Tom Huckabee

One of Tom Huckabee's early films, Death of a Rock Star,{{citation|url=https://www.fwweekly.com/2016/06/15/death-of-a-rock-star/3/|title=Death of a Rock Star - A Fort Worth Punk Rocker's Old Film Is Breaking On Through To the Other Side|publisher=Fort Wrth Weekly|date=15 June 2016|access-date=31 December 2024}} was loosely based on The Doors singer Jim Morrison.{{citation|url=https://www.kviff.com/en/programme/film/50/25259-death-ofarock-star|title=Death of a Rock Star - Made in Texas: Tribute to Austin Film Society 2018|publisher=Karlovy Vary International Film Festival|date=12 July 2018|access-date=1 January 2025}} The movie was well-received,{{citation|url=https://www.slackerwood.com/node/4581|title=SXSW Review: Jonathan Demme Presents Made in Texas|publisher=Slackerwood|date=19 March 2015|access-date=31 December 2024}}{{citation|url=https://filmmakermagazine.com/105624-you-have-to-forge-your-own-path-rick-linklater-headlines-an-austin-film-society-tribute-in-karlovy-vary/|title='You Have to Forge Your Own Path': Rick Linklater Headlines an Austin Film Society Tribute in Karlovy Vary|publisher=Filmmaker Magazine|date=12 July 2018|access-date=31 December 2024}} and featured a scene with Steve Bridgewater, an Austin police officer who would later become the same law enforcement that led the much-published "bust" of Huckabee's Huns band.{{citation |url=https://glasstire.com/2015/09/02/austins-punknew-wave-cinema-discovered-and-re-discovered/|title=Austin's Punk/New Wave Cinema, Discovered and Re-Discovered|publisher=Glasstire|date=2 September 2015|access-date=30 December 2024}}{{citation |url=https://www.concertarchives.org/bands/the-huns|title=The Huns Concert History|publisher=Concert Archives|date=|access-date=2 January 2025}}

As it goes, Tom Huckabee was founding member and drummer of the 1978 punk band, Huns. Huckabee referred to the work of the Huns as, "more anthropological than artistic."{{citation |url=https://www.austinchronicle.com/music/1995-07-28/533907/|title=Cash From Chaos - Reissue Issues|publisher=The Austin Chronicle|date=28 July 1995|access-date=30 December 2024}} When a September 1978 Huns show made news from inciting a major police raid at Austin's Raul's,{{citation|url=https://www.austinmonthly.com/the-kiss-that-sparked-a-riot/|title=The Kiss That Sparked a Riot - Raul's Nightclub Became a Battlefield After a Tender Moment Between a Punk Rocker and a Police Officer|publisher=Austin Monthly|date=1 March 2021|access-date=30 December 2024}}{{citation |url=https://www.austinchronicle.com/daily/sxsw/2015-03-15/the-kiss-that-ignited-austins-punk-scene/|title=The Kiss That Ignited Austin's Punk Scene|publisher=The Austin Chronicle|date=15 March 2015|access-date=30 December 2024}} Huckabee said of his band, "We sounded like the Sex Pistols, with Sid on every instrument."{{citation |url=https://michaelcorcoran.substack.com/p/huns-bust-put-austin-punk-scene-on|title=Huns Bust Put Austin Punk Scene On the Map In '78|publisher=Michael Corcoran's Overserved|date=29 January 2022|access-date=30 December 2024}}

