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In a world of film, tape, DVD, cable, video on demand, pay-per-view, streaming, etc. etc., you pretty much have access to whatever unknown classic you care to dig up. Or do you? Five of the six RKO Radio pictures in this series — all produced by the legendary Merian C. Cooper (King Kong progenitor, Cinerama pioneer, etc.) — have been unseen in any medium since 1959, and, one, A Man to Remember, not since its 1938 premiere. Now, after diligent legal work and a thorough search of the world's archives by Turner Classic Movies, these newly-unearthed 30s classics — four of them made in the Pre-Code era — can finally be seen again on theater screens, in new 35mm prints, yet. SPECIAL THANKS TO DENNIS MILLAY OF TURNER CLASSIC MOVIES. "Film Forum will continue to make yesterday's filmic orphans today's repertory bonus babies when they unveil new 35 mm prints of six films that have remained unseen for 50 years… The marvelous thing about a program of films this rare reborn in such pristine condition is that they can be viewed not as fossils but as products of the industry and the times that created them." "For anyone with the slightest feeling for the cinematic past, the series is highly recommended." |
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(1933, JOHN CROMWELL) “Marriage is the business
of women.” Matrimony ensues when
Ann Harding lets herself get caught at
spendthrift playboy William Powell’s
pad (“Oops!”) by old-school dad
Henry Stephenson — but as she
turns Powell into a successful
businessman, does love...? Pre-
Code romantic comedy highlighted
by top star teamwork and cuckoo
Dinner-Party-from-Hell climax. 1:00, 4:00, 7:00*, 10:00  *Actor James Cromwell (The Queen, Babe, L.A. Confidential), son of director John Cromwell,
introduced the 7:00 show on Friday |
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(1933, WILLIAM SEITER) Their rent late again,
artist/night watchman Norman Foster (then Mr.
Claudette Colbert, later director of the
Wellesian Journey into Fear) and telemarketer
[sic] Ginger Rogers get an ultimatum: time
share the attic or out. But as the war of
notes on the fridge escalates between
the strangers, guess who meets cute
outside the building, even as each
suffers from admirer overload?
Remade as Living on Love (see Feb.
26). 2:30, 5:30, 8:30 |
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Double Harness: "SMART AND SOPHISTICATED... Ann Harding, with her waist-length golden hair she always wore in a classic chignon, possessed a beauty so patrician she made Grace Kelly look like trailer trash... The way in which she and William Powell deftly navigate their way through these sexy, martini-and-temptation-laden shoals make this a particularly engaging Pre-Code charmer." "A snappy romantic comedy complete with millionaire playboys, Rafter Romance: "A crackerjack Pre-Code comedy!" – Bruce Bennett, The New York Sun "An enjoyable romantic comedy!" – Dave Kehr, The New York Times |
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(1933, JOHN ROBERTSON) Busted back home, doc
Lionel Barrymore (in a rare low-key performance)
adopts a baby whose mother he couldn’t save —
then saves the now-adult child twice more, once
at the cost of his own chance at the medical
bigtime; almost singlehandedly prevents a
smallpox epidemic; and finally straightens out son
Joel McCrea in time for marriage with Frances
Dee (the two began a real-life, 57-year
union that same year). Remade as A
Man to Remember (see Feb. 27, 28,
March 1). 1:00, 3:50, 6:40, 9:30 |
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(1937, LEW LANDERS) Forced by their landlord to time
share the same apartment, day resident artist
James Dunn and night resident electric shaver
saleswoman Whitney Bourne each pile up the
practical jokes on the unseen, while unknowingly
falling for each other outside the building. Screwy
remake of Rafter Romance. 2:30, 5:20, 8:10 |
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(1938, GARSON KANIN) After doctor Edward Ellis’s
big public funeral, the local banker, newspaper
editor and store owner open his strong box and the
flashbacks begin: his adoption of a baby (who
grows up to be Anne Shirley) whose mother he
couldn’t save; his acceptance of food as payment
from the poor; his prevention of a polio epidemic.
Unseen since its original release — anywhere —
despite making the New York Times’ Top Ten
Movies of 1938 list. This Dutch-subtitled version is
all that exists! Screenplay by Dalton Trumbo. Read Original 1938 New York Times Review [jpg]
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(1934, WILLIAM A. WELLMAN) A Down-Under “Western,”
as Richard Dix’s Aussie outlaw Stingaree
masquerades as an importer, London composer,
and as the governor general, while aiding maid
Irene Dunne’s rise to international
opera stardom. “One of the more
unbelievable musicals ever to
emanate from RKO — not to
mention one of Wellman’s
stranger directorial efforts.”
– All Movie Guide. 2:35, 5:40, 8:45 “A rarely shown oddball flick!” |
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