Hey gang, after a fairly lengthy absence I'm back to announce the arrival of the latest installment of my NOT NECESSARILY NOIR series at the world-famous, 103 year old ROXIE THEATER in San Francisco! From October 19 through 31 we will unveil a whopping twenty-six feature films -- a witches brew of c...

Now that a week of well-needed rest & relaxation has come to an end, I can finally sit back and take stock of the remarkable goings-on at the Roxie this month! For starters, it's always a supreme pleasure to have ChiO in the house; this is the fourth consecutive noir fest he's attended and by no...

We very rarely have guests introduce the films given the tight scheduling of double features. More often than not I get up in front of the crowd and deliver a short little intro which usually amounts to my thanking everyone for being there. Frankly, I'm not one of those people who (as a movie-goer) ...

Sometimes blessings come in pairs. On top of Sunday morning's wonderful piece in the SF Chronicle,
we now have this incredible feature in the SF Bay Guardian by Max Goldberg. This guy can really write!
http://www.sfbg.com/2012/05/08/how-dark-was-my-alley

Hey Red - I was a huge fan of MacDonald's Archer novels too. The series you mention was very short-lived; less than one season back in 1975. I've never caught an episode, but its reputation is pretty dismal. Frankly, much as I like Brian Keith, I can't quite see him in the role. Looks like no one el...

Hey Wendy and Theresa, thanks for those wonderful words of support! I'm really expecting big things from this show and I think this Chronicle piece will go a long way toward accomplishing that. Theresa, the Parker Guest House is a very popular place (we use it a lot when putting up visiting filmmake...

Well, our first piece of press appeared this morning in the SF Chronicle. This is the type of feature that generally guarantees a terrific turnout. I can only hope that it proves to be the case this time! Unfortunately he wasn't able to mention our substitution of I, THE JURY with HOLLOW TRIUMPH, bu...

Wow, that's great Theresa, thanks!!! (I believe at that moment in the shot she's just
asked Al Roberts, "What'd ya do, kiss him with a wrench?")

I was pretty darn verklempt myself come to think of it. And I'll be even more verklempt if we can
replicate this for film noir next weekend!

Wendy, you're in for a major jolt with HOLLOW TRIUMPH and I anxiously await your reactions to it. I think it's one of John Alton's finest accomplishments and, surprisingly, it's a film that is hardly referenced at all. ChiO, I think we're OK with those titles. Sometimes we just have to keep our fing...

It sometimes happens: unforeseen circumstances arise that create the need to quickly regroup! This is now the case with one of our opening night features! We had a press screening last week for some of our local writers and one of the prints we presented was I, THE JURY . It soon became apparent tha...

While on the topic of THE BURGLAR , we should also acknowledge the noir credentials of David Goodis , the author of the novel on which this incredible film is based. Goodis, like Cornell Woolrich, lived a life that tragically paralleled the characters he so knowingly wrote about. Here's an interesti...

Some other Jayne Mansfield noirs to look for: FEMALE JUNGLE (Bruno VeSota 1955) is her first film and it is in my Top 10 Noirs. Just as THE BURGLAR was the hit at the Roxie a couple of Mays ago, this will be the hit this May (so says this sage, seer, & soothsayer). Having Lawrence Tierney and J...

Here's a link to the Roxie's website with all the dope on my new noir program coming next month! Some unusually rare titles rubbing shoulders with some much-loved classics. Lots of rare B noirs in stunning 35mm prints, great-looking 16mm collector prints, and high-quality digital. A mixed- media bag...

Well, Precode Hollywood came to an end last night with a wild double bill of THE BLACK CAT and KONGO . Both are exceptionally vivid horror films and the fans ate 'em up! This series, I'm happy to say, has been the most successful yet, even surpassing the noir shows of late--really amazing. Every nig...