Get ready for Noir City Chicago 2025

Noir City Chicago 2025 is a week-long film festival dedicated to celebrating classic film noir and neo-noir. The event will be held at Chicago's Music Box Theatre, 3733 N. Southport Ave., from September 5 to 11. Presented by the Film Noir Foundation, the festival is a must-see for fans of hardboiled crime stories, high heels and fedoras, and shadowy cinematography. The lineup for the festival is curated to include both renowned classics and obscure rarities, often presented in double-bills, and will feature screenings of 35mm prints alongside digital restorations.

Joan Bennett and Edward G. Robinson in The Woman in the Window

The 2025 program promises an eclectic mix of films, including classics like Stanley Kubrick's The Killing and Fritz Lang's Scarlet Street, as well as a selection of neo-noirs such as The Grifters and The Hot Spot. The festival will be hosted by Eddie Muller, the founder of the Film Noir Foundation and host of TCM's "Noir Alley," for the opening weekend. Following that, screenings will be presented by Film Noir Foundation board member Alan K. Rode. This year's event highlights the lasting legacy and influence of film noir, providing audiences with a chance to experience these gripping tales of desperation, greed, and betrayal on the big screen.

Click HERE for the full schedule.

James Stewart decides to “Call Northside 777”

Call Northside 777 (1948) is a docudrama directed by Henry Hathaway and starring James Stewart, Richard Conte, Lee J. Cobb, and Helen Walker. The film is based on articles in the Chicago Daily Times.

P.J. McNeal (Stewart), a reporter the Chicago Times reluctantly takes the case of a man convicted of murdering a policeman in 1932 Chicago. Frank Wiecek (Conte) was sentenced to 99 years in prison. 

Wiecek’s mother (Kasia Orzazewski) puts an ad in the newspaper offering a $5,000 reward for anyone who finds the true killers of the police officer since she is convinced her son is innocent. McNeal’s reluctance begins to shift when he thinks Wiecek may be innocent.

Henry Hathaway (1898 – 1985) was an American film director and producer. Hathaway started working in silent films in 1925 as an assistant to established directors like Victor Fleming and Josef von Sternberg. His first solo directorial effort was Heritage of the Desert (1932) starring Randolph Scott. Hathaway, along with Scott, would be known for western movies. Besides Scott, Hathaway directed Gary Cooper in several films, including The Lives of a Bengal Lancer (1935) which earned him his only Best Director Academy Award nomination. In 1940, Hathaway began working at Fox where he directed Tyrone Power in Johnny Apollo and Brigham Young (both 1940), Gene Tierney in China Girl (1942), Don Ameche and Dana Andrews in Wing and a Prayer (1944), and Call Northside 777 (1948) starring James Stewart and Richard Conte. After leaving Fox, he was one of three directors who worked on the western epic How the West Was Won (1962). He directed Steve McQueen in Nevada Smith (1966), directed John Wayne in True Grit (1968) which won Wayne his one and only Best Actor Academy Award.

James Stewart (1908 - 1997) was an American actor whose career spanned almost five decades and 80 films. Stewart often portrayed the ideal of the average American who was decent and honest. Stewart signed a seven-year contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer where he appeared in a variety of supporting roles in B and A pictures. It wasn’t until he was loaned out to Columbia Pictures to costar in Frank Capra’s You Can’t Take It With You (1938) that his home studio began to take notice. Still, his best roles were on loan to other studios including Mr. Smith Goes to Washinton (1939) at Columbia again and Destry Rides Again (1939) at Universal. M-G-M eventually cast him in The Philadelphia Story (1940) where he won the Academy Award for Best Actor which cemented his reputation as a leading man and star. From there he went on to make The Shop Around the Corner (1940) and The Mortal Storm (1940). After serving in the United States Army from 1941 - 1945, Stewart returned to Hollywood where he continued as a popular leading man. During the 1950s, Steward made two films with director Alfred Hitchcock which are considered two of the director’s best films: Rear Window (1954) and Vertigo (1958). Vertigo was voted the greatest film ever made by Sight & Sound in 2012.

Richard Conte (1910 – 1975) was an American actor who came to prominence in the late 1940s under contract to 20th Century-Fox. He co-starred with James Stewart in Call Northside 777 (1948) and had the lead role in Thieve’s Highway (1949) directed by Jules Dassin (Night and the City 1950), and played Gene Tierney’s husband in Otto Preminger’s Whirlpool (1949). Conte worked constantly and had major roles in Ocean’s 11 (1960) and The Godfather (1972).

Call Northside 777 trivia:

• Leonarde Keeler, the man who administers the polygraph test was the inventor of the lie detector machine, played himself.
• This was the first movie to be filmed entirely on location in Chicago.
• Several Chicago landmarks including the Merchandise Mart, Holy Trinity Polish Mission, and the Wrigley Building are seen throughout the movie.
• The Chicago Daily Times merged with the Chicago Sun and became known as the Chicago Sun-Times.
• The beer that Stewart’s character drinks, Nectar Premium Beer of Chicago is no longer in business.
• Henry Fonda was initially announced as the lead.

 

To watch the film on YouTube, click the link below.

Why watch this movie?

