“The Birds” on the big screen September 19

Alfred Hitchcock’s 1963 classic, The Birds will hit the big screen for a one-night showing September 19, 2012, in theaters all across the country. Like the special screenings of Casablanca and Singing in the Rain, this one is sponsored by Turner Classic Movies. The screening will include an interview with star Tippi Hedren and special introduction featuring TCM host Robert Osborne. To find a screening near you, click here.

Tippi Hedren finds safety in a phone booth in one of the film’s
most famous scenes.

If there is a classic film that benefits from a big-screen showing, it’s The Birds. Based on a short story by Daphne Du Maurier with a screenplay by Evan Hunter, the movie is filled with iconic scenes and amazing—for the time—special effects.

The top-billed star is Rod Taylor who plays Mitch Brenner, a San Francisco lawyer who falls for socialite Melanie Daniels played by Hedren. Hedren, a model and single mother, was plucked from obscurity by Hitchcock to be his new leading lady. Groomed to be the next cool blond—Madeleine Carroll, Ingrid Bergman, Grace Kelly, and Eva Marie Saint preceded her—Hedren became an overnight sensation. She won the Golden Globe award for most promising newcomer, female, the year after the movie’s release. Also in the cast are Academy Award winner Jessica Tandy, then child star Veronica Cartwright, and Suzanne Pleshette. In smaller roles are character actor Richard Deacon (The Dick Van Dyke Show) and as one of the children at Cathy Brenner’s (Cartwright) birthday party is an unbilled Morgan Brittany who later went on to star in TV’s Dallas.

The Birds may not be one of Hitchcock’s greatest films, but it certainly is one of his most entertaining. A huge hit upon its initial release, the film offers up exquisite camera work by frequent Hitchcock cinematographer Robert Burks. The special effects were created Ub Iwerks, the genius behind the special effects at the Disney studio. One of the unusual aspects of the film is that is has no musical score. Instead, the sound of birds is heard throughout. Bernard Herrmann (Psycho), composer of many Hitchcock film scores acted as the films uncredited sound director.

Film Club coming to “Venue 1550” at the Daystar Center

A new film club is coming to “Venue 1550” at the Daystar Center, 1550 S. State St. Chicago. Hosted by Stephen Reginald, the film club will feature four classic films having connections with Chicago. Some like Henry Hathaway’s Call Northside 777 were shot entirely on location in the city, while others like Alfred Hitchcock’s North by Northwest, features several critical scenes in the windy city. Films will be screened at 7 p.m. on the second Thursdays of the month, starting September 13, 2012. Reginald will introduce each film giving background information before screenings, with Q & A afterwards. Reginald is a freelance writer/editor and popular instructor at Facets Film School in Chicago. He was also the original host of Meet Me at the Movies.

Chicago on film
Chicago and the movies go way back. Charlie Chaplin and Gloria Swanson, two movie icons from the silent era, started their film careers here. Both Chaplin and Swanson worked at Essanay Studios on West Argyle, now St. Augustine College. Essanay was a bustling place in the early days of the twentieth century. It was a glimpse of Hollywood before there was such a place. But the harsh Midwestern winters made year-round moviemaking in Chicago impractical. Film studios and their stars eventually moved west. The rest, as they say, is history. Even though Chicago’s movie-making glory days are long gone, the city has always been a favorite subject of filmmakers. Celebrate the movies and Chicago with special screenings of these classics:

September 13
Call Northside 777 (1948)—Directed by Henry Hathaway and starring James Stewart, this semi-documentary style film is based on a true story, filmed entirely on location in Chicago. Stewart plays P.J. McNeal, a reporter for the Chicago Times who attempts to find new evidence in an 11-year-old cop killer case. McNeal comes to believe that Frank Weicek, the convicted murderer, took the fall for someone else and was falsely imprisoned. The movie features beautiful black and white cinematography and great Chicago locations. See how the city has changed (and remained the same) since 1948.

October 11
North by Northwest (1959)—Directed by Alfred Hitchcock and starring Cary Grant, Eva Marie Saint, and James Mason, in one of the classiest espionage films of all time. Grant plays advertising executive Roger O. Thornhill (ROT) who is mistaken for an American agent and framed for murder. Saint plays the mistress of real spy Mason and is used as bait to catch Grant. Featuring some great Chicago locations, including the Ambassador East Hotel, the old LaSalle Street train station, and a glimpse of late-1950s Michigan Avenue. The success of this film led to Grant being offered the role of James Bond, which he turned down, thinking he was too old to play Ian Fleming’s famous agent 007.

Cary Grant, Rosalind Russell, and Ralph Bellamy in
His Girl Friday

November 8
His Girl Friday (1940)—Directed by Howard Hawks and starring Cary Grant and Rosalind Russell His Girl Friday is an adaptation of the Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur classic Broadway smash, The Front Page. Grant plays Walter Burns, a Chicago newspaper managing editor and Russell is Hildy Johnson an ex-reporter for the same paper and Burns’s ex-wife. On the eve of her marriage to a new man, Burns tries to convince Hildy to come back to the paper…and him. Considered one of the greatest classic screwball comedies of all time, His Girl Friday is filled with non-stop one liners and the fastest dialogue ever recorded on film!

