I STILL WAKE UP DREAMING! More RARE NOIR at the ROXIE

[Dewey1960]

After another protracted absence from the Oasis—being fairly consumed by work on all fronts, including the programming of this coming May’s all-new film noir extravaganza at San Francisco’s ROXIE THEATER—I’m happy to be back (hopefully on a more regular basis) with this informally formal announcement…

I STILL WAKE UP DREAMING!! (Noir is Dead / Long Live Noir) featuring TWO THRILLING WEEKS of impossibly rare B-noirs from the notorious shadow factories of Hollywood’s Poverty Row!

Yes, it’s Springtime at the Roxie…where TWENTY-EIGHT half-forgotten film noir classics and curios will bloom boldly before your disbelieving eyes at San Francisco’s first and foremost House of Noir—the Roxie Theater!

This spring’s amazing cavalcade features six titles from Columbia Pictures’ legendary and darkly sinister 1940s WHISTLER “B” mystery dramas starring the venerable Richard Dix. These incredible films—MARK OF THE WHISTLER (taken from a short story by Cornell Woolrich and co-starring the wonderful Janis Carter), MYSTERIOUS INTRUDER (a major noir rediscovery from director William Castle, the strangely terrifying POWER OF THE WHISTLER (again with Janis Carter), the haunting and unforgettable VOICE OF THE WHISTLER, the exciting noir melodrama THE THIRTEENTH HOUR and the sinister and disturbing SECRET OF THE WHISTLER—will be presented in BRAND NEW RESTORED 35mm PRINTS created by Sony Repertory expressly for this engagement!

Marvel too at six spectacular and RARE United Artists titles from the 1950s and early 60s, from the hallowed archives of MGM: the San Francisco premiere revival of Jacques (Out of the Past) Tourneur’s ultra-rare 1958 cold war thriller THE FEARMAKERS starring Dana Andrews, Phil Karlson’s gritty gem 99 RIVER STREET with John Payne and Evelyn Keyes, the freakishly strange NIGHTMARE with Kevin McCarthy and Edward G. Robinson (from a story by Cornell Woolrich), Ed McBain’s low-down, rough and sleazy COP HATER with Robert Loggia, SHIELD FOR MURDER, directed by and starring Edmond O’Brien, and Henry Silva in the uber-violent late model ’63 Rat Pack noir JOHNNY COOL. None of these great UA noirs are currently available on DVD and will be presented in glorious 35mm STUDIO ARCHIVE PRINTS!!

This indisputably fantastic series plays the ROXIE from Friday, May 14 through Thursday, May 27. I hope to see some of you out here!!

Here’s a link to the Roxie’s website with detailed information (complete film descriptions, dates and showtimes) for this program!
http://roxie.com/events/details.cfm?eve ... 84EE76310B

[ChiO]

Back when the TCM Festival was announced, someone asked, "What movie would cause you to travel across the country to see on the big screen?" You have one of them.

COP HATER - in all of its sleazy glory. Was B&W ever more lurid?

See you there (I'm the guy in the ratty trench coat with a dead carnation in my lapel).

[Mr. Arkadin]

Sounds like an amazing show and I wish I could be there. My Dad would love the Whistler films, stay for 99 River Street, and then drag me out of the the theater with his hands over my eyes when Cop Hater hit the screen!

See you there (I'm the guy in the ratty trench coat with a dead carnation in my lapel).

I have another project for you:
[youtube][/youtube]

[moira finnie]

I am so jealous of all of you who get to attend this festival. How often does one get to see such a range of film noirs?

In case anyone is interested, there is a slideshow devoted to Elliot's program here. Enjoy, and if you can, I hope those who go will post about it here.

[knitwit45]

Wow! Moira did you do the slide show? The films look great, and the background music is incredible...who was the artist?

Thanks, whoever did this!


Nancy

[moira finnie]

Moira did you do the slide show?

Yes, Nancy. I am trying to learn more about creating such little films by playing around with these techniques. There is a ton to learn, but it's fascinating too. The music on the slideshow is Miles Davis playing "I Thought About You" and the exquisite "My Ship."

"I Thought About You" was a 1939 song with music by Jimmy Van Heusen with lyrics by Johnny Mercer.The idea for this song grew out of a sleepless night on a train experienced by Mercer. After reading Gene Lee's bio, "Portrait of Johnny: The Life of John Herndon Mercer" recently, I remembered this beautiful recording after I saw the description in that book of how "Mercer found inspiration for the song from the train trip, seeing the little towns, the moon and landscape along the way. Mercer admitted his writing style was to paint pictures with lyrics, to 'transport people to someplace they don’t know'" and the soaring melody by Van Heusen is rendered beautifully by Miles Davis and his fellow musicians on the album, Love Songs.

"My Ship" is one of my favorite songs by Kurt Weill and Ira Gershwin for 1941's Lady in the Dark and is one of the most haunting melodies in American popular song of that era, at least to my ear.