• It’s an early example of the docudrama film style that became popular in the late-1940s.
• It’s a time capsule of the Chicago of 1948.
• James Stewart was rebuilding his career after his service in World War II and this was his first box office success. 
• To hear, but not see the voice of Thelma Ritter who had her on-screen performance cut from the film.
• The film features one of the best early roles for Richard Conte who had been under contract to 20the Century-Fox since 1943.

To join the discussion on Monday, September 27, 2021, at 6:30 p.m. Central Time, click here. Once you RSVP, you will receive an invitation with a link to the discussion on Zoom.

Discussion questions:

1. Did you enjoy the documentary film style?
2. What did you think of the performances of the leads?
3. Did any of the supporting characters stand out to you?
4. Were you impressed by the early technology utilized to crack the case?
5. Did the fact that this film was based on a true story impact you in any way?

Frank Sinatra is “The Man with the Golden Arm”

The Man with the Golden Arm (1955) is an American film drama directed by Otto Preminger and starring Frank Sinatra, Eleanor Parker, and Kim Novak. It is based on the novel of the same name by Nelson Algren, although not a completely faithful adaptation. The movie features a jazz-inspired film score composed, arranged, and conducted by Elmer Bernstein.

The movie centers around Frankie Machine (Sinatra), a former card dealer, recently released from a drug rehab center who tries to start his life over as a musician specializing in the drums. When he returns to his old dilapidated neighborhood on the North Side of Chicago, all the old demons start to pull at him including his clinging wife Zosh (Parker) who may or may not be an invalid, Zero Schwiefka (Robert Strauss) his former boss running illegal card games, and “Nifty Louie” Fomorowski (Darren McGavin) his former drug-dealer who is trying to hook him on drugs once again.

To complicate Frankie’s life further, he runs into an old flame, Molly Novotny (Novak). Molly and Frankie have strong feelings for one another but Frankie feels obligated to take care of Zosh.

Will Frankie break free from all the things dragging him back to his old life of drugs and desperation or is he doomed to a life of addiction and hopelessness?

Otto Preminger (1905 -1986) was an American film director who made more than 35 feature films during a five-decade career. Born in Austro-Hungarian into a Jewish family. Preminger was drawn to acting from an early age and became the apprentice of famed stage director Max Reinhardt. In 1935, he was recruited by Twentieth Century-Fox to apprentice as a director at the studio. After a rocky start, Preminger established himself as an A-list director after Rouben Mamoulian was fired from Laura (1944). The film noir classic made stars of Gene Tierney and Dana Andrews and is considered one of the best film noirs of all time. While under contract to Fox, Preminger directed Fallen Angel (1945), Centennial Summer (1946), Forever Amber (1947), and Daisy Kenyon (1947), the latter starring Joan Crawford, Dana Andrews, and Henry Fonda. After he left Fox, Preminger became a maverick, constantly clashing with members of the Production Code. He released two films without the approval of the Production Code: The Moon is Blue (1953) and The Man with the Golden Arm (1955). Both films were financial successes and helped bring an end to the Code entirely. Later successes for Preminger include Anatomy of a Murder (1959) and Exodus (1960).

Frank Sinatra (1915 - 1998) was an American singer and actor. He is considered one of the greatest musical talents of the 20th century. Sinatra began his career singing with the big bandleaders of the swing era before his film career. He had his first leading film role in Higher and Higher and Step Lively (both 1944) at RKO. In 1945, he starred opposite Gene Kelly and Kathryn Grayson in Anchors Aweigh. The movie was a major hit and Sinatra co-starred again with Kelly in Take Me Out to the Ball Game and On the Town ( both 1949). His movie career slumped in the early 1950s and it looked like his career was over. In 1953, Sinatra won the role of Maggio in From Here to Eternity co-starring Burt Lancaster, Montgomery Clift, Deborah Kerr, and Donna Reed. He won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor and his movie career was back on track. More hit films followed including Guys and Dolls, The Tender Trap, and Not as a Stranger (all 1955). Perhaps his most famous film that year was The Man with the Golden Arm. For his performance in that film, he received an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor. Sinatra’s film and recording career continued into the 1980s. Other notable films include High Society (1956), The Manchurian Candidate (1962), Come Blow Your Horn (1963), The Detective (1968), and The First Deadly Sin (1980).

Frank Sinatra and Darren McGavin

Eleanor Parker (1922 - 2013) was an American actress in film and a three-time Best Actress Academy Award nominee. She signed a long-term contract with Warner Bros. in 1941. For the next few years she played minor roles in some important films, but her first big role came in Between Two Worlds (1944) opposite John Garfield and Paul Henreid. She was again cast alongside Garfield in Pride of the Marines (1945) and that film made her a star. Some of the films she made after that were not as successful and Parker was more careful choosing film roles, often refusing parts and being put on suspension. Warners cast her (after much lobbying from Parker) in Caged (1950), a film about a woman’s prison. The film was a hit and her performance earned Parker her first Best Actress Academy Award nomination. For her performance, she won the Volpi Cup for Best Actress at the Venice Film Festival. After leaving Warners, Parker freelanced for a while with limited success. In 1953, she signed a long-term contract with M-G-M. At her new studio, she co-starred with Clark Gable, Robert Taylor (they made three films together), and Glenn Ford. One of her most celebrated roles was as opera singer Marjorie Lawrence in Interrupted Melody (1955) which earned her third Oscar nomination. In the mid-50s, Parker was one of the most popular female stars in the movies. With all her accomplishments during her prime, she will most likely be remembered for her role as Baroness Elsa Schraeder in The Sound of Music (1965), one of the most popular and successful films of all time.

