Red Scorpion (1988) Movie Night (E34) (Patreon)

An action movie about a heavily muscled man discovering that communism is bad. But the movie’s production history connects Hollywood directly to the Reagan administration’s proxy wars, the apartheid government of South Africa, and the political career of the infamous Jack Abramoff. Your hosts are Julian Feeld and Jon Gabrus.

Go to patreon.com/superstructure to get a feed with double the episodes for just $5 a month.

Episode edited by Ty Wood. Theme song by Thiago França. Cover art by Ruben Gerard. Super Structure selection of the week is Dooyo by Dur-Dur Band.

Follow Super Structure on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/superstructurepodcast/

Superstructurepodcast.com

Bibliography

American Film Institute. “Red Scorpion (1989).” AFI Catalog of Feature Films.

“Red Scorpion (1988) Movie Script.” StockQ.

Verini, James. “The Tale of ‘Red Scorpion.’” Salon, August 17, 2005.

U.S. Department of State, Office of the Historian. “The Angola Crisis, 1974–1975.”

Reagan, Ronald. “Message to Congress on America’s Agenda for the Future.” Ronald Reagan Presidential Library, February 6, 1986.

Ronald Reagan Presidential Library. Declassified briefing materials on Southern Africa, Angola, UNITA, and Namibia. 1988.

Washington Office on Africa. “Film Being Made in Namibia with Cooperation of South African Military.” Information for Action on Southern Africa Issues, January 20, 1988.

Lister, Gwen. “Red Scorpion’s Pro-Savimbi Sting.” The Namibian, December 4, 1987.

Brooke, James. “South Africa Helps U.S. Film Makers in Namibia with Troops and Trucks.” The New York Times, January 9, 1988.

Ballenger, Josey. “The Height of Hypocrisy.” Mail & Guardian, March 23, 2001.

“First Off: Warner Bros. Drops ‘Red Scorpion.’” Los Angeles Times, January 20, 1988.