Tony Curtis, Jack Lemon, and Marilyn Monroe
in Some Like It Hot

December 13
Some Like It Hot (1959)—Directed by Billy Wilder and starring Marilyn Monroe, Tony Curtis, and Jack Lemmon, this classic was voted funniest film of all time by the American Film Institute. Curtis and Lemmon play Chicago musicians who accidentally witness the Saint Valentine’s Day massacre of 1929. The men disguise themselves as women and travel south with Sweet Sue’s all-girl band in an attempt to avoid “Spats” Colombo and his gang who are determined to kill them. Monroe—the band’s vocalist—and the “girls” become bosom buddies along the way, which leads to some hilarious situations and some unusual conclusions.

Order Tickets in Advance
Movie admission is $7 per film or $20 for all four. To purchase tickets, click here.

“Venue 1550” is a unique space in the DayStar Center located at 1550 S. State St. “The Venue” hosts musical concerts, documentary films, lectures, and community meetings. For more information on utilizing this space for yourself or your organization, please call 312.674.0001.

Book Review: Hollywood Enigma: Dana Andrews

Hollywood Enigma: Dana Andrews by Carl Rollyson
The University Press of Mississippi, 2012

Dana Andrews was one of Hollywood’s biggest stars during the mid-1940s to early 1950s. A basically decent man, Andrews struggled with alcoholism for decades. His addiction affected his film career; other stars got roles that should have gone to him.

Carl Rollyson’s biography is comprehensive and fascinating. Rollyson obviously respects his subject, however, he is objective when it comes to some of the unattractive and disturbing incidents in Andrews’s life.

Andrews was born in Collins, Mississippi in 1904. His father, a Baptist minister, moved the family to Huntsville, Texas to accept a pastorate there. Somewhat rebellious, Andrews’s pursuit of an acting career was shunned by his strict parents. A talented singer, Andrews also studied opera. As soon as he was able, he moved to California to pursue his dream of acting success. He eventually became a regular performer at the famed Pasadena Playhouse where he met second wife, Mary Todd.

Andrews as Fred Derry in The Best Years of Our Lives,
perhaps his finest screen performance

Hollywood eventually came calling and Andrews was signed by legendary independent filmmaker Samuel Goldwyn in 1938. After some small and supporting roles in films like the Ox-Box Incident, Andrews hit pay dirt as Lieutenant Mark McPherson in Laura, playing opposite Gene Tierney. A critical and financial success, Dana Andrews was now a full-fledged movie star. Success, and all the trappings that came with it, was tough for Andrews to handle. His drinking started to get in the way of his career and personal life. Amazingly, for the years he was a major star, his drinking rarely affected his on-screen work.

Andrews worked with major directors like John Ford, Otto Preminger, Fritz Lang, William Wyler, and Lewis Milestone. If it weren’t for his drinking, Andrews may have starred in the classic films Gentlemen’s Agreement and Twelve O’Clock High, both going to Gregory Peck. He finally conquered his demons late in life and was able to enjoy acting on the stage with his wife. A family man at heart, Andrews loved his wife and family passionately, if not perfectly. Apart from learning a lot about Andrews the man and actor, the reader comes away with an understanding of what the life of a movie star was like under the studio system. As you might imagine, it wasn’t as glamorous as we were led to believe. Rollyson’s work is respectful and objective, painting a rich portrait of one of Hollywood’s most beloved  movie stars.

Hollywood Enigma: Dana Andrews is available at Amazon.com and bookstores everywhere.

Rollyson is a professor of journalism at Baruch College, CUNY. He is the author of more than thirty books, including the forthcoming American Isis: The Life and Death of Sylvia Plath and biographies of Marilyn Monroe, Lillian Hellman, Martha Gelhorn, Norman Mailer, Rebecca West, and Susan Sontag. He is the advisory editor of the Hollywood Legends Series.

Take a look at the Dana Andrews blogathon posts to learn more about the actor and his most famous movie roles by clicking here.

“Singing in the Rain” 60th Anniversary Screening August 22, 2012 one night only

Turner Classic Movies and Warner Brothers are presenting special screenings of the classic musical Singing in the Rain (1952) on August 22, 2012 at theaters around the country and here in Chicago. The film has been digitally restored promising to look as good as new. Before the movie screening, TCM will present a short documentary on the film that includes an interview with star Debbie Reynolds. In the documentary she talks about what is was like working alongside Gene Kelly and Donald O’Connor.

Produced by the legendary Arthur Freed at M-G-M when that studio was producing some of the best movie musicals every made, including Meet Me in St. Louis (1944) and An American in Paris (1951). For those who don’t know the plot, it takes place during the time movie studios were making the transition from silent to talking films. If you saw The Artist, 2012’s Academy Award winner for Best Picture, you will see some similarities between the two. You might say that Singing in the Rain inspired director Michel Hazanavicius, but that’s another post.

To find out where Singing in the Rain will be screened near you, click here.

 

Classic Films Stars Etched in Wood

Kantor includes mini biographies of his woodcut
subjects on his blog.

Artist and writer Loren Kantor creates woodcuts of classic Hollywood film stars. Kantor worked in the movie industry for 15 years and has written for TV and worked as an assistant director.

A few years ago, Kantor’s wife bought him a woodcutting set for his birthday. After viewing some online tutorials, Kantor started working in wood. It was slow going at first and he considers his early pieces fairly primitive compared with his work today.

Kantor’s favorite movie genre is Film Noir. Some of his favorite directors include Billy Wilder, John Houston, and Michael Curtiz. Kantor is currently working on a series of woodcuts that include carved images of Orson Welles, Billy Wilder, Robert Mitchum, and Richard Widmark.

For a comprehensive look at Kantor’s woodcuts, visit his blog.