Kim Novak (1933 - ) is an American film and television actress. She retired in 1991. Novak was one of the last “studio-created” stars during a time when the studio system was in decline. Born Marilyn Pauline Novak in Chicago, her name was changed to Kim after she signed a long-term contract with Columbia Pictures in 1954. By the next year, Novak was a major star working opposite the likes of Frank Sinatra and William Holden. Some of her major films include Picnic (1955), The Man with the Golden Arm (1955), The Eddy Duchin Story (1956), Pal Joey (1957), Bell, Book and Candle (1958). Perhaps her most celebrated film is her dual role in Vertigo (1958) co-starring James Stewart and directed by Alfred Hitchcock. In 2012, the British Film Institute’s Sight & Sound critic’s poll voted Vertigo as the best film of all time. After retiring from film, Novak has devoted herself to painting and has exhibited her work publicly.

The Man with the Golden Arm trivia

• Marlon Brando was offered the role of Frankie Machine.
• The movie poster is considered one of the best of all time; it was voted #14 out of 25 by Premiere.
• Otto Preminger paid Columbia Pictures $100,000 to borrow Kim Novak who was only paid $1,000 a week.
• The entire movie was filmed on a soundstage with a few shots on the RKO backlot.
• Some cross-promotion from the director, the poster for his film Carmen Jones (1954) is featured on a building during the opening scene.

To watch the film on YouTube, click the link below.

Why watch this film?

• It was the first movie to discuss drug addiction.
• The depiction of this subject matter and the film’s release without a Production Code seal contributed to the demise of the Code.
• This was an important film that Frank Sinatra was desperate to do.
• It features Kim Novak in one of her early film roles.
• The first film co-starring Sinatra and Eleanor Parker. They later starred together in Frank Capra’s A Hole in the Head (1959), a much lighter film.
• The film is an early example of director Otto Preminger working without the backing of a studio.

To join the discussion on July 19, 2021, at 6:30 p.m., click here. Once you RSVP, you’ll receive an invitation and link to the discussion on Zoom.

Discussion questions:

1. Noir or not?
2. What did you think of Sinatra’s performance?
3. Does the film hold up in 2021?
4. Eleanor Parker and Kim Novak played the two female leads. Did you find them convincing in their roles?
5. Did anything in the film surprise you?
6. The film is set in Chicago. Did the film’s setting evoke the city? Did it matter?

“American Street Kid” debuts in Chicago December 11

In American Street Kid, filmmaker Michael Leoni takes you on a journey into a world that most people don’t know exists. A world where in order to survive, kids are forced to sell drugs, beg for money or sell their bodies. Their powerful stories are heartbreaking and their unrelenting hope and determination to create a better life shines through, in this true tale of love, friendship, and the triumph of the human spirit.

For more information, visit www.americanstreetkid.com.

2018 Turner Classic Film Festival (#TCMFF) Day 1

It’s hard to believe that the 2018 TCM Film Festival is over. My anticipation builds as soon as the weather turns chilly here in Chicago. Dreaming about the film festival and warm days and nights in Los Angeles helps me get through the winter. Plus it’s great reconnecting with friends from all over the country and the world.

This year’s festival began for me on Thursday, April 26. Flying out of Chicago’s Midway airport in the morning and arriving in LA four hours later…in the morning! After leaving the airport and heading for the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel where fellow classic movie fans gather in the Blossom Room—the room where the very first Academy Awards ceremony was held in 1929—to hang out and chat, celebrity watch, and watch everyone arrive. After the couple of hours of meeting and greeting, it’s check in time at the Air B & B; this year barely a block away from the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel. Score!

After checking in, it’s back to the Hollywood Roosevelt for the hardest movie trivia game ever, “So You Think You Know Movies,” hosted by Bruce Goldstein, repertory program director of New York’s Film Forum. I think my knowledge of classic movies is pretty good, but every year, this event just crushes me. We assembled a good team, but we came up extremely short.

As usual I opted for the Classic Pass, which doesn’t include the red carpet presentation movie (this year Mel Brooks’s The Producers). The bump in price has never seemed worth it and there are plenty of movies to choose from while the celebrities mingle with ordinary folk on the red carpet at the Chinese Theater. The first movie I saw was To Have And Have Not (1944) directed by Howard Hawks. I’ve seen bits and pieces of this film over the years, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen it from beginning to end. The film that introduced Lauren Bacall to film audiences starred Humphrey Bogart who would end up marrying his 19-year-old leading lady the next year. The 35MM print provided by Warner Bros. Classics looked great on the big screen at the Egyptian Theatre and was the perfect movie to start my 2018 TCMFF.

