On Screen

September 14 - 20, 2019 —3 The Greeneville Sun, Greeneville, TN The Greeneville Sun, Greeneville, TN September 14 - 20, 2019 — 3 2 x 3.5" ad a) greene cnty farmers b) swango's 2 x 4" ad williams electric 2 x 1.5" ad ymca 2 x 1.5" ad doughty stevens By George Dickie No matter how you feel about country music, one needn't be a fan to appreciate "Country Music." Indeed, Ken Burns' latest epic, premiering Sunday, Sept. 15, on PBS (check local listings), is an eight-part, 16-hour documentary that explores the history of the genre, from its roots in Appalachia in the 1920s and '30s through its evolution in the South, Southwest and Midwest in the mid- and late- 20th century to its decidedly more rock-and-roll-like sound of today. Along the way, the documentary tells the stories of the pioneers who helped shape the music, among them Jimmie Rodgers, Bill Monroe, Hank Williams, Patsy Cline, John - ny Cash, Merle Haggard, Charlie Pride, Loretta Lynn, Willie Nelson, Dolly Parton, Garth Brooks and the Carter family, whose songs tell the stories of the hardships and joys experienced by ordinary people. "It's three chords and the truth," says Burns, quoting legendary song - writer Harlan Howard. "It does not have the sophistication of classical or some forms of jazz but it has the truth. You can hear the lyrics and they're describing universal human things and we disguise it. We love to pretend that country music is about pick-up trucks and hound dogs and six-packs of beer and good ole' boys. ... No, that's a subgenre. What country music talks about are two four-letter words that most of us get uncomfortable talking about, and that's love and loss." The film does a good job of ex - plaining the structure of country, with jazz trumpeter Wynton Mar- salis pointing out that country has its roots in blues, folk and jazz. It also explains the origins of elements like the "blue yodel" and the yelps of "A-ha!," which became staples of early country music. Clips of early performances by Monroe and oth - ers bear that out. It also offers up a treasure trove of interviews, including with many of the above. Burns, who grew up working in a record store in his native Ann Arbor, Mich., knew about country but was not a fan. That changed after years of work on this project, which he called "daily humiliations of what I didn't know." As to what surprised him most, he says, "Everything." "The racial component," he says, "the extent to which the pantheon of the early days of country music is filled with African-American influ- ence, that the banjo is from Africa. That your strong women from the very beginning and well before any- body in rock and folk is picking up women's issues, they may not call themselves feminists or talk about women's liberation. "Loretta Lynn is singing, 'Don't Come Home A-Drinkin' With Lovin' on Your Mind' or 'The Pill,' " he continues. "And I wonder what black eye (the Jefferson Airplane's) Grace Slick would have gotten if she had been talking about that in her circle. ..." "And (Lynn) says, 'If you're talking about your life and you're telling the truth, it's going to be country.' " Celebrity Scoop Celebrity Scoop Ken Burns' 'Country Music' tells a tale of an art form born from love and loss Cover Story Cover Story By Jay Bobbin Satire has been a big part of Kirsten Dunst's career, and it's certainly continu- ing to be a large component of it now. For almost every "Spider-Man" or "Bring It On," the actress has had a "Drop Dead Gorgeous" or a "Fargo" that takes a particularly edgy view of society. Her penchant for off-center looks at life currently is demonstrat - ed by "On Becoming a God in Cen- tral Florida," which Showtime and (in Canada) Crave 1 are presenting Sundays. Also among its executive producers, Dunst stars as a vengeful early-1990s woman who slyly targets those behind a pyramid marketing scheme that has cost her dearly, and not only financially. "I like dark comedy," Dunst con - firms while seated in a garden setting at a hotel in Beverly Hills, Calif. "I think there are real characters in sat- ire. It's not fun playing the ingenue or that type of role. I like playing someone more real, and ever since I was young, that's come from play - ing satire. Checking in with Kirsten Dunst "This was something that I im- mediately thought was very unique," Dunst adds of her current show. "I hadn't seen anything like it, and I knew I would be getting to do a lot of weird things in it. For me, the weirder, the better." Though Dunst allows that her sec - ond-season role in FX's "Fargo" may have clued more people into her taste for such parts, she maintains, "I feel like I've always tried to do mov - ies and television that are outside the box a little bit. I just want to be a part of good, quality projects." Birthdate: April 30, 1982 Birthplace: Point Pleasant, N.J. Current residence: Los An- geles Marital status: Engaged to her "Fargo" co-star Jesse Plemons; they have a year- old son Other television credits in- clude: "Fargo," "Saturday Night Live," "The Devil's Arithmetic," "Fifteen and Pregnant," "Tower of Ter- ror," "The Outer Limits," "ER," "Touched by an An- gel," "The Siege at Ruby Ridge," "Star Trek: The Next Generation," "Sisters" Movie credits include: "Woodshock," "The Be- guiled," "Hidden Figures," "Midnight Special," "The Bling Ring," "On the Road," "Bachelorette," "Melan- cholia," "All Good Things," "How to Lose Friends and Alienate People," "Spider- Man 3," "Marie Antoinette," "Elizabethtown," "Wimble- don," "Spider-Man 2," "Eter- nal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind," "Mona Lisa Smile," "Spider-Man," "The Cat's Meow," "Crazy/Beautiful," "Get Over It," "Bring It On," "Dick," "The Virgin Suicides," "Drop Dead Gorgeous," "Small Soldiers," "Wag the Dog," "Jumanji," "Little Women," "Interview With the Vampire," "Greedy," "The Bonfire of the Vanities" 921 W. 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