Tom Huckabee co-created and provided percussion for the late 70s Austin punk band Re*Cords, aka Reversible Cords. Huckabee's band was a well-known contributor to the Texas punk scene, often to sellout crowds at the venerable Raul's Nightclub.{{cite web|url=http://www.bertcrews.com/RECords/rokyblurb.JPG|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160803120555/http://www.bertcrews.com/RECords/rokyblurb.JPG|title=Wired Cords|publisher=Daily Texan (1979)|archivedate=3 August 2016}} Described as "Avant-punk,"{{cite web|url=https://www.boo-hooray.com/pages/books/4665/sluggo/instant-reviews?soldItem=true|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20220625110125/https://www.boo-hooray.com/pages/books/4665/sluggo/instant-reviews?soldItem=true|title=Sluggo: Instant Reviews|publisher=Boo-Hooray|archivedate=25 June 2022}} "art rock," and "Cajun-punk,"{{cite web|url=http://www.bertcrews.com/RECords/SohoEPreview.JPG|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160803112340/http://www.bertcrews.com/RECords/SohoEPreview.JPG|title=Rocks Off (Ira Kaplan)|publisher=Soho Weekly News (New York City)|archivedate=3 August 2016}} the Re*Cords broke ground and focused on ironic social statements, gaining a reputation as, "one of the most important bands in Austin."{{cite web|url=http://www.bertcrews.com/RECords/louisblackdailytex.JPG|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160803112344/http://www.bertcrews.com/RECords/louisblackdailytex.JPG|title=Louis Black: Punks On the Drag|publisher=Daily Texan Events (1979)|archivedate=3 August 2016}} In 1979, the Re*Cords did a Raul's backup session with psychedelic rock pioneer Roky Erickson, most especially on the song "Creature With the Atom Brain." The dual collision was called, "...like the 13th Floor Elevators jamming with Devo."{{cite web|url=http://www.bertcrews.com/RECords/AusStatesRokyreview.JPG|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160803055214/http://www.bertcrews.com/RECords/AusStatesRokyreview.JPG|title=Riffs: Passenger Backs Up Cohen LP|publisher=Austin American Statesman (1979)|archivedate=3 August 2016}} The Austin fanzine Sluggo! reviewed the show as, "the most electric nite at Raul's ever."{{cite web|url=http://www.bertcrews.com/RECords/SluggoRokyreview.JPG|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160803053825/http://www.bertcrews.com/RECords/SluggoRokyreview.JPG|title=Roky/Re*Cords|publisher=Sluggo, Issue #70.9 (1979)|archivedate=3 August 2016}} In 1980, Huckabee was said to be the Re*Cords band member, "who makes a considerable virtue out of sheer unpredictability" with his cymbal solo "that's amazing for its utter incomprehensibility."{{cite web|url=http://www.bertcrews.com/RECords/DailyTexanLPreview.JPG|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160803115532/http://www.bertcrews.com/RECords/DailyTexanLPreview.JPG|title=Re*Cordsrecordrecord|publisher=The Daily Texan (1980)|archivedate=3 August 2016}}

A deep and nearly lifelong friendship with Bill Paxton pushed Tom Huckabee in many directions. Together Huckabee and Paxton made "Avant-garde/guerrilla" Super 8 films, starting 1973.{{citation |url=https://www.fwweekly.com/2020/05/20/toast-jam-with-tom-huckabee-2/|title=Toast & Jam With Tom Huckabee|publisher=Fort Worth Weekly|date=20 May 2020|access-date=30 December 2024}}

As Tom Huckabee and Bill Paxton collaborated on multiple levels, their first official and distributed 1983 film was Taking Tiger Mountain.{{citation |url=https://www.texasmonthly.com/arts-entertainment/bill-paxton-taking-tiger-mountain/|title=A Restored Cult Film Starring Bill Paxton Gets a Fort Worth Premiere This Week - The Obscure Indie 'Taking Tiger Mountain' Offers a Glimpse At the Late Hollywood Star As a Teenager|publisher=Texas Monthly|date=24 July 2019|access-date=30 December 2024}} In 1974 Kent Smith began as the original director. Huckabee came into the project later, first seeing Smith's footage in 1975. In 1979 Huckabee transformed the movie into a different telling of the tale,{{citation |url=https://www.dmagazine.com/arts-entertainment/2019/07/how-tom-huckabees-40-year-obsession-emerged-as-a-tribute-to-bill-paxton/|title=How Tom Huckabee's 40-Year Obsession Emerged As a Tribute to Bill Paxton|publisher=D Magazine|date=25 June 2019|access-date=30 December 2024}} with a direction change{{citation|url=https://www.theverge.com/2017/10/4/16416082/blade-runner-name-backstory-ridley-scott-william-burroughs-alan-nourse|title=How Blade Runner Got Its Name From a Dystopian Book About Health Care|publisher=The Verge|date=1 November 2019|access-date=30 December 2024}} and reflections of William S. Burroughs.{{citation|url=https://www.austinchronicle.com/screens/2019-08-09/bill-paxtons-lost-film-ties-together-ut-bob-fosse-and-william-s-burroughs/|title=Bill Paxton's Lost Film Ties Together UT, Bob Fosse, and William S. Burroughs|publisher=Austin Chronicle|date=9 August 2019|access-date=30 December 2024}}{{citation|url=https://www.polygon.com/2019/8/6/20756271/taking-tiger-mountain-movie-bill-paxton-first-movie|title=The Late Bill Paxton's First Movie Finally Sees the Light of Day — But Not As Intended (Inside the Strange Journey of Taking Tiger Mountain)|publisher=Polygon|date=6 August 2019|access-date=30 December 2024}} After the film's San Francisco premiere in March 1983, perhaps the first serious review of the film came from Judy Stone of San Francisco Chronicle, who said Smith and Huckabee were, "remarkably successful in evoking an ominous vision of the future."{{cite web|url=https://www.spectacletheater.com/taking-tiger-mountain-with-director-tom-hucka|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20130527065630/https://www.spectacletheater.com/taking-tiger-mountain-with-director-tom-hucka|title=TAKING TIGER MOUNTAIN With Director Tom Huckabee|publisher=Spectacle|archivedate=27 May 2013}} In a 2012 interview, Huckabee was asked about the 1983 premiere, and if the original co-director Kent Smith was happy with the outcome: "I don’t know if he was ever totally happy with the film. None of us were, really. It was a true experimental film. And a lot of things were done kind of ass-backwards."{{citation|url=https://www.screenslate.com/articles/taking-tiger-mountain-interview-tom-huckabee|title=Taking on Tiger Mountain: An Interview With Tom Huckabee|publisher=Screen Slate|date=21 March 2012|access-date=31 December 2024}}

