Thursday, March 1 (7:30 p.m.)
The Life of Emile Zola (Warner Bros., 1937)
In this Best Picture Oscar winner William Dieterle directed Paul Muni as French novelist Zola who defends the falsely accused Captain Dreyfus (Joseph Schildkraut in an Oscar-winning performance). The Dreyfus case, which was a cause célèbre of anti-semitism during the latter years of the nineteenth century, formed an exciting climax to Zola’s career as a champion of truth and liberty, and is, consequently, the dramatic highlight of this film biography nominated for nine Academy Awards. The film was added to the National Film Registry in 2000. 107 min.
Friday, March 2 (7:30 p.m.)
The Sting (Universal, 1973)
Robert Redford plays a Great Depression-era conman seeking revenge on the racketeer (Robert Shaw) responsible for the murder of his mentor. He enlists the aid of confidence artist extraordinaire Paul Newman to gather together an impressive array of con men eager to settle the score with Shaw. One of the biggest hits of the early ’70s, The Sting picked up seven Oscars including Best Picture, Director, Screenplay and Best Adapted Score for Marvin Hamlisch’s unforgettable setting of Scott Joplin’s ragtime music. The film was added to the National Film Registry in 2005. Rated PG. 129 min.
Saturday, March 3 (2 p.m.)
The 7th Voyage of Sinbad (Columbia, 1958)
Special-effects master Ray Harryhausen provides the hero (Kerwin Mathews) with a villainous magician and fantastic antagonists, including a genie, giant cyclops, fire-breathing dragons, and a sword-wielding animated skeleton, all in glorious Technicolor. Harryhausen’s Dynamation process, which blended stop-motion animation and live-actions sequences, and a thrilling score by Bernard Herrmann makes this one of the finest fantasy films of all time. “The 7th Voyage of Sinbad” was added to the National Film Registry in 2008. 88 min.
Saturday, March 3 (7:30 p.m.)
Empire of the Sun (Warner Bros., 1987)
Based on J.G. Ballard’s autobiographical novel and directed by Steven Spielberg, this historic drama stars Christian Bale as a spoiled 13-year old British boy living with his wealthy family in pre-World War II Shanghai. During the Japanese invasion, Bale is separated from his parents, and with the help of an American expatriate and hustler (John Malkovich), he learns to survive in a Japanese prison camp. Rated PG. 153 min.
Thursday, March 8 (7:30 p.m.)
Captains Courageous (MGM, 1937)
Victor Fleming directed this adaptation of Rudyard Kipling’s story in which a spoiled rich-boy (Freddie Bartholomew) falls off a cruise ship and is rescued by a Portuguese fisherman (Spencer Tracy) who takes him aboard a commercial fishing schooner led by the salty Captain Disko Troop (Lionel Barrymore). The film was nominated for four Academy Awards including Best Picture and wining Best Actor for Tracy. 117 min.
Friday, March 9 (7:30 p.m.)
The Thief (United Artists, 1952)
This unique crime film stars Ray Milland as a nuclear physicist at the Atomic Energy Commission in Washington, D.C. who is also a spy working for an unnamed foreign power. The third in a series of six classic film noir productions scripted by Russell Rouse, who also directed, and his writing partner Clarence Greene, the stylized production was filmed entirely without dialogue. 86 min.
Saturday, March 10 (7:30 p.m.)
Gladiator (DreamWorks, 2000 – R-rated*)
Ridley Scott directed this epic historical adventure that won Best Picture of the Year and four other Oscars, including Best Actor for Russell Crowe. Set in the Roman Empire during the latter half of the 2nd century AD, Crowe stars as a Roman General who seeks revenge after being betrayed by the new emperor and forced into slavery. 115 min. *No one under the age of 17 will be admitted without a parent or guardian.
Thursday, March 15 (7:30 p.m.)
Jazz Greats on the Dick Cavett Show (ABC, 1971-72)
Drawing from the nearly 2,000 hours of Dick Cavett’s decades-long talk-show series that Cavett donated to the Library of Congress last year, this program will highlight some of the great jazz artists who appeared on the show. Included are two appearances by Louis Armstrong, one of which aired just months before Satchmo’s death in 1971. Interviews and performances by Duke Ellington, Dizzy Gillespie, The Modern Jazz Quartet and Earl “Fatha” Hines round out the program. Also included is a segment from the 50th Anniversary Salute to Louis Armstrong that aired on the Hollywood Palace, May 1, 1965, with guests Jimmy Durante and Edward G. Robinson. 96 min.