The next movie on my agenda was The Sea Wolf (1941) directed by Michael Curtiz, starring Edward G. Robinson, Ida Lupino, and John Garfield. The supporting cast includes Gene Lockhart, Alexander Knox, and Barry Fitzgerald. Besides being a fan of all three stars, this movie went through a restoration. In 1947, Warner Brothers paired The Sea Wolf with The Sea Hawk (1940) on a double bill. In order to get more screenings in, Warners cut 14 minutes from The Sea Wolf. Those 14 minutes were thought lost forever until a 35MM nitrate print was discovered at the Museum of Modern Art. What we saw at the Chinese Multiplex House # 6 was a beautiful digital restoration that looked brand new. The performances of Robinson, Lupino, and Garfield are extraordinary. Robinson’s performance is especially good; it’s hard to believe he was never nominated for a competitive Oscar—neither was Lupio; Garfield was nominated twice: Best Supporting Actor in Four Daughters (1938) and Best Actor in Body and Soul (1947). By the time The Sea Wolf ended, it was nearly 11:30 p.m. (1:30 p.m. Chicago time!). Time to get some shuteye and plan on what movie to see Friday morning. Here are my three choices: The Merry Widow (1934), Strangers on a Train (1951), and Intruder in the Dust (1949). Which movie would you pick?

Screening of Billy Wilder's "The Apartment" at the Daystar Center December 9

“Holiday” Series: The Apartment (1960)
Where: Daystar Center, 1550 S. State Street
When: December 9, 2017
Time: 6:30 p.m.
Hosted by Stephen Reginald


The Apartment (1960) features Bud Baxter (Jack Lemmon) as a lonely office worker in a corporate insurance company in New York City. In an effort to climb the corporate ladder, he lends his Upper West Side apartment to some influential company managers who use if for their extramarital affairs.

The company personnel director, Jeff D. Sheldrake (Fred MacMurray) discovers what Baxter is doing, but instead of punishing him, he insists on using his apartment too. Enter elevator operator Fran Kubelik (Shirley MacLaine) who Bud has had his eye on for weeks. Bud is disappointed to discover that Fran is Sheldrake’s latest fling when she stands him up on a date. What happens next is nothing short of amazing.

Directed by Billy Wilder and written by Wilder and I.A.L. Diamond, The Apartment won the Best Picture Oscar for 1960 as well as awards for Best Director and Writing.

Have some Joe and Enjoy the Show!

You can bring food and beverages into the auditorium; we even have small tables set up next to some of the seats. General Admission: $5 Students and Senior Citizens: $3.

Join the Chicago Film club; join the discussion

Twice a month we screen classic films and have a brief discussion afterward. For more information, including how to join (it’s free), click here. The Venue 1550 is easily accessible by the CTA. Please visit Transit Chicago for more information on transportation options.

Stephen Reginald is a freelance writer and editor. He has worked at various positions within the publishing industry for over 25 years. Most recently he was executive editor for McGraw-Hill’s The Learning Group Division. A long-time amateur student of film, Reginald hosts “Chicago Film Club,” a monthly movie event held in the South Loop, for the past two years. Reginald has also taught several adult education film classes at Facets Film School, Chicago.

Noir City Chicago Opens with screening of “L.A. Confidential” at Music Box

August 25, 2017
Noir City Chicago returned to the Music Box Theatre, 3733 N. Southport Ave., tonight with the  screening of Curtis Hanson’s L.A. Confidential (1997). The theme at this year’s Noir City is “The Big Knockover.” Presented by the Film Noir Foundation, “The Big Knockover” features “the history of the heist film from black-and-white Hollywood classics to contemporary masterpieces.”

Music Box calendar and Batman in Noir Alley comic

Author James Ellroy was on hand, whose novel the film L.A. Confidential was based. Ellroy was introduced and interviewed by Film Noir Foundation founder Eddie Muller. Ellroy is a strange character. His conversation was populated with crude language and gestures, which took some getting used to. Here’s his opening monologue to last night’s crowd.

Good evening peepers, prowlers, pederasts, panty-sniffers, punks and pimps. I’m James Ellroy, the demon dog with the hog-log, the foul owl with the death growl, the white knight of the far right, and the slick trick with the donkey dick. I’m the author of 16 books, masterpieces all; they precede all my future masterpieces. These books will leave you reamed, steamed and drycleaned, tie-dyed, swept to the side, true-blued, tattooed and bah fongooed. These are books for the whole fuckin’ family, if the name of your family is Manson.

I felt a little sorry of Muller who handled Ellroy’s antics with his usual cool charm, but had a hard time interviewing the author. It was great seeing L.A. Confidential on the big screen; previously, I had only seen it on television. The production, acting, and look of the film was stunningly good. It holds up really well and is a great homage to films noir from the past, the kind that Muller introduces on TCM every Sunday morning (except for August’s “Summer Under the Stars”).

Inside the Music Box Theatre with live organ music before the show

Noir City Chicago continues through August 31. For a complete list of films on the schedule, click here.

Raiders of the Lost Ark at Daniel Webster Park, Chicago July 17, 2017

The Greater South Loop Association is presenting Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) free of charge at Daniel Webster Park, 1357 S Indiana Ave, Chicago, IL 60605. The movie starts at dusk.

