“The Postman Always Rings Twice”: 5th Film in “High Heels and Fedoras” series at Daystar Center June 11, 2013

Tuesday, June 11, 2013
6:30 p.m.
The Venue 1550 at the Daystar Center
1550 S. State Street

The Postman Always Rings Twice was one of the top box office hits of 1946. It also provided stars, Lana Turner and John Garfield with, arguably, the best screen roles of their careers.

Based on the novel by James M. Cain, The Postman Always Rings Twice has a lot in common with Double Indemnity, also penned by Cain. Both feature duplicitous couples planning a murder. And just like Double Indemnity, Postman’s femme fatale is married to an older man who is “inconvenient.”

Cora Smith (Turner) is a beautiful young waitress who works at her husband Nick’s (Cecil Kellaway) gas station and hamburger restaurant. When a drifter named Frank Chambers (John Garfield) starts working alongside Cora, the sparks fly. When Cora suggests that she and Frank could be together if something should happen to Nick, things begin to get crazy. Will Cora and Frank be able to pull off the perfect crime? Will they both get away with murder? Find out on Tuesday!

Here’s what New York Times critic Bosley Crowther said about the stars’ performances in his May 3, 1946 review:

Too much cannot be said for the principals. Mr. Garfield reflects to the life the crude and confused young hobo who stumbles aimlessly into a fatal trap. And Miss Turner is remarkably effective as the cheap and uncertain blonde who has a pathetic ambition to “be somebody” and a pitiful notion that she can realize it through crime.

To purchase tickets for in advance for the June 11 screening, click here. Tickets are $5 per person general admission $3 for students and seniors. Tickets may also be purchased at the door. To stay on top of film events like this, join the Chicago Film Club Meetup.

To download a flyer to post in your building or office, click here.

Director Tay Garnett with Lana Turner and John Garfield
on the set of The Postman Always Rings Twice

The Venue 1550 is located at 1550 S. State St. in the Daystar Center. The Daystar Center offers a variety of educational, artistic and cultural activities, including classes for children that teach practical life skills like social aptitude, creativity and cultural awareness in fun ways; classes for adults that give space for self-reflection and improvement; room rentals for many different-sized groups in several multipurpose rooms. For more information, call 312.674.0001 or visit their Web site.

High Heels and Fedoras: Exploring Film Noir—2013 Film Club series begins in February

The 2013 Film Club is back at The Venue 1550 at the Daystar Center, 1550 S. State St., Chicago. Hosted by Stephen Reginald, the film club will feature six film noir classics, including Double Indemnity and Mildred Pierce. Movies will be screened at 6:30 p.m. on the second Tuesdays of the month, starting February 12, 2013. The host will introduce each film giving background information before screenings, with Q & A afterwards. Reginald is a freelance writer/editor and popular instructor at Facets Film School in Chicago. He was also the original host of Meet Me at the Movies.

High Heels and Fedoras: Exploring Film Noir
Film noir conjures up images of detectives, criminals, dangerous men and women, all in shades of black and white. While possessing a very definite cinematic style, movies identified as film noir presented a darker vision of American life. This vision contrasted sharply with the Norman Rockwell worldview Hollywood was also grinding out during the height of World War II. But it was during the war years that the genre was at its peak.

Black film
The term film noir is French for “black film.” Nino Frank, a French film critic, is believed to have labeled these darker American films. In the states, they were labeled as melodramas; there was no preconceived formula from which directors and writers were working. But World War II did change America and the world. Filmmakers were exploring themes and situations that wouldn’t have been considered a decade earlier. Criminals and villains became heroes and the femme fatale—deadly woman—also came into prominence. In film noir, the lines between good and evil are blurred, but in many ways represent a more realistic view of the world. The noir vision still influences filmmakers today.

Explore film noir by discovering (or rediscovering) some of the established classics of the genre. Tickets per film are $5 for general admission or $3 for seniors and students. You can always purchase tickets at the door. If you’d like to purchase tickets online for one or all six films in advance, click here. The stay on top of all the Film Club movie events, join the Meetup Group.