Tom Huckabee later shot and edited a 1980s documentary regarding psychedelics, starring James Cameron.{{citation|url=https://faroutmagazine.co.uk/james-cameron-almost-died-on-an-acid-trip/|title=The Time James Cameron Almost Died On an Acid Trip|publisher=Far Out Magazine|date=25 June 2023|access-date=31 December 2024}} In the footage, never officially released, Cameron talks extensively under Huckabee's direction about his many positive and risky experiences with psilocybin and LSD, among other deeply cerebral substances.{{citation|url=https://canamo.net/noticias/mundo/james-cameron-conto-sus-experiencias-mas-locas-con-psicodelicos-en-esta-entrevista|title=James Cameron Contó sus Experiencias más Locas con Psicodélicos en Esta Entrevista de los 80|publisher=Cáñamo (Spanish)|date=4 July 2023|access-date=30 December 2024}}

Also for director James Cameron, Tom Huckabee and Bill Paxton co-wrote a script called Lonesome Cowgirls: Amazon Women of the West. Jim adapted and modified the script into an all-star 1988 music video known as Martini Ranch, the namesake of Paxton's former band Martini Ranch. The music video, also called "Reach," was shot in Veluzat Motion Picture Ranch{{citation|url=https://rs.locationshub.com/Home/LocationDetail?rsLocationId=050-10044350|title=Andre & Renaud Veluzat Motion Picture Ranch|publisher=Location Hub|date=|access-date=31 December 2024}} and starred Kathryn Bigelow, Bill Paxton, Lance Henriksen, Paul Reiser, and Bud Cort, with others.{{citation|url=https://collider.com/see-kathyrn-bigelow-hunt-bill-paxton-in-a-james-cameron-music-video-yes-really/|title=See Kathyrn Bigelow Hunt Bill Paxton In a James Cameron Music Video - Yes, Really|publisher=Collider|date=5 February 2010|access-date=30 December 2024}}{{citation|url=https://screenanarchy.com/2023/01/sound-and-vision-james-cameron.html|title=Sound and Vision: James Cameron|publisher=Screen Anarchy|date=30 January 2023|access-date=30 December 2024}}

In 1997, Tom Huckabe was associate producer and music supervisor on Bill Paxton's Traveller.{{citation|url=https://www.austinchronicle.com/music/1997-05-23/528240/|title=Do Not (Po)Go Gently Into the Night, Punk Rock(ers) - Not Burning Out, Not Fading Away|publisher=Austin Chronicle|date=23 May 1997|access-date=30 December 2024}} With help from Paxton in later years,{{citation|url=https://www.panthercity.social/blog/how-to-get-started-in-the-industry|title=The Lone Star Film Festival's Q&A Recap: How To Get Started in the Industry|publisher=Panther City Social|date=4 November 2023|access-date=31 December 2024}} Tom Huckabee became inaugural founder and artistic director of The Lone Star Film Festival in 2007.{{citation |url=https://filmsgonewild.com/films-gone-wild-the-loss-of-bill-paxton-the-people-person-surpasses-the-loss-of-the-talented-actor-and-filmmaker-and-that-says-a-lot/|title=The Loss of Bill Paxton, the People Person Surpasses the Loss of the Talented Actor and Filmmaker – and That Says a Lot|publisher=Film Gone Wild|date=1 March 2017|access-date=30 December 2024}} Huckabee was remembered for his festival works with a major tribute in Dallas Film & Creative Industries' 2022 event.{{citation |url=https://oakcliff.advocatemag.com/2022/03/see-the-best-films-from-the-best-dallas-festivals-on-one-night-in-oak-cliff/|title=See the Best Films from the Best Dallas Festivals On One Night In Oak Cliff|publisher=Advocate (Oak Cliff)|date=17 March 2022|access-date=30 December 2024}}

