The following was co-written with Larry Smith, a Processing Technician at the Packard Campus. Larry Smith, a Processing Technician who has worked with nitrate film at the Library of Congress for the past 15 years, is the guest programmer for June. Prior to working at the Library, Larry was a theater manager-owner and projectionist at …
The following post was co-written with Jenny Paxson, an Administrative Assistant at the Packard Campus. Thursday, May 28 (7:30 p.m.) Love, Betty: A Betty White Retrospective (1957-2015) Considered the reigning Queen of TV, Betty White will be showcased in this evening-long retrospective that will include full episodes of such White-starring series as 1957’s Date with …
Only one screening this week because of the Memorial Day holiday. Thursday, May 21 (7:30 p.m.) Far From Heaven (Focus Features, 2002) A 1950s suburban homemaker (Julianne Moore) is ostracized because of her friendship with an African-American man (Dennis Haysbert) while coping with her deeply closeted gay husband (Dennis Quaid) in Todd Haynes’ homage to …
The following is a guest post by Jenny Paxson, an Administrative Assistant at the Packard Campus. Thursday, May 14 (7:30 p.m.) Heart to Heart (First National, 1928) Mary Astor stars as Princess Delatorre, the young and beautiful widow of an Italian prince, who decides to pay a visit to the small American town she grew …
The following was co-written with Jenny Paxson, an Administrative Assistant at the Packard Campus. The Library of Congress is proud to be the home of the Bob Hope Collection, which he donated in 2000. I was fortunate to be one of the curators assigned to the acquisition, and thus enjoyed many happy hours working with …
The following was co-written with Jenny Paxson, an Administrative Assistant at the Packard Campus. Thursday, April 30 (7:30 p.m.) All That Heaven Allows (Universal, 1955) Widow Jane Wyman falls in love with a younger man (Rock Hudson) in a suburban New England town, resulting in an avalanche of public and private shaming. From this deceptively …
My stint as guest programmer continues with a film made in my hometown of Baton Rouge, my favorite Alfred Hitchcock movie, and a rather jaundiced view of professional football. Thursday, April 23 (7:30 pm) sex, lies, and videotape (Miramax, 1989, *R-rated) It’s a matter of conjecture to pinpoint the beginnings of the American independent film …
Thursday, April 16 (7:30 pm) Les Blank Double Feature: Hot Pepper (1973) / Always for Pleasure (1978) Documentarian Les Blank (1935-2013) might have been born in Florida, but he had a Louisiana soul. Tonight’s double feature is all the evidence you need. Hot Pepper celebrates the music of Clifton Chenier, the “King of Zydeco,” while …
I am guest programmer for April, and this week features the most recent film by my favorite director working today, another representing the great flowering of American cinema in the 1970s when I really fell in love with the movies, and the first silent film I ever saw, the one that set me on my …