TCM Schedule for Thursday, June 6, 2013 -- What's On Tonight -- Creature Features

[Staph]

In honor of the 59th anniversary of D-Day, during the daylight hours, we're fighting the Nazis across Europe during World War II. And in prime time, TCM is featuring classic monster movies, with Frankenstein and his bride, Godzilla, King Kong, and so much more. Enjoy!


6:00 AM -- Attack on the Iron Coast (1968)
Canadian commandos take on a Nazi post on the coast of France.
Dir: Paul Wendkos
Cast: Lloyd Bridges, Andrew Keir, Sue Lloyd
C-90 mins, TV-G, Letterbox Format

The clips of the diversionary air raid were taken from the film The Dam Busters (1955).


7:45 AM -- Fighter Squadron (1948)
A dedicated flyer pushes himself and those around him during a perilous World War II campaign.
Dir: Raoul Walsh
Cast: Edmond O'Brien, Robert Stack, John Rodney
C-95 mins, TV-PG, CC,

Film debuts for both Rock Hudson and Jack Larson.


9:30 AM -- I See A Dark Stranger (1945)
An Irish woman who hates the English turns Nazi spy.
Dir: Frank Launder
Cast: Deborah Kerr, Trevor Howard,
BW-112 mins, TV-PG, CC,

Also known as The Adventuress.


11:30 AM -- The Americanization of Emily (1964)
A British war widow falls for an opportunistic American sailor during World War II.
Dir: Arthur Hiller
Cast: James Garner, Julie Andrews, Melvyn Douglas
BW-115 mins, TV-PG, CC, Letterbox Format

Nominated for Oscars for Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, Black-and-White -- George W. Davis, Hans Peters, Elliot Scott, Henry Grace and Robert R. Benton, and Best Cinematography, Black-and-White -- Philip H. Lathrop

According to screenwriter Joe Eszterhas's 2004 autobiography "American Animal", producer Martin Ransohoff removed director William Wyler from the picture as Wyler wanted to change Paddy Chayefsky's script. It was a rare instance in which a producer supported a screenwriter over a director, particularly one of Wyler's caliber. As Chayefsky was known to have guarantees written into his contracts protecting his scripts, Ransohoff may have had no choice but to replace Wyler with Arthur Hiller.


1:30 PM -- 36 Hours (1965)
Nazis kidnap a key American intelligence officer and try to convince him that World War II is over.
Dir: George Seaton
Cast: James Garner, Rod Taylor, Eva Marie Saint
BW-115 mins, TV-PG, CC, Letterbox Format

The phony newspapers given to Major Pike, dated 1950, refer to "President Wallace". Henry A. Wallace was Vice President of the United States in 1944, when the film actually takes place. He was not slated on the Democratic ticket later that year and was succeeded as Vice President by Harry S Truman.


3:30 PM -- Resisting Enemy Interrogation (1944)
Academy Award nominated training film which instructs soldiers how to handle the interrogation techniques practiced by the Nazis.
Cast: Lloyd Nolan, Carl Esmond, Peter Van Eyck
BW-66 mins, TV-PG,

Nominated for an Oscar for Best Documentary, Features -- U.S. Army Air Force.

Remade in 1951 as Target Unknown.


4:45 PM -- Screaming Eagles (1956)
A group of young soldiers parachute into France in preparation for D-Day.
Dir: Charles Haas
Cast: Tom Tryon, Jan Merlin, Alvy Moore
BW-81 mins, TV-PG,

The uniforms and equipment the U.S. paratroopers wear in the film are fairly realistic for the D-Day period, including the white "card suit" markings the 101st Airborne Division used on the sides of their helmets to identify sub-units in the Division. The paratrooper's helmets in the film carry the heart suit of the 502nd Parachute Infantry Regiment.


6:15 PM -- Breakthrough (1950)
An American infantry unit moves from basic training to combat in Europe.
Dir: Lewis Seiler
Cast: David Brian, John Agar, Frank Lovejoy
BW-91 mins, TV-PG, CC,

This film's opening prologue states: "With the American Troops in England. The Spring of 1944."



