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Published on Monday, 25 April 2011 10:00

Written by Lynne Shannon

Turner Classic Movies brings back its live, in-person TCM Classic Film Festival, unspooling April 28 - May 1, 2011 at several venues around Hollywood, California.

Of all film festivals, this is the largest for classic films, and TCM's film historian Robert Osborne is again the Festial's official host.

Four of the venues, fittingly, date back to Tinseltown‛s golden age of silent film: the historic Grauman‛s Chinese Theatre (1927), the Egyptian Theatre (1922), the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel (1927) and the Music Box at Henry Fonda Theater (1926).

As exciting and interesting as last year‛s premiere fest was, this year‛s festival is loaded with even more stellar events, tributes, anniversaries and restorations -- one hardly knows where to begin.

This year the special guests are two of screendom‛s veteran uber-icons: Kirk Douglas and Peter O‛Toole. Of all their most notable films, the screenings are:

Spartacus (1960) is considered among Douglas‛s finest. Although now regarded as one of the best examples of the epic genre, "the film‛s reception in 1960 was not quite so welcoming, in large part because screenwriter Dalton Trumbo had been blacklisted as a communist sympathizer. Douglas insisted on giving Trumbo on-screen credit, which drew the ire of powerful columnists like Hedda Hopper and organizations such as the American Legion. Despite the naysayers, Spartacus effectively ended the blacklist, allowing banned filmmakers to work openly once again."

Becket (1964) was regarded as a brilliant adaptation of Jean Anouilh's hit play about the English Archbishop Thomas à Becket, who was martyred by his former friend King Henry II. The film will be introduced by Peter O‛Toole, whose performance as Henry II earned him his second of eight Oscar nominations. With O‛Toole, Richard Burton, John Gielgud.

Among the stars expected, from nearly all periods of Hollywood history, are:

• Debbie Allen
• Allison Anders
• Alec Baldwin
• Warren Beatty
• Illeana Douglas
• Angela Lansbury
• Jerry Mathers
• Rose McGowan
• Hayley Mills
• Ron Perlman
• Richard Roundtree
• Barbara Rush
• Nancy and Tina Sinatra

The Opening-Night Gala features the appearance of Leslie Caron for the 60th Anniversary screening of the newly restored An American in Paris, directed by Vincente Minnelli and also starring Gene Kelly.

TCM also honors Elizabeth Taylor with a special 60th anniversary presentation of George Stevens’ romantic drama A Place in the Sun (1951), starring Taylor, Montgomery Clift and Shelley Winters.

Other banner year tributes include:

Happy Trails: Roy Rogers 100th Birthday
The Festival pays tribute to Roy Rogers with his daughter, Cheryl Rogers-Barnett, who will introduce Under Western Stars (1938) and Cowboy and the Senorita (1944). Also screening are My Pal Trigger (1946) with Rogers and Dale Evans and co-starring Gabby Hayes; and Trigger, Jr. (1950) which features Rogers, Evans and "The Riders of the Purple Sage".

Rogers-Barnett will also introduce Casanova in Burlesque (1944), starring her mother, Dale Evans.

The Jubilee, 75th anniversary screening of Dodsworth (1936) – William Wyler directed this adaptation of Sinclair Lewis' 1929 novel and did not shy away from "the film‛s decidedly adult themes -- the break-up of a marriage, the battle against aging and the differences between the U.S. and Europe." With Walter Huston, Ruth Chatterton, Mary Astor.

The 60th anniversary screening of:

• A Streetcar Named Desire – One would have to have been in a cryogenic tank since 1950 to have not heard of this landmark film. The original play was a career-maker for Marlon Brando. His "Stellaaahhh!" is still remembered, still imitated, and still the first thing most people think of when they hear the film mentioned. With Brando, Vivien Leigh, Kim Hunter, Karl Malden.
• The Day the Earth Stood Still – Little did we know. This simply-made yet compelling movie was an early post-war invasion that has since engulfed the planet -- the sci-fi film. With Michael Rennie, Patricia Neal, Hugh Marlowe.
• Royal Wedding – How fitting in this year of monarchial marriage. A brother-sister dance act gets booked in London during the time of royal nuptials, and meet eligible partners of their own. With Fred Astaire, Jane Powell, Peter Lawford, Sarah Churchill.