Raiders of the Lost Ark is the first (and best) movie in the Indiana Jones franchise. The film takes place in 1936, five years before the United States entered World War II. Raiders stars Harrison Ford as professor and archaeologist Indiana Jones and Karen Allen as Marion Ravenwood, daughter of his mentor, Abner Ravenwood. Jones, at the request of the United States Army, is on the hunt for the ancient Ark of the Covenant as described in the Book of Exodus. The Bible describes the Ark as a gold-covered wooden chest that contained the stone tablets of the Ten Commandments. When the Israelites carried the Ark into battle, they were victorious. The Nazis are searching for the Ark because they believe whoever possesses it will be invincible. Jones races against time and Dr. Rene Belloq, a competing archaeologist who is working with the Nazis, to get to the Ark first.

Lawrence Kasdan (Fatal Attraction) wrote the screenplay, from a story by George Lucas and Philip Kaufman. Steven Spielberg directed the action-packed adventure that was nominated for nine Academy Awards, including Best Picture. The memorable score, featuring “The Raiders March” was written by John Williams and performed by the London Symphony Orchestra.

Harrison Ford and Karen Allen pose this shot on the set of Raiders.

Backstory: Tom Selleck was originally cast as Indiana Jones, but had to drop out due to his commitment to the television series Magnum P.I. Debra Winger was offered the role of Marion Ravenwood, but she turned it down. Actress Sean Young auditioned for the part, but Spielberg was set on Karen Allen after seeing her in National Lampoon’s Animal House (1978). Alfred Molina, who played director Robert Aldrich in Feud: Bette and Joan, made his film debut as Satipo in Raiders.

Great films of 1939: "Love Affair" October 1 at the Daystar Center

Great films of 1939: Love Affair
Where: The Venue 1550 at the Daystar Center, 1550 S. State Street, Chicago, IL
When: October 1, 2016
Time: 6:45 p.m.
Hosted by Stephen Reginald

Love Affair (1939) is the original romance directed by Leo McCarey (The Awful Truth) starring Irene Dunne and Charles Boyer.

French painter Michel Marnet (Boyer) and American singer Terry McKay (Dunne) meet aboard a transatlantic ocean liner. Both are engaged, but they are attracted to each other and spend considerable time together. They quickly become the talk of the ship so the two try to be more discreet by eating alone and avoiding being seen together. The ship stops in Madeira where they visit with Michel’s grandmother Janou (Maria Ouspenskaya). His grandmother loves Terry and she wants Michel to settle down and marry her.

When they arrive in New York City, Michel and Terry agree to meet at the top of the Empire State Building in six months. Six months is the amount of time Michel needs to decide if he can drop the playboy life and support a relationship with Terry.

Remade with Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr as An Affair to Remember (1957) and although charming in its own right, it has nothing on the original, which is rarely seen. The film was nominated for six Academy Awards including Best Actress (Dunne), Best Supporting Actress (Ouspenskaya), and Best Writing, Original Screenplay (Mildred Cam and McCarey).

Nominated for six Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Actress, and Best Supporting Actress.

Have some Joe and Enjoy the Show!

Before the movie, grab a cup of coffee from Overflow Coffee Bar, located within the Daystar Center. You can bring food and beverages into the auditorium; we even have small tables set up next to some of the seats. General Admission: $5 Students and Senior Citizens: $3.

Join the Chicago Film club; join the discussion

Twice a month we screen classic films and have a brief discussion afterward. For more information, including how to join (it’s free), click here. The Venue 1550 is easily accessible by the CTA. Please visit Transit Chicago for more information on transportation options.

Stephen Reginald is a freelance writer and editor. He has worked at various positions within the publishing industry for over 25 years. Most recently he was executive editor for McGraw-Hill’s The Learning Group Division. A long-time amateur student of film, Reginald hosts “Chicago Film Club,” a monthly movie event held in the South Loop, for the past two years. Reginald has also taught several adult education film classes at Facets Film School, Chicago.

Daystar Center located at 1550 S. State St. works through a grassroots network of collaborations and partnerships with individuals and other nonprofit organizations. Through this web, they’re able to provide educational, cultural, and civic activities that enrich and empower their clients, guests, and community members. To learn more about classes and events offered at the Daystar Center, please visit their Web site.

The Liebster Award

Thanks to Jennifer Garlan (Virtual Virago blog) for nominating me for a Liebster Award! This is just a fun award that bloggers use to show their appreciation for each other, and I certainly am honored that she included me in her round of nominations. The rules require me to answer Jennifer’s 11 questions, list 11 things readers might not know about me, nominate up to 11 other bloggers, and pose 11 questions of my own to them. Whew! Here we go!

1. Gene Kelly or Fred Astaire?
Wow! That’s a tough choice. I enjoy them both, but I’ll have to go with Fred Astaire.
2. What’s your favorite Val Lewton film?
This is an easy one: I Walked With a Zombie is my favorite.
3. Name one book about classic movies or stars that everyone should read.
The Dark Side of Genius: The Life of Alfred Hitchcock by Donald Spoto. It’s packed with film history and stories about the movie stars Hitchcock worked with.
4. What’s the absolute worst old movie that you love anyway?
Hot Rods To Hell. It stars Dana Andrews and Jeanne Crain, both of whom I’d watch reading the telephone book (do they still exist?).