Friday, March 16 (7:30 p.m.)
My Left Foot (Miramax, 1989 – R-Rated*)
Daniel Day-Lewis earned his first Oscar nomination (and win) for portraying Irish writer and painter Christy Brown in this biographical drama. Born with cerebral palsy into a poor, working-class family, Brown became an author and artist by learning to write and paint with his only controllable limb – his left foot. Brenda Fricker won the Best Supporting Actress Oscar for her role as Christy’s mother. 103 min. *No one under the age of 17 will be admitted without a parent or guardian.
Saturday, March 17 (7:30 p.m.)
The Manchurian Candidate (United Artists, 1962)
During the Korean conflict, prisoners of war (including Frank Sinatra and Laurence Harvey) are brainwashed by the Communists to lay the foundation for high-level political maneuvering once they return home. Haunted by nightmares, Sinatra is determined to solve the mystery behind his terror and eventually discovers the heart of the scheme. Directed by John Frankenheimer, this Cold War suspense thriller features Oscar nominated Angela Lansbury and Janet Leigh in the cast. It was added to the National Film Registry in 1994. Rated PG-13. 126 min.
Thursday, March 22 (7:30 p.m.)
Good Will Hunting (Miramax, 1997 – R-rated*)
Oscars went to Ben Affleck and Matt Damon for Best Original screenplay and to Robin Williams for Best Supporting Actor in this drama directed by Gus Van Sant. Damon also stars as the title character, an undisciplined janitor at M.I.T., with an uncanny gift for advanced mathematics. Will reluctantly agrees to study math and participate in therapy sessions to avoid a jail sentence for brawling. 126 min. *No one under the age of 17 will be admitted without a parent or guardian.
Friday, March 23 (7:30 p.m.)
MGM Double Feature – Directed by John Sturges
Kind Lady (MGM, 1951)
This chilling drama directed by John Sturges stars Ethel Barrymore as Mary Herries, a kindly older British art collector, who is tricked by an artist and his wife (Maurice Evans and Betsy Blair) into allowing them to move in to her house. Mary is soon held prisoner by the couple and their accomplices (Keenan Wynn and Angela Lansbury) posing as a butler and maid, as they start to sell off everything of value she owns. 78 min.
Mystery Street (MGM, 1950)
Shot on location in Boston and the Harvard campus, this crime drama stars Ricardo Montalban as Peter Morales, a blue-collar detective investigating the identity and means of death of a skeleton found half-buried on a beach. Directed by John Sturges, with Bruce Bennett as a Harvard University doctor, this early movie depiction of forensic science is an engrossing, realistic mystery. 78 min.
Saturday, March 24 (2 p.m.)
The Prince of Egypt (Dreamworks, 1998)
This animated adaptation of the Book of Exodus follows Moses’ life from being a prince of Egypt to his ultimate destiny leading the children of Israel out of Egypt. The musical drama features the voice talent of Val Kilmer, Ralph Fiennes and Michelle Pfeiffer. Stephen Schwartz and Hans Zimmer were nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Score and Schwartz’s song “When You Believe” won the Academy Award for Best Song. Rated PG. 99 min.
Saturday, March 24 (7:30 p.m.)
Western Double Feature
The Last Horseman (Columbia, 1944)
Lucky Rawlins (Russell Hayden), foreman of the Bar W ranch, finds himself cheated out of a check for $12,000 – the proceeds from a cattle drive. The culprit is the local banker, Cash Watson (John Maxwell), who has learned that the railroad is interested in buying up the local ranches and it’s up to Lucky to expose his dastardly deed. Western Swing group Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys appear as musicians and cowboys and perform several songs in the film including Wills’ “Dreamy-Eyes Waltz.” 54 min.
Texas Panhandle (Columbia, 1945)
Steve Buckner (Charles Starrett), suspended from the Secret Service pending investigation of his rumored activities as The Durango Kid, heads west to the Texas Panhandle, where he learns renegades have attacked settler wagon trains and have stolen government gold. As The Durango Kid, Steve uncovers the facts and brings the bad guys to justice. Western Swing group Spade Cooley and His Band along with Carolina Cotton, the Yodeling Blonde Bombshell, perform several tunes in the film. 55 min.