Midwest Movie Maker

Actress Johanna McGinley Johanna McGinley always knew she wanted to be an actress. I remember being little and watching I Love Lucy ,’ thinking,’ I want to be like her!’,” she says. “I used to impersonate her for my mother and make other people laugh!” McGinley, who makes her home in Columbus, Ohio, stars as Annalivia Farrell in WGN America’s new drama, Outsiders . Outsiders premieres Tuesday, January 26. “I was hooked,” she continues. “When I graduated high school, I moved straight to New York City to study at the New York Conservatory of Dramatic Arts. I graduated the two-year film/TV acting program and came back home to test out the Midwest film industry. It was smaller and less intimidating.” McGinley’s film career started behind-the-camera, as she picked up production assistant and stand-in jobs to help pay the bills. “I realized this was the best way to network,” McGinely says, “I’ve created a network of contacts and people are starting to know me.”  McGinel ...

When I set out to write this story, I wondered what my lede would be. How could I hook you, gentle reader, into this story? How could I make you want to learn more about filmmaker Tom Megalis and his new film, Sonny Days: Youngstown Shakedown II ? Then I quickly realized I couldn’t top Megalis’ own story about how his film came to fruition. Here. Let’s let him tell it:  “One day I get a call from talent agent David Sedelmeier at the Talent Network in Pittsbugh,” Megalis begins.  “Sedelmeier says , ‘Some woman in Youngstown is looking for a comic filmmaker to make a film for her.’ To him, the whole thing sounded really weird and messed up and crazy.  “So naturally, that’s the kind of call I had to make.” Turns out, the story was all true. Pamela Kovach, a Youngstown-area doctor, wanted to honor her deceased husband, John Kovach, Jr., by making a sequel to his gangster film, Youngstown Shakedown .  Megalis and his partner, Jon Kasunic , headed t...