5. Who is your favorite character actor?
Thelma Ritter. I often say I don’t trust people who don’t like Thelma Ritter.
6. If you could adapt one literary work for film, which would it be and why?
The Blood of the Lamb by Peter DeVries. It’s a very personal story of one man’s journey while his daughter suffers from a fatal illness.
7. What's the last book you read?
Marilyn Monroe: A Life of the Actress by Carl Rollyson. I’m currently rereading two books on Hitchcock and Romantic Comedy in Hollywood by James Harvey.
8. Name one of your favorite movie death scenes. What’s so great about it?
Louis Bernard (Daniel Gelin) from The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956). It’s surprising and shocking and pushes the narrative forward.

9. Who should really have gotten the role of Scarlett O'Hara?
Don’t get me started on this one! I love Vivian Leigh, but I think Joan Bennett would have made a terrific Scarlett. For her paddock scene screen test, she held nothing back.
10. Coffee, tea, or alcohol?
I’m not a big drinker, but I haven’t had coffee for almost a year, so it would have to be tea (decaf of course).
11. What's your favorite Disney movie?
Beauty and The Beast. I think the story of self-sacrifice is powerful and the animation and characterizations are wonderful.

11 Things Readers Might Not Know About Me

1. I’ve lived in six states since I graduated from college: New York, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Washington, and Illinois
2. Dante and Christina Rossetti are distant relatives on my mother’s side.
3. I attended three colleges and changed majors three times. I eventually earned a degree in English Literature.
4. I was held up at the point of a sawed-off shotgun when I was 17. I was working behind the desk of a Holiday Inn at the time.
5. I’ve been quoted in the LA Times, Washington Post, Glamour, and The Philadelphia Inquirer due to my work in publishing.
6. I love to garden; I’m in charge of all the gardening at my condo complex.
7. I’m a volunteer docent at two house museums in Chicago.
8. I’d pay $10 for a good New York bagel right now.
9. I’d pay 5 times that amount for a New York pizza (are you detecting a theme?).
10. I was painfully shy as a child.
11. My older sister took me to see The Trouble With Angels when I was 9; I watch it whenever it’s on TCM.

11 Questions for my nominees

1. Screwball Comedy, Film Noir, Musical or Western?

2. Jean Harlow, Marilyn Monroe or Lana Turner?

3. What film do you think is the most overrated of all time?

4. Who is your favorite film star and why?

5. Do you have a favorite movie line? If so, what is it and what movie is it from?

6. Cheesecake, apple pie or hot fudge sundae?

7. What movie star’s work do you think should get more attention?

8. What was the first film you remember seeing in a movie theater?

9. How old were you when you realized you loved movies?

10. What is the best novel-to-screen adaptation, in your opinion?

11. Is there a movie you haven’t seen that would surprise us?

Hitchcock in the 40s—New film series begins May 13, 2014

New film series announced
The 2014-15 Film Club is back at The Venue 1550 at the Daystar Center, 1550 S. State St., Chicago. Hosted by Stephen Reginald, the film club will feature “Hitchcock in the 40s.” Alfred Hitchcock films to be screened, include Rebecca, Shadow of a Doubt, and Notorious. Movies will be screened at 6:30 p.m. on the second Tuesdays* of the month, starting May 13, 2014. Reginald will introduce each film giving background information before screenings, with discussion afterward. Reginald is a freelance writer/editor and popular instructor at Facets Film School in Chicago.

Hitchcock’s films endure
Alfred Hitchcock was one of the most successful directors in the history of film. Probably no other director’s work has been so widely acclaimed, examined, and written about. Hitchcock never took his audience for granted. He always believed that entertaining them was his primary goal as a filmmaker. During the 1940s, Hitchcock amassed an incredible body of work in Hollywood. It was during this decade that he first collaborated with Cary Grant and Ingrid Bergman, two of his favorite actors. It was a period where he stretched his storytelling ability by directing Lifeboat, a film where the entire cast is confined to a rowboat. And just to prove he could do it all, Hitchcock directed a screwball comedy starring the screwball girl herself, Carole Lombard!

May 13, 2014
Rebecca (1940) was Alfred Hitchcock’s first American film and collaboration with producer David O. Selznick. It was also the only Hitchcock film to ever win the Academy Award for Best Picture. Rebecca is based on the best-selling novel by Daphne du Maurier. The moody suspense classic stars Laurence Olivier and Joan Fontaine. Fontaine plays a young, innocent woman who falls in love with the older widower, Maxim de Winter (Olivier), heir to the magnificent estate, Manderley. When the new Mrs. de Winter settles in to her new home, the spirit of Rebecca, Maxim’s deceased first wife, overwhelms her. And to make matters worse, housekeeper, Mrs. Danvers (Judith Anderson) does everything to keep Rebecca’s memory alive, thus diminishing her new mistress. What is the secret that Rebecca took with her to the grave? A secret that haunts the inhabitants of Manderley still. A secret that even the grave cannot contain.