Film Schedule
Tuesdays at 6:30 p.m. (CST)

February 12 This Gun for Hire (1942) This tough adaptation of the novel by Graham Greene stars Alan Ladd as Raven, a professional hit man who’s been double-crossed by one of his clients. He crosses paths with Veronica Lake, a nightclub entertainer who puts herself in harm's way when she volunteers to spy on her boss who authorities believe to be a link in a major crime syndicate.

March 12 Double Indemnity (1944) Based on the novel by James M. Cain (Mildred Pierce, The Postman Always Rings Twice) and nominated for seven Academy Awards, this movie set the standard from which other film noirs are judged. Directed by the legendary Billy Wilder, and starring screen legends Fred MacMurray, Edward G. Robinson, and Barbara Stanwyck.

April 9 Murder My Sweet (1945) Dick Powell stars as private investigator Philip Marlowe in this noir classic based on the novel by Raymond Chandler. Marlowe is hired by Moose Malone, an ex-con trying to track down his old girlfriend, who he lost track of while he was in prison. With each lead, Marlowe is pulled into a web of deceit, intrigue and murder.

May 14 Mildred Pierce (1945) Joan Crawford won an Academy Award for Best Actress playing the title role of a self-sacrificing mother who will do almost anything to gain her daughter’s love. Nominated for a total of six Academy Awards, this James M. Cain (The Postman Always Rings Twice) story has earned its place as a noir classic thanks to a great cast, snappy dialogue, and crisp direction from Michael Curtiz (Casablanca).

June 11 The Postman Always Rings Twice (1946) Lana Turner and John Garfield generate some serious heat as Frank, a drifter and Cora, a diner waitress who is married to a much-older man. Turner has big plans for the diner that her husband owns. She has big plans for Frank too, but first she needs to get rid of her husband…with Franks’ help. Another tough, gritty drama from the pen of James M. Cain (Mildred Pierce) that film critic Leonard Maltin said “Packs a real punch.”

July 9 Out of the Past (1947) Considered by many to be the best film noir drama of all time, it also solidified the career of Robert Mitchum as a tough-guy leading man. Mitchum plays Jeff Bailey currently on the straight and narrow until his past catches up with him. Jane Greer costars as the ultimate femme fatale who brings Jeff to ruin. Costarring future-stars-in-the-making, Kirk Douglas and Rhonda Fleming. This film’s reputation continues to grow in stature with each passing year.

Film Club to screen Marilyn Monroe classic “Some Like It Hot” December 13, 2012

The comedy classic Some Like It Hot will be screened December 13, 2012 at 7 p.m. at The Venue 1550. The Venue 1550 is located at the Daystar Center, 1550 S. State St., Chicago. Hosted by Stephen Reginald, the current Film Club series features classic films having connections with Chicago. Reginald will introduce each film giving background information before screenings, with Q & A afterwards.


Some Like It Hot (1959)—Directed by Billy Wilder and starring Marilyn Monroe, Tony Curtis, and Jack Lemmon, this classic was voted funniest film of all time by the American Film Institute. Curtis and Lemmon play Chicago musicians who accidentally witness the Saint Valentine’s Day massacre of 1929. The men disguise themselves as women and travel south with Sweet Sue’s all-girl band in an attempt to avoid “Spats” Colombo and his gang who are determined to kill them. Monroe—the band’s vocalist—and the “girls” become bosom buddies along the way, which leads to some hilarious situations and unusual conclusions.

Tony Curtis as Josephine and Jack Lemmon as Daphne

The plot thickens
To escape “Spats” Columbo and his gang, Joe and Jerry (Curtis and Lemmon) disguise themselves as women and join an all-girl band traveling by train to Florida. Masquerading as Josephine and Daphne, Curtis and Lemmon somehow fool bandleader Sweet Sue and band-manager Beinstock, who are desperate to round out their jazz band.


Underneath the sheltering palms

Marilyn Monroe as Sugar Kane 

On the train ride to Florida, Josephine and Daphne meet Sugar Kane Kowalczyk (Marilyn Monroe). Things get complicated when Joe-Josephine starts to fall in love with Sugar. With amazing energy and dexterity, Joe-Josephine manages to assume the identity of Junior, heir to the Shell Oil fortune, in order to woo Sugar and then switches back to play with Sweet Sue and Her Society Syncopaters, to hide out from the Columbo gang. All this switching back and forth makes Daphne’s (Lemmon’s ) head spin. But Daphne has her own problems. The rich, much-married Osgood Fielding III finds Daphne irresistible and proposes. What’s a nice “girl” like Daphne to do?