The 50th anniversary screening of:

• Breakfast at Tiffany's – This landmark film still holds up, and makes the favorite movie list of many a longtime fan. Director Blake Edwards helped make Hepburn one of the icons of '60s cinema, and this role most identified with her. "The image of her munching on a Danish while window-shopping outside of Tiffany's is one of the most memorable of the era. Not only did it make her little black dress, designed by Hubert de Givenchy, a fashion mainstay, but it also popularized beehive hairdos, multiple strands of pearls and oversized sunglasses." Also with George Peppard, Patricia Neal.
• The Connection – Allison Anders will introduce the film by experimental filmmaker Shirley Clarke based on Jack Gelber‛s play about junkies waiting for their dealer, the "connection". With Roscoe Lee Browne (his film debut), Linda Veras, Warren Finnerty.
• One, Two, Three – the outrageous Billy Wilder comedy starring James Cagney in his last feature film role before a 15-year hiatus. Also with Arlene Francis, Horst Buchholz, Pamela Tiffin.
• The Parent Trap – the Walt Disney comedy starring Hayley Mills (as twin sisters), who will be on hand to introduce the film. Also with Maureen O‛Hara, Brian Keith.
• West Side Story (1961) – This iconic filmed musical took away ten Oscars, including Best Picture, Best Supporting Actor (George Chakiris), Best Supporting Actress (Rita Moreno) and Best Director (Robert Wise and Jerome Robbins), which remains a record for a musical film. Rightfully so -- what it didn‛t invent, it revolutionized.
• Whistle Down the Wind – also introduced by and starring Hayley Mills. The film was Bryan Forbes‛ directorial debut, and Alan Bates had his first leading film role.

The Film Music of the Gershwins
This year's Festival includes a tribute to the movie music of brothers George and Ira Gershwin. In addition to the Opening Night gala presentation of An American in Paris, the films include:

Shall We Dance? (1937) with Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, the seventh of their 10 films together.

Girl Crazy (1943  – Screen legend Mickey Rooney will attend for a presentation of the musical which also starred Judy Garland and Guy Kibbee.

The music of George Gershwin inspired Woody Allen‛s memorable ode to his home town, Manhattan (1979), which will also screen at the Festival.
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TCM also pays tribute to Disney's Musical Legacy with the following screenings:

Fantasia (1940) – TCM is proud to present this recently restored edition of the groundbreaking animated anthology, one of Walt Disney's most astonishing achievements which combined classical music with animated imagery. A commercial failure when it was first released, the film has since become a cultural treasure.

Laugh-O-grams (1922) – Newly discovered and restored shorts, presented in collaboration with the Walt Disney Family Museum and the Museum of Modern Art. Before he started the studio that would bear his name, Disney started the Laugh-O-grams studio in Kansas City, Missouri. This collection of recently discovered and restored works are from the earliest days of Walt Disney's career.

Silly Symphonies (1929 - 1939) – Film historian Leonard Maltin will curate and introduce a selection of the memorable Silly Symphonies shorts. Many of the featured shorts, rarely seen today in theaters, broke new ground in animation techniques.

Summer Magic (1963) – A celebration of Disney's live action musicals, this delightful and lesser-known film is an excellent example, with Hayley Mills in attendance to introduce the movie. With Mills, Burl Ives, Dorothy McGuire, Deborah Walley, Eddie Hodges, Peter Brown.

Some of the Panels are:

The Best Trailers Ever Made: The Art of Selling Motion Pictures – Moderated by marketing executive Terry Press (7570, Inc.), the panel includes Benedict Coulter (Trailer Park agency), David Sameth (The Walt Disney Company) and Michelle Jackino (The Ant Farm).

Voice Doubles – Voice doubles have a venerable tradition in movies. The panel features three vocal stars whose work can be heard in some of the greatest musicals of the 1940s, '50s and '60s, when songs were often sung by "ghosts." They will discuss how studies tried to keep their important contributions a secret. Moderated by Pete Hammond (Boxoffice Magazine), the panelists are Marni Nixon, Jimmy Bryant and India Adams.

Bright Boulevards, Bold Dreams: the Story of Black Hollywood with Donald Bogle – Bogle examines the origins of black Hollywood during the studio era, revealing the roles of African-Americans in the early film industry and how they fought to make a place for themselves.

Dancing in the Movies – Moderated by Larry Billman, panelists Debbie Allen, Marge Champion and Vincent Paterson share the history of dance in film and its impact on movie making and audiences, as well as what it‛s like to choreograph for -- and dance in -- the movies.

This Festival gives viewers a golden opportunity to see these classic films as they were meant to be seen -- and the couch or computer chair, comfy or convenient though they are, are not it.

Turner Classic Movies is a Peabody Award-winning network that presents great films, uncut and commercial-free, from the largest film libraries in the world. Currently seen in more than 85 million homes, TCM features the insights of veteran primetime host Robert Osborne and weekend daytime host Ben Mankiewicz, plus interviews with a wide range of special guests. As the foremost authority in classic films, TCM offers critically acclaimed original documentaries and specials, along with regular programming events

For more information, go to www.tcm.com/festival.

TCM Classic Film Festival
April 28 - May 1, 2011

Grauman's Chinese Theatre
6925 Hollywood Blvd.
Hollywood, CA 90028

The Egyptian Theatre
6712 Hollywood Blvd.
Hollywood, CA 90028

Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel
7000 Hollywood Blvd.
Hollywood, CA 90028

The Chinese Multiplex
6801 Hollywood Blvd.
Hollywood, CA 90028

The Music Box
at Henry Fonda Theater
6126 Hollywood Blvd
Hollywood, CA 90028
323-464-0808

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