McKay Interviews Minnelli for PBS Premiere of Liza with a 'Z

This month, Rick McKay and Midge Woolsey will co-host the PBS national pledge drive premiere of "Liza with a 'Z'." 

McKay's brand new interviews with Broadway legend Liza Minnelli, shown live from the studio, will be featured throughout the evening.  "Liza with a 'Z'" will air in NYC on WNET13 Sunday night, August 6th at 10:30 PM; in San Francisco, Oakland, San Jose on WQED9 on Tuesday, 8/8 at 7:30 PM and Saturday,  8/12 at 10 PM; and in Los Angeles on Saturday 8/12 at 9 PM.

"Broadway: The Golden Age" will also reprise in selected cities on PBS by popular demand.  It will air nationally in Milwaukee on 8/3 at 8:00 PM; West Palm Beach, Fort Pierce, FL on 8/5, 8/6 & 8/12; Fort Myers & Naples, FL on 8/6 & 8/7; Corpus Christi, TX on 8/6 and San Francisco on 8/13,17 & 19. Check local listings for many more cities – or call your local PBS to request.

McKay will also be a celebrity guest on Crystal Cruise's Serenity at the end of the "Broadway: Beyond The Golden Age" London shoots to sail from Dover to New York City on the Film/Theatre Cruise, August 31st to September 15th. Out-takes of BGA and sneak previews of the new film will be shown. 

Fully restored and digitally remastered, "Liza with a 'Z'" features Minnelli performing trademark numbers such as the title song as well as standards. "Liza with a Z" netted Emmy Awards for Minnelli (for Best Performance), Bob Fosse (Best Direction and Best Choreography), John Kander and Fred Ebb (Best Music, Lyrics and Special Material) and Outstanding Single Program--Variety and Popular Music. The concert, which was filmed live at the Lyceum Theatre, also won the coveted Peabody Award.  It aired on Showtime in April; it was the first TV airing since 1973.

One of PBS's biggest successes in pledge drive history, "Broadway: The Golden Age," starring 100 legends of Broadway and Hollywood, directed by McKay, was co-produced by Albert M. Tapper, Jamie DeRoy and Anne L. Bernstein. Associate producers are Jack Coco, Sandi Durell, Jane Klain and Richard Weigel. American Public Television is the television distributor.

"Broadway: The Golden Age" is the first installment of McKay's "Broadway Trilogy."  "Broadway: Beyond the Golden Age" and "Broadway: The Next Generation" are due in 2007 and 2008, respectively. The second installment stars Robert Redford, Liza Minnelli, Glenn Close, Dick Van Dyke, Diahann Carroll, Michael Crawford, Ben Vereen and many others. The final installment stars Alan Cumming, Liev Schreiber, Audra McDonald, Ann Reinking and others who will bring the story up to the present.

Visit www.broadwaythemovie.com for more information and more listings.

For more information on Crystal Cruise, visit this link.  To support the "Broadway: The Golden Age trilogy," visit this link.