In 2001, Tom Huckabee produced and directed a major live event, "Arthur C. Clarke: Beyond 2001".{{cite web|url=https://wift-houston.org/Member-Spotlight-LARRY-McKEE|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20180831111232/https://wift-houston.org/Member-Spotlight-LARRY-McKEE|title=Workshop With Tom Huckabee - May 2016|publisher=Women In Film/TV (US)|archivedate=31 August 2018}} Held at the Playboy Mansion, the "gala" featured James Cameron, Patrick Stewart, Morgan Freeman, and Buzz Aldrin. Huckabee spent many hours communicating with Clarke, often between Los Angeles and Sri Lanka, over lighting and design ideas. As of 2024 the event's program still appears on collector and auction sites.{{cite web|url=https://www.ebay.com/itm/374785627557|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20241231154110/https://www.ebay.com/itm/374785627557|title=Beyond 2001 - Arthur C. Clarke Gala|publisher=eBay|archivedate=31 December 2024}}

Tom Huckabee was involved with Bill Paxton's 2001 directorial debut movie Frailty, starring Bill and Matthew McConaughey. Huckabee was credited as Executive Producer. However, in a lengthy 2019 interview Huckabee states, "...my contribution was mostly as a catalyst. I'm credited as executive producer, which may make people think I had something to do with financing, which I didn't. Besides 'finding' the property and foisting it on Bill, I may have made small contributions to the script in the final stages of development, but I wouldn’t want to take anything away from the sole author, Brent Hanley, nor chief producers Paxton, David Kirschner, and Corey Sienega..."{{citation |url=https://farsightedblog.com/2019/02/12/tom-huckabee-talks-bill-paxton-and-taking-tiger-mountain-revisited/|title=Tom Huckabee Talks Bill Paxton and Taking Tiger Mountain: Revisited|work=The Farsighted |date=12 February 2019|access-date=1 January 2025}}

In 2009, Tom Huckabee wrote and directed the feature film Carried Away.{{citation|url=https://www.fwweekly.com/2009/10/28/through-a-lens-gladly/|title=Through a Lens, Gladly|publisher=Fort Worth Weekly|date=28 October 2009|access-date=30 December 2024}}{{citation|url=https://www.dallasobserver.com/news/road-trip-on-the-set-of-local-filmmaker-tom-huckabees-carried-away-7108518|title=Road Trip: On the Set of Local Filmmaker Tom Huckabee's Carried Away|publisher=Dallas Observer|date=2 March 2009|access-date=1 January 2025}} The movie premiered 9 April 2010,{{citation|url=https://www.fwweekly.com/2010/04/12/tom-huckabee-gets-red-carpet-treatment/|title=Tom Huckabee Gets Red Carpet Treatment|publisher=Fort Worth Weekly|date=12 April 2010|access-date=1 January 2025}} and was produced by James Johnston,{{citation |url=https://fwtx.com/culture/first-class-citizens/|title=Launching a Full-Time Art House Theater In Fort Worth Might Be a Little Risky. After All, There Hasn't Been a Free-Standing One In the City In More Than Two Decades|publisher=Fort Worth|date=14 September 2014|access-date=30 December 2024}} starring Juli Erickson, Gabriel Horn (who also co-produced),{{citation|url=https://archive.org/details/ASG-Gabriel-Horn-Free-Your-Mind-Washington-Square-NYC|title=Gabriel Horn's "Free Your Mind"|publisher=Internet Archive|date=11 August 2024|access-date=30 December 2024}} Morgana Shaw,{{citation|url=https://www.fwweekly.com/2011/01/12/stage-west-hosts-this-morgana-shaw/|title=Stage West Hosts This Morgana Shaw|publisher=Fort Worth Weekly|date=12 January 2011|access-date=30 December 2024}} and others. Tom Huckabee said of his Carried Away, "It's semi-autobiographical...a lot of the family dysfunction stuff is pretty accurate."{{citation|url=https://acedmagazine.com/director-tom-huckabee/|title=Director Tom Huckabee On His New Film Carried Away|publisher=ACED Magazine|date=23 December 2020|access-date=1 January 2025}} An early review of Carried Away stated, "...the film asks serious questions about Alzheimer’s and dementia."{{citation|url=https://www.lubbockonline.com/story/entertainment/local/2010/10/14/huckabee-praised-carried-away-ready-make-lost-time/15259150007/|title=Huckabee Praised for 'Carried Away' - Ready To Make Up for Lost Time|publisher=Lubbock Avalanche-Journal|date=13 October 2010|access-date=1 January 2025}}

