Readers have been contacting me about a mystery they are trying to solve.
It seems no one can locate any evidence of the release of a new movie I wrote about in this column in March 2021, filmed locally in LaPorte and dedicated to the grisly murder details of Belle Gunness, the infamous Northwest Indiana farm murderer.
This feature film titled “The Farm,” detailing the rural LaPorte murders committed at the turn of the century by black widow Belle Gunness, as played in this movie production by one-time adult film star Traci Lords, originally had a “2021 release date.” Production delays were partially due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the film was wrapped, edited and released (at least according to filed production paperwork) a year ago in August 2023.
But the plot thickens.
Except for the movie poster, which I published an image of with my March 2021 column, not even a trailer for the film seems to exist, let alone any indications of a screening of it based on my own investigation. And I get frequent reader inquiries about it.
This recent query from this summer is typical of the cult interest in seeing the finished project.
“Hi there and thank you for any help. I am desperately trying to find a place to watch the movie ‘The Farm’ with Traci Lords as Belle Gunness, and I noticed you did an article on the filming of the movie and was wondering if you knew where I could either buy it or watch it online? I would sure appreciate it! Thank you again. Erika Messer”
While I haven’t given up on finding out about the fate of “The Farm,” I have a substitute diversion for readers and interested parties, which also gives more modern media treatment of Belle. While this is not the same production nor affiliated in any way with the feature film “The Farm,” at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 24, there will be a free screening of a full-length computer-animated, AI-generated graphics musical movie about Belle titled “Belle Gunness: A Murder Musical.”
The project details her childhood years in LaPorte and spans her later years with murderous moments of potential suitors. The screening is at Footlight Players Theatre, 1705 Franklin St. in Michigan City. This is an intimate space with only 80 seats, so I suggest calling to make a reservation at 219-874-4035 since this is a free event, to ensure there is seating capacity.
“Belle Gunness: A Murder Musical” is a work-in-progress by Sudden Productions, based in Northwest Indiana. According to the company website www.suddenproductions.com, this animated feature is based on the stage musical by Dan Schaaf titled “Belle!” which had workshops and developmental readings at Canterbury Theatre in Michigan City and Porchlight Theatre in Chicago.
Recent animations from Sudden Productions include “Pinocchio Unbound” and “The Last Days of Digger.” A trailer of the animated “Belle Gunness: A Murder Musical” was unveiled on YouTube in 2022 and remains at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jRKZBEE21N4.
Paging Gary author
My returning radio guest this week for my WJOB 1230 AM show “Of Notoriety” is the woman once billed as “half myth-buster, half crusader and all the way fed up” by The Washington Post, women’s advocate Tamara Winfrey-Harris.
Her best-selling book “The Sisters Are Alright” made her a favorite media guest interview in recent years and now she’s on tour with her third published book exploring race and gender, and the pressures on Black women and girls.
She will sign and discuss “A Black Woman’s Guide to Getting Free,” which was released July 9 last month by Berrett-Koehler Publishers, at 7 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 15, at Women & Children First, 5233 N Clark St. in Chicago. More details are available at TamaraWinfreyHarris.com.
The author, who grew up in Gary and now lives in Indianapolis, has included in her new book real-life stories and examples plucked from both popular culture and intimate Black woman-to-Black woman “truth-telling.”
Winfrey-Harris is the president of the Women’s Fund of Central Indiana, a special interest fund of the Central Indiana Community Foundation.
Philip Potempa is a journalist, published author and the director of marketing at Theatre at the Center. He can be reached at pmpotempa@comhs.org.