June 10, 2014
Foreign Correspondent (1940) The master of suspense’s second American film was nominated for six Academy Awards, including Best Picture, losing the award to Hitchcock’s Rebecca! The story of a foreign correspondent (Joel McCrea) in prewar Europe is a roller coaster ride of action and suspense. Filmed entirely on Hollywood sound stages and back lots, the movie boast some impressive sets, including a 10-acre recreation of Amsterdam Square. The film features an outstanding supporting cast that includes Laraine Day, Herbert Marshall, George Sanders (also in Rebecca that same year), and Robert Benchley.

July 8, 2014 
Mr. & Mrs. Smith (1941) A classic screwball comedy from the master of suspense? Yes, yes, indeed! When Ann Smith (Carole Lombard) discovers that her marriage to David Smith (Robert Montgomery) isn’t valid due to a technicality, she wonders if she should renew her vows. When David muses, in moment of brutal honesty, that if he had it to do all over again, he might not get remarry, Ann decides she wants to call it quits. When she starts dating David’s law partner, Jeff Custer (Gene Raymond), David is determined to win her back at all costs. With a screenplay by Norman Krasna, Hollywood legends Lombard and Montgomery and a supporting cast that includes Jack Carson, Philip Merivale, Lucille Watson, and Esther Dale, you’ll swear the film was directed by Leo McCarey or Howard Hawks.

August 12, 2014
Suspicion (1941) Joan Fontaine won an Best Actress Academy Award for her portrayal of Lina McLaidlaw, a shy, but rich young woman who falls head-over-heels in love with Johnnie Aysgarth (Cary Grant), a playboy who may or may not want her dead. In his first collaboration with Alfred Hitchcock, Grant reveals a darker side to his persona, not seen on screen before. Featuring a cast of British supporting players, including Sir Cedric Hardwicke, Nigel Bruce, and Dame May Whitty, you’ll be mesmerized by the tale the Master weaves.

September 9, 2014 

Saboteur (1942) Hitchcock’s exciting war-time suspense thriller stars Robert Cummings, on the run, after being wrongly accused of bombing a defense plant and killing his best friend. On the lame he meets a beautiful model (Priscilla Lane) who travels with him across the country trying to clear his name and stop a group of foreign agents determined to bring American to her knees. The film takes you on a whirlwind journey across the United States with stops at Boulder Dam, Radio City Music Hall, and for the film’s amazing climax atop the Statue of Liberty. This was Hitchcock’s first film featuring an All-American cast that includes supporting players Norman Lloyd, Otto Kruger, Alan Baxter, and Alma Kruger. Saboteur also features some very witty dialogue from the pen of literary legend, Dorothy Parker.

October 14, 2014

Shadow of a Doubt (1942) Alfred Hitchcock’s personal favorite of all his films is packed with heart-pounding suspense and truly amazing performances. When Uncle Charlie (Joseph Cotton) visits his sister’s family in Santa Rosa, his niece and namesake “Young Charlie” (Teresa Wright) begins to suspect that he may be the “Merry Widow Murderer,” wanted by the authorities hot on his trail. As Young Charlie’s suspicions about her uncle prove to be true, she has a tough decision to make. Will she report her uncle to the detectives that are tailing him or will she let him get away with murder? With a unique mixture of charm and menace, Cotton’s characterization is one of the creepiest in the history of film. Considered Hitchcock’s first great American film, it features an extraordinary supporting cast that includes, MacDonald Carey, Patricia Collinge, Henry Travers, Wallace Ford, and Hume Cronyn, in his very first screen role. Shadow of a Doubt also has the distinction of being the only film Hitchcock made on location.

November 11, 2014

Lifeboat (1944) A remarkable tale of survival at sea from the Master of Suspense. After their ship is sunk by a German U-boat, eight people struggle to survive, in an overcrowded lifeboat. based on a story by John Steinbeck, this Hitchcock classic keeps you on the edge of your seat for the film’s entire 96 minute run time. The movie stars the legendary Talluhah Bankhead, supported by William Bendix, Walter Slezak, Mary Anderson, John Hodiak, Canada Lee, and Hume Cronyn. And you will be amazed at how Hitchcock makes his ubiquitous cameo!

January 13, 2015

Spellbound (1944) The Master’s first collaboration with star Ingrid Bergman is an intriguing look into the “secret recesses of the mind” as described by the New York Herald Tribune’s review. Bergman plays Dr. Constance Peterson, a dedicated psychiatrist who puts her career on the line when she falls in love with Dr. Edwardes (Gregory Peck). Is Dr. Edwardes an impostor, pretending to be someone he is not in order to avoid arrest for a cold-blooded murder? Or is he a victim of some horrible event from his past that threatens to destroy him? Produced by David O. Selznick, Spellbound is a stylish and complex love story, featuring standout performances from Bergman and Peck. The dream sequences designed by artist Salvidor Dali are hauntingly beautiful, as is the film’s score by Milos Rozsa (Ben-Hur).