With more twists and turns than a roller coaster, Some Like It Hot boasts memorable performance from the three leads and was voted the number one comedy film of all time by the American Film Institute (AFI).

Admission is $7 per person. Tickets purchased at the door.

Reginald is a freelance writer/editor and popular instructor at Facets Film School in Chicago. He was also the original host of Meet Me at the Movies.

Classic screwball comedy “His Girl Friday” coming to “The Venue 1550” November 8

The comedy classic His Girl Friday (1940 ) will be screened at “The Venue 1550” at the Daystar Center, 1550 S. State St., November 8, 2012 at 7 p.m. Tickets are $7 per person and can be purchased at the door or online.

His Girl Friday, directed by Howard Hawks and starring Cary Grant and Rosalind Russell is an adaptation of the Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur classic Broadway smash, The Front Page. Grant plays Walter Burns, a Chicago newspaper managing editor and Russell is Hildy Johnson an ex-reporter for the same paper and Burns’s ex-wife. On the eve of her marriage to a new man, Burns tries to convince Hildy to come back to the paper and him. Considered one of the greatest classic screwball comedies of all time, His Girl Friday is filled with non-stop one liners and the fastest dialogue ever recorded on film.

Backstory

Carole Lombard was first choice
to play Hildy Johnson

Howard Hawks originally planned to do a straight remake of The Front Page. During a read-through of the script during auditions, Hawks had his secretary read Hildy Johnson’s lines. Hawks, always a champion of strong women, liked the sound of Johnson’s lines coming out of the mouth of a female. The script was changed to make Hildy the ex-wife of Walter Burns and many think His Girl Friday is better than the film on which it is based.

Casting Call
Hawks had Cary Grant in mind for Walter Burns from the start, but the casting of Hildy Johnson proved problematic. Hawks originally wanted Carole Lombard, who he directed in Twentieth Century (1934). Lombard, one of the biggest stars in Hollywood, was too expensive. Supposedly the role of Hildy was offered to Katherine Hepburn, Claudette Colbert, Margaret Sullivan, Ginger Rogers, and Irene Dunne. All turned the role down. Joan Crawford, coming off her success in The Women, (1939) was even considered. Hawks finally settled on Rosalind Russell. Hawks encouraged ad-libbing on the set, so Russell hired a writer to punch up her dialogue because she thought Grant had all the good lines.

Ralph Bellamy, Cary Grant, and Rosalind Russell

His Girl Friday was #19 on American Film Institute's 100 Years…100 Laughs and has been selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry.

Join the Film Club
Come watch this classic in the comfort of “The Venue 1550.” Overflow Coffee Bar will be open so you can grab a drink or snack to be enjoyed during the movie.

Hitchcock classic “North by Northwest” to be screened at “The Venue 1550” October 11, 2012

The Alfred Hitchcock classic, North by Northwest will be screened at “The Venue 1550” S. State St., October 11 at 7 p.m. This is the second in a series featuring movies with a connection to Chicago.

Snack tables are set up inside “Venue 1550” for your
movie-watching convenience.

Directed by Hitchcock—“The Master of Suspense”—and starring Cary Grant, Eva Marie Saint, and James Mason, North By Northwest is one of the classiest espionage films ever made. Grant plays advertising executive Roger O. Thornhill (ROT) who is mistaken for an American agent and framed for murder. Saint plays the mistress of real spy Mason and is used as bait to catch Grant. The movie features some great Chicago locations, including the Ambassador East Hotel, the old LaSalle Street train station, and a glimpse of late-1950s Michigan Avenue. The success of this film led to Grant being offered the role of James Bond, which he turned down. Grant thought he was too old to play Ian Fleming’s famous agent 007.

“The Venue 1550” is a unique, comfortable space. Overflow Coffee Bar will be open before each screening. You can grab a beverage, snack, and bring it to the movie. Snack tables are positioned next to setting spaces for your convenience.

Order Tickets in Advance or at the Door
Movie admission is $7 per film or $20 for all four. To purchase tickets, click here. Tickets are also available at the door.


Post a Flyer!
Download, print, and post a flyer, like the one below, in your building or office by clicking here.

