"I made a decision very early on to just let the Flyers tell the story."

Welcome Joe Amodei

We're joined on the Starline by a guy who's spent forty years deciding which movies get made and how they get sold and never once his own. That changes now. "Cold War in Philly: Flyers vs. Russia 1976" is his first film in the director's chair, and it's out now. We welcome Joe Amodei.

Joe, let’s go Beyond the Mic. Every one of these players is going to be gone within a generation or two, and this film is what's left. Is there a question you wish you'd asked one of them, that you didn't realize you'd missed until the interview was already over?

You've watched thousands of documentaries as a distributor. What's the cliché you were most afraid of accidentally making with this one and was there a moment in the final cut where you caught yourself doing it anyway?

What made this game so special for you?

The Rockin' 8:

"Cold War in Philly: Flyers vs. Russia 1976" is the film, director Joe Amodei joins us for the Rockin’ 8, 8 random questions, just trust your first instinct.

1. You've been distributing films since the VHS era. What's the one title you distributed that you still feel never got the love it deserved?

2. What was the first Flyers game you ever saw live?

3. How do you actually eat a Reese's cup: nibble around the edge, or one big bite?

4. You're a Turner Classic Movies fan. What's your actual favorite film that plays on TCM?

5. What's your real favorite Bruce Springsteen song?

6. Sunsets or sunrises?

7. Out of everything you've collected across forty years and dozens of films, is there one object that isn’t an award or family member you'd grab first if the house was on fire?

8. You lost a few of these players while you were still making this film. Was there a specific day when you got the call or text and do you remember exactly who had passed?

One Big Question:

You've spent forty years deciding which movies were worth someone else's time. Is there one thread connecting every film you've ever put your name behind and did making your own tell you what it is?

The Wrap:

He eats Reese’s cup in one big bite to his wife’s dismay and loves Chaplain’s “City Lights”. He wants you to check out "Cold War in Philly: Flyers vs. Russia 1976," in theaters now...

Joe Amodei, thanks for taking the time to talk with us today.

And that my friends is a Beyond the Mic Short Cut.