I hoped that these tunes fit Elliot's movie choices for the event at the Roxie in May.

I'm really happy that you got a kick out of my effort. I'll keep playing around with the software and try to make something worth seeing for some other upcoming events. I'll be happy to share them with you if you would enjoy seeing any of them. It's sort of fun to try to bring a smidge of the flavor of these movies into a new form.

[knitwit45]

I knew "My Ship". Edie Adams sang that song about or to (can't remember which) Ernie Kovacs. "My ship has sails that are made of silk..."

If this is only one of your FIRST efforts...I can hardly wait to see what you do when you get GOOD at it

And of course we want to see more!

[Lzcutter]

Moira,

That was great! You can be my assistant any time!

[knitwit45]

I think Moira is the one who is going to need assistants! (may I apply???)

[Mr. Arkadin]

Good luck tonight Dewey!

I also expect to hear from our reporter on the scene (Mr. ChiO).

[ChiO]

This reporter does not arrive on the scene until Wednesday night.

Apparently my press credentials are still under scrutiny.

[Lzcutter]

It was a dark night, the fog was rolling in over the bay so thick you could taste it (or something like that), I had to get to the Roxie to see what all the commotion was about. Some guy named Dewey was naming names and showing prints. Not just any prints but the fancy, black and white glossy archival prints that dames like me lust after.

But a brush with a dentist today waylaid my plans to be there tonight. (Nothing like chipping a filling and taking the back of the tooth with it for sheer pocketbook torture).

I've got plans to be there next weekend and into the following week (if my bankroll allows, if yowse get my drift).

Good luck, Dewey! May you have another smashing success!

[Dewey1960]

Well, the first two nights of this dark cavalcade are now history and I'm pleased to say this event is off to an incredibly great start! Opening night (Friday) was packed, with barely an empty seat to be found by the time the 7:30 show of MYSTERIOUS INTRUDER (a Whistler film) flickered on-screen. The opening film, HIGH TIDE screened at 6:00 and a ton of folks filed in for that one. The crowd was rapturous and appreciative, especially for MYSTERIOUS INTRUDER, which we showed in a brand new restored 35mm print. It's a great B noir and Sony did a beautiful job with their restoration. The 16mm print of HIGH TIDE, unfortunately had sound problems most of the way through, but the audience was pretty tolerant and only a small handful groused about it. Overall the night was fantastic, but nothing that would prepare me for the onslaught of Saturday!
Saturday's double-bill consisted of Phil Karlson's 99 RIVER STREET, a film that ranks high on many personal lists yet is rarely screened and doesn't exist on DVD. Co-feature was Edmond O'Brien's SHIELD FOR MURDER, another stone-cold rarity. The Roxie was packed all day long for this; a massive turnout! The print (newly restored) on RIVER STREET was, quite simply, one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen. The audience was transfixed by it and their reaction at the end was bombastic!! The print on SHIELD, although a 35mm archive print was a little faded, but the audience didn't seem to mind; t hey loved this film. An incredible day / night, yielding one of he theater's biggest box office counts in many moons.
Today we offer up a pair of Cornell Woolrich adaptations--NIGHTMARE (156) and THE MARK OF THE WHISTLER (44), and I suspect the turnout will be great. Both are being screened in beautiful 35mm prints.
Can't wait til the ChiO family arrives this Wednesday!! And we expect to see Lynn and Marco here next weekend. Not to mention Lisa "Mook" Ryan! I only wish the other noir fans here at the Oasis could make it out!

The local press has been extremely kind to this show and of course that makes me very happy, as it usually translates to good business. Here's a modest sampling, including our own wonderful Moira's blog post which was a fairly extensive interview:

San Francisco Chronicle, Mick LaSalle
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.c ... 1DCDT1.DTL

SF•MOMA blog, “Open Space”
http://blog.sfmoma.org/

Moira's Movie Moorlock TCM blog
http://moviemorlocks.com/2010/05/12/ell ... and-white/

San Francisco Bay Guardian
http://www.sfbg.com/pixel_vision/2010/0 ... urns-roxie

San Francisco Examiner
http://www.sfexaminer.com/lifestyle/Cre ... 48199.html

Film On Film Foundation blog:
http://www.filmonfilm.org/blog/?ID=64

[knitwit45]

Congrats, Dewey! So much hard work, although a labor of love, and appreciated by crowds!!!! Pat yourself on the back, or wait for Mook and ChiO and LZ and Marco....they'll pound you on the back for sure! Wish I could be there. If you do this next year.....maybe CCFan, JDB1 and I will be able to be there.

At any rate, again, congratulations, I hope the rest of the festival is as successful as the first days.

[Mr. Arkadin]

Let's also hope that some of these great films might see the light of day in an official DVD release. It's festivals like this--and the people who make them happen--that make these things possible.

This is not just knowing which movies to show, but generating interest, finding good prints, writing up the teaser descriptions (which Elliot did himself, and amazingly I might add) and doing all the behind the scenes work that most people never see. Congrats on your success Elliot!