Film Club coming to “The Venue 1550” at the Daystar Center

A new film club is coming to “The Venue 1550” at the Daystar Center, 1550 S. State St. Chicago. Hosted by Stephen Reginald, the film club will feature four classic films having connections with Chicago. Some like Henry Hathaway’s Call Northside 777 were shot entirely on location in the city, while others like Alfred Hitchcock’s North by Northwest, features several critical scenes in the windy city. Films will be screened at 7 p.m. on the second Thursdays of the month, starting September 13, 2012. Reginald will introduce each film giving background information before screenings, with Q & A afterwards. Reginald is a freelance writer/editor and popular instructor at Facets Film School in Chicago. He was also the original host of Meet Me at the Movies.

Chicago on film
Chicago and the movies go way back. Charlie Chaplin and Gloria Swanson, two movie icons from the silent era, started their film careers here. Both Chaplin and Swanson worked at Essanay Studios on West Argyle, now St. Augustine College. Essanay was a bustling place in the early days of the twentieth century. It was a glimpse of Hollywood before there was such a place. But the harsh Midwestern winters made year-round moviemaking in Chicago impractical. Film studios and their stars eventually moved west. The rest, as they say, is history. Even though Chicago’s movie-making glory days are long gone, the city has always been a favorite subject of filmmakers. Celebrate the movies and Chicago with special screenings of these classics:


September 13
Call Northside 777 (1948)—Directed by Henry Hathaway and starring James Stewart, this semi-documentary style film is based on a true story, filmed entirely on location in Chicago. Stewart plays P.J. McNeal, a reporter for the Chicago Times who attempts to find new evidence in an 11-year-old cop killer case. McNeal comes to believe that Frank Weicek, the convicted murderer, took the fall for someone else and was falsely imprisoned. The movie features beautiful black and white cinematography and great Chicago locations. See how the city has changed (and remained the same) since 1948.

October 11
North by Northwest (1959)—Directed by Alfred Hitchcock and starring Cary Grant, Eva Marie Saint, and James Mason, in one of the classiest espionage films of all time. Grant plays advertising executive Roger O. Thornhill (ROT) who is mistaken for an American agent and framed for murder. Saint plays the mistress of real spy Mason and is used as bait to catch Grant. Featuring some great Chicago locations, including the Ambassador East Hotel, the old LaSalle Street train station, and a glimpse of late-1950s Michigan Avenue. The success of this film led to Grant being offered the role of James Bond, which he turned down, thinking he was too old to play Ian Fleming’s famous agent 007.

Cary Grant, Rosalind Russell, and Ralph Bellamy in
His Girl Friday

November 8
His Girl Friday (1940)—Directed by Howard Hawks and starring Cary Grant and Rosalind Russell His Girl Friday is an adaptation of the Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur classic Broadway smash, The Front Page. Grant plays Walter Burns, a Chicago newspaper managing editor and Russell is Hildy Johnson an ex-reporter for the same paper and Burns’s ex-wife. On the eve of her marriage to a new man, Burns tries to convince Hildy to come back to the paper…and him. Considered one of the greatest classic screwball comedies of all time, His Girl Friday is filled with non-stop one liners and the fastest dialogue ever recorded on film!

Tony Curtis, Jack Lemon, and Marilyn Monroe
in Some Like It Hot

December 13
Some Like It Hot (1959)—Directed by Billy Wilder and starring Marilyn Monroe, Tony Curtis, and Jack Lemmon, this classic was voted funniest film of all time by the American Film Institute. Curtis and Lemmon play Chicago musicians who accidentally witness the Saint Valentine’s Day massacre of 1929. The men disguise themselves as women and travel south with Sweet Sue’s all-girl band in an attempt to avoid “Spats” Colombo and his gang who are determined to kill them. Monroe—the band’s vocalist—and the “girls” become bosom buddies along the way, which leads to some hilarious situations and some unusual conclusions.

Order Tickets in Advance
Movie admission is $7 per film or $20 for all four. To purchase tickets, click here.

“The Venue 1550” is a unique space in the DayStar Center located at 1550 S. State St. “The Venue 1550” hosts musical concerts, documentary films, lectures, and community meetings. For more information on utilizing this space for yourself or your organization, please call 312.674.0001.