February 10, 2015

Notorious (1946) This may be Hitchcock’s most complex love story, starring two of the Master’s favorite movie stars: Cary Grant and Ingrid Bergman. Besides being physically beautiful, Bergman and Grant give standout performances. Grant plays an American agent in search of a band of Nazis who have settled in post-war Rio. Berman plays Alicia Huberman a women with a somewhat sordid past who is enlisted by Grant to help him trap Alex Sebastian (Claude Rains), the leader of Rio’s Nazi ring. Devlin’s feelings for Alicia change drastically when he finds out that Alex has asked her to marry him. But have his feelings really changed or is he frustrated by his powerlessness when things get increasingly dangerous for Alicia? Featuring brilliant performances from Rains and Leopoldine Konstantin, as Alex’s mother—perhaps the most diabolical of all Hitchcock’s mothers—Notorious’s suspense just never lets up.

If you love classic cinema, you should join the Chicago Film Club. It’s free to join. You'll get updates on all the movie screenings. Come share your love of the movies; it’s fun!

Daystar Center located at 1550 S. State St. works through a grassroots network of collaborations and partnerships with individuals and other nonprofit organizations. Through this web, they’re able to provide educational, cultural, and civic activities that enrich and empower their clients, guests, and community members. To learn more about classes and events offered at the Daystar Center, please visit their Web site.

Quiet Before the 1906 Earthquake

This isn’t your typical Classic Movie Man blog post, but this historic piece of film was taken on April 14, 1906 on San Francisco’s Market St. That was just four days before the great earthquake destroyed nearly 80 percent of the city. April 14 was a Saturday and the street is teaming with streetcars, horse-drawn carriages, pedestrians, and automobiles. Just imagine what Michigan Ave. in Chicago and Broadway in New York City would have looked like during the same time period.

Sound has been added to give you a more realistic impression of what the sounds of the city were like. I guarantee you’ll be riveted to this amazing footage from America’s past.

This amazing footage was brought to our attention by the Web site SLOID. They have a lot of interesting videos posted to their site. To take a look at SLOID, click here.

“Play it Again, Sam”: Screen classic “Casablanca” has an encore screening this Thursday

Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman in Cassablanca

Due to the success of last month’s one-night-only screening of Casablanca, Turner Classic Movies and Warner Brothers have added another special showing this Thursday, April 26, 2012, at theaters around Chicago.

TCM and Warner Brothers are celebrating the 70th anniversary of the 1943 Best Picture Academy Award winner. Released in 1942, Casablanca stars Humphrey Bogart, Ingrid Bergman, and Paul Henreid. Produced during the height of World War II, the film has endured, making it one of the most beloved American films ever made. The themes of love, loyalty, and self-determination still resonate.

Although Humphey Bogart never uttered the line “Play it again, Sam,” (He actually said, “Play it, Sam”) the film is jam-packed with memorable lines—“This is the beginning of a beautiful friendship”—that have become part of the American lexicon.

The film has been completely restored. If you’ve seen the movie before, you’ll be amazed at what this new restoration reveals. Viewers will experience the classic in a whole new way.

For information on locations and showings near you, click here.

Facets Holiday Warehouse Sale this Saturday and Sunday!

Thousands of releases from small, independent labels and major studios alike, discounted up to 90% off. Rub shoulders with fellow Chicago cinephiles as you uncover hidden movie treasures at unbeatable prices. 


Sounds like a dream come true for movie fans. For more information, visit the Facets Web site by clicking here.

Coming Soon: Interview with Best-Selling Author Karen Abbott

Check back next month for an interview with best-selling author Karen Abbott. Abbott's first nonfiction book, Sin in the Second City chronicled the rise and fall of the notorious Levee District in Chicago. The interview will post December 28, 2010.

Gypsy Rose Lee poses at her desk

For her second book, American Rose: A Nation Laid Bare, Abbott chose Gypsy Rose Lee as her subject. This new biography, of the show business legend, chronicles her humble beginnings from playing second fiddle to her pretty baby sister to her rise and eventual triumph as the queen of burlesque.

Chicago and Movie History

Gloria Swanson, Charlie Chaplin and Marion Davies

Hollywood in the Midwest?

Before anyone heard of a place called Hollywood, Chicago played an important role in the history of film in America.

Charlie Chaplin and Gloria Swanson Slept (and worked) Here

Before the sound era, Chicago housed Midwest corporate offices for Paramount, Warner Bros., Universal, and the Samuel Goldwyn studios. Most of the offices were in Chicago's South Loop along Wabash Ave. Other film offices were located one block east on Michigan Ave. During this period, major silent movie productions starring screen legends Charlie Chaplin and Gloria Swanson were made in Chicago.

Distribution Hub

Some evidence of this history still exists. The Film Exchange Lofts at 1307 S. Wabash Ave. was once owned by the Warner Bros. studio. They had corporate offices at that location, but its most important use was for storing film for distribution. With Chicago's location and access to train travel, it was the ideal distribution point for Chicago and Illinois theatres.

Ruins From Past Glories

The Universal International logo
can be seen at 1234 S. Michigan Ave.*

The famous terra cotta archway entrance to the Jesse Lasky Famous-Players (a forerunner of Paramount) building on Wabash near 13th Street was rescued from destruction by Columbia College. It now stands in their Media Production Center at 1600 S. State St.

*Ming Hin South Loop removed the Universal International logo when they opened at 1234 S. Michigan Ave. Why they felt this was necessary no one knows.