who also did great work on Marilyn Monroe.
Whom You Know also suggests seeing the piece that aired yesterday on CBS Sunday morning on Steve Buscemi. We love that show, and thank Missie Rennie for that great opportunity years ago because we learned a lot.
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“‘A good job’ means a really tough fire,” says retired firefighter Alfred Benjamin. Some call it terrifying or seductive, but as Rescue 5’s Joseph Esposito notes, “You should be scared…that’s what keeps you alive.”
Directed and produced by Liz Garbus (HBO’s Emmy®-nominated “Bobby Fischer Against the World”) and produced by actor Steve Buscemi (Emmy® nominee for HBO’s “Boardwalk Empire”), A GOOD JOB: STORIES OF THE FDNY explores life in one of the most demanding and innovative fire departments in the world. Featuring first-hand accounts of veteran firefighters and former FDNY member Buscemi, the film reveals what it feels like to fight, and know, fire in New York when it debuts MONDAY, SEPT. 8 (9:00-10:00 p.m. ET/PT), exclusively on HBO.
Other HBO playdates: Sept. 8 (1:40 a.m.), 10 (9:30 a.m., 5:30 p.m.), 14 (3:30 p.m.), 15 (1:30 p.m.), 20 (12:30 p.m.) and 25 (5:15 a.m.)
HBO2 playdates: Sept. 11 (8:00 p.m.), 22 (2:30 p.m., 11:50 p.m.), 24 (9:05 a.m.) and 27 (2:00 p.m.)
Spotlighting the immense mental and physical toll of firefighting, as well as the community borne out of sharing an incredible responsibility, A GOOD JOB goes inside the New York City Fire Department to illuminate the lives of heroes who put themselves at risk to serve the city. Through behind-the-scenes footage and interviews conducted by Buscemi, the film tells stories of the men and women of the FDNY while drawing on candid photos and rare video from the last five decades to revisit department milestones, including: the “War Years” of the ‘60s and ‘70s; the 1966 23rd Street fire, in which 12 firefighters died; the Happy Land Social Club fire of 1990 (87 victims); and 9/11 and its lasting impact on the FDNY.
Ultimately, A GOOD JOB is about camaraderie and the bonds formed around firehouse kitchen tables, the cumulative effect of trauma, both physical and mental, and the stories – the good, the bad and the exciting.
Director Liz Garbus is a two-time Oscar®-nominated director and producer whose previous HBO credits include “Love, Marilyn,” “There’s Something Wrong with Aunt Diane” and the Emmy®-nominated “Bobby Fischer Against the World.” She co-founded Moxie Firecracker Films in 1998 with fellow filmmaker Rory Kennedy.
Steve Buscemi worked as a firefighter at Engine Co. 55 in New York City from 1980 to 1984 before pursuing a career as an actor. In addition to starring in such movies as “Reservoir Dogs,” “Fargo,” “The Big Lebowski” and “Ghost World,” he has directed four feature films and numerous TV shows, including “The Sopranos,” receiving an Emmy® nomination for the episode entitled “Pine Barrens.” He later joined the cast of “The Sopranos,” and currently stars in the lead role of Nucky Thompson on the HBO series “Boardwalk Empire,” for which he won a Best Actor Golden Globe Award. Buscemi started the New York-based Olive Productions (which co-produced A GOOD JOB: STORIES OF THE FDNY) with Wren Arthur and actor-director Stanley Tucci, a longtime friend.
A GOOD JOB: STORIES OF THE FDNY is directed and produced by Liz Garbus; produced by Wren Arthur and Steve Buscemi; editor, Karen Sim; co-producer, Mridu Chandra; cinematographer, Maryse Alberti; original music by Philip Sheppard; line producer, Julie Gaither; associate producer, Adrienne Collatos. For Olive Productions: executive producer, Stanley Tucci. For HBO: supervising producer, Lisa Heller; executive producer, Sheila Nevins.