Tom Huckabee personally secured talent for two of the five March 2017 experimental theatrical performances of Fort Worth's "White Rabbit Red Rabbit". Huckabee was Consulting Producer for Amphibian Stage Productions (part of National New Play Network), who mounted the play.{{citation|url=https://www.keranews.org/texas-news/2017-03-22/top-stories-going-down-the-rabbit-hole-in-fort-worth-a-conversation-about-refugees|title=Top Stories: Going Down The Rabbit Hole In Fort Worth - A Conversation About Refugees|publisher=KERA News (NPR)|date=22 March 2017|access-date=31 December 2024}} The well-reviewed event featured actors Xander Berkeley and his wife Sarah Clarke,{{citation|url=https://www.fwweekly.com/2017/09/20/culture-4/|title=Culture: Critic's Choice|publisher=Fort Worth Weekly|date=20 September 2017|access-date=31 December 2024}} both connected to Huckabee through professional association.{{citation|url=https://www.fwweekly.com/2017/03/15/down-the-rabbit-hole|title=Down The Rabbit Hole: Actors From Twilight and The Walking Dead Come To Fort Worth To Star In Amphibian Stage Productions' Latest Experimental Play|publisher=Fort Worth Weekly|date=15 March 2017|access-date=31 December 2024}}

While living a large portion of his life in the Hollywood Hills, Tom Huckabee was native to Fort Worth, Texas.{{citation |url=https://hauteliving.com/2010/04/the-lowdown-on-writerdirector-tom-huckabees-fave-local-spots/43879/|title=The Lowdown on Writer/Director Tom Huckabee's Fave Local Spots|publisher=Haute Living|date=29 April 2010|access-date=30 December 2024}}

Tom Huckabee married prolific Hollywood casting director Barbara Cohen on 8 October 1983. They were married until 27 May 2006, when Cohen died from breast cancer in their Hollywood Hills home.{{citation |url=https://variety.com/2006/scene/markets-festivals/barbara-cohen-2-1200337801/|title=Barbara Cohen - Casting Director|publisher=Variety|date=13 June 2006|access-date=30 December 2024}}

Tom Huckabee died 28 January 2022, from pancreatic cancer.{{citation |url=https://www.dallasobserver.com/arts/bill-paxton-collaborator-tom-huckabee-forever-changed-fort-worth-≤film-13347467|title=Bill Paxton Collaborator Tom Huckabee Forever Changed Fort Worth Film: Friends and Family Remember Fort Worth Film Community Pioneer Tom Huckabee|publisher=Dallas Observer|date=8 February 2022|access-date=30 December 2024}} Huckabee was considered "a mainstay of Fort Worth's film scene".{{citation |url=https://www.fwweekly.com/2022/02/16/r-i-p-tom-huckabee/|title=RIP Tom Huckabee, a Mainstay of Fort Worth's Film Scene Leaves the Picture|publisher=Fort Worth Weeklyr|date=16 February 2022|access-date=30 December 2024}}

{{Reflist}}

• [https://www.lonestarfilmfestival.com/ Lone Star Film Festival]
• {{YouTube|id=BC63BPsx-1s|title=Psychoactive Footage With James Cameron, by Tom Huckabee}}
• {{YouTube|id=rkz0Lx6VyxA|title=Martini Ranch "Reach" by James Cameron}}

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Category:1955 births

Category:2022 deaths

Category:Artists from Fort Worth, Texas

Category:Filmmakers from Texas