TCM PRIMETIME - WHAT'S ON TONIGHT: CREATURE FEATURES



8:00 PM -- Bride of Frankenstein (1935)
To save his wife, Baron Frankenstein must build a mate for his monster.
Dir: James Whale
Cast: Karloff, Colin Clive, Valerie Hobson
BW-75 mins, TV-PG, CC,

Nominated for an Oscar for Best Sound, Recording -- Gilbert Kurland (sound director)

Director James Whale originally did not want to do a sequel to Frankenstein. For a time, Universal considered producing a sequel without Whale's involvement. One possible story included an educated monster continuing Henry's research, while another chronicled Henry's creation of a death ray on the eve of a world war. However, after 4 years of badgering by Universal, Whale agreed to do the film.


9:30 PM -- Godzilla, King of the Monsters! (1956)
Nuclear tests awaken a prehistoric monster.
Dir: Ishiro Honda
Cast: Raymond Burr, Takashi Shimura, Momoko Kochi
BW-80 mins, TV-PG, CC,

All the scenes with Raymond Burr were added after the Japanese version of Godzilla was finished and shown to Japanese audiences about two years earlier.


11:00 PM -- Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954)
Scientists track a prehistoric monster in the South American jungle while it tracks them.
Dir: Jack Arnold
Cast: Richard Carlson, Julia Adams, Richard Denning
BW-79 mins, TV-PG, CC, Letterbox Format

The Creature, using the name "Uncle Gilbert", appeared in an episode of the TV series The Munsters The episode is titled "Love Comes to Mockingbird Heights."


12:30 AM -- It Came From Beneath the Sea (1955)
A giant octopus attacks San Francisco.
Dir: Robert Gordon
Cast: Kenneth Tobey, Faith Domergue, Donald Curtis
BW-79 mins, TV-PG, CC, Letterbox Format

Because the budget was so low, Ray Harryhausen saved money by building his octopus model with six rather than the correct eight tentacles. He tried to pose the creature so this lack of the right number of arms wasn't apparent.


2:00 AM -- King Kong (1933)
A film crew discovers the "eighth wonder of the world," a giant prehistoric ape, and brings him back to New York, where he wreaks havoc.
Dir: Merian C. Cooper
Cast: Fay Wray, Robert Armstrong, Bruce Cabot
BW-104 mins, TV-PG, CC,

The 2005 DVD restoration further details the risqué liberties of a 1933 pre-code film release in two scenes. The first is when Ann is on the ship's deck while Charlie is peeling potatoes, and the second is where Denham is shooting some test footage of Ann ("Scream for your life, Ann, Scream!&quot . The thin material used for Ann's dress and gown in both scenes makes it obvious that Fay Wray is not wearing a bra; a wardrobe decision that may not have made it past the Breen Code the following year.


4:00 AM -- Cyclops (1957)
A scientific expedition discovers a 25-foot tall mutant.
Dir: Bert I. Gordon
Cast: James Craig, Gloria Talbott, Lon Chaney Jr.
BW-65 mins, TV-PG,

Voice specialist Paul Frees is given credit for special voice effects. His contributions included the vocal sounds of the cyclops, the breathing sound of the giant lizard and the "Mexican" voice heard on the plane's radio.


5:30 AM -- TCM Presents Elvis Mitchell Under the Influence: Bill Murray (2008)
Celebrities reveal the classic movies that influenced their lives in interviews with acclaimed film critic/interviewer Elvis Mitchell.
C-29 mins, TV-PG, CC, Letterbox Format

Murray was a frequent collaborator with Harold Ramis throughout the 1980s, but their working relationship ended during the filming of Groundhog Day (1993) due to differing views on what the film should be: Ramis claims that Murray wanted the film to be more philosophical, while Ramis himself simply meant for it to be a comedy. Ramis also cites that Murray's personal problems at the time (namely the ending of his first marriage) had a negative effect on his work ethic, causing him to be uncharacteristically harsh during filming, as another reason for the end of their working relationship.