I'm probably one of the few people in the New York City area to have listened to the film reviews of Karel via his podcasts. After all, he is not a household name in this part of the country. Karel is openly gay and is based in Los Angeles, where his reviews are also heard on KNX News Radio1070, a CBS radio affiliate.
I stumbled on one of his podcasts while browsing the KNX website. (I used to listen to the station when I lived in Southern California in the '60s.)
I had a feeling that he was gay by his voice and his irreverent, campy reviews but I wasn't sure. Then on one of his podcasts he mentioned his late lover and how his death had affected him. That confirmed it. Each podcast contains reviews of five or six movies and are fun to listen to even though they can run about ten to fifteen minutes long.
Although he is on the west coast, the Internet breaks down that geographic barrier. He deserves to be better known across the country.
I think he does his reviews from home because in the background on some of the podcasts I can hear a dog barking or a plane flying overhead.
Karel reminds me voicewise of Rex Reed, one of my favorite movie reviewers. (I wish both of them would put out a CD of their reviews. They would be worth listening to over and over again.)
Finally, I like the humorous way Karel signs off his podcasts: "I won't be seeing you at the movies because it's dark in there."
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