TCM Schedule for Thursday, March 8, 2018 -- What's On Tonight: TCM Guest Programmer - Drew Scott

[Staph]

In the daylight hours, we're dealing with the cheery subject of alcoholism. And in prime time, tonight's guest programmer is Drew Scott. From the TCM website:

Canadian actor/entrepreneur Drew Scott, TCM Guest Programmer for March, is best known for co-hosting the home-renovation program Property Brothers with his identical twin, Jonathan. The reality show is produced by Cineflix Media and has aired in more than 150 countries including the U.S. (HGTV) and Canada (W Network). On the show, real estate expert Drew and contractor Jonathan help clients find, buy and renovate their dream homes.

Drew, with his background in acting and comedy improv, has appeared in many films and TV programs including the 2017 edition of Dancing with the Stars. Together, the Scott brothers have also worked on numerous television projects, recordings of country songs and business ventures including cruises and a line of furniture. They co-authored two books, Dream Home: The Property Brothers' Ultimate Guide to Finding & Fixing Your Perfect House, and a memoir called It Takes Two: Our Story.

Drew Scott was born in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada and raised on a ranch near that city. In conversation with TCM host Ben Mankiewicz, Drew explains that his father, James Scott, had emigrated to Canada from Scotland as a young man after being inspired by American Western movies. "With no money to his name, he worked his way over on a ship," Drew explains. "He lived out his life dream and became a cowboy."

One of his father's inspirations was Scott's first programming choice, High Noon (1952), the famous Western starring Gary Cooper. "He looks like my dad, he acts like my dad," says Scott, who grew up watching Cooper movies with his father. "Sometimes I would do double takes in some of those movies because that is my dad and his character - tall, dark and handsome, and a strong man who is all about family and supporting those in need. That's how I was raised."

Scott describes his second programming pick, To Kill a Mockingbird (1962), as "another movie my dad loved, and another one where my dad looks just like the lead actor in it. He says he remembers studying Harper Lee's novel in school, and watches this film about "every five years or so. I really love the story, especially coming from a time when racism was rampant... It blows my mind that a movie made so many years ago is still so relevant today. That's sad in a sense, but it's still a nice lesson."

Another choice, the Steven Spielberg backed supernatural thriller Poltergeist (1982) directed by Tobe Hooper, also takes Scott back to his childhood. Looking back on his first viewing, he remembers that "At first I was really scared, but then I was fascinated by it." Watching the performance of Heather O'Rourke as the child in the film made it less terrifying because he thought that "if this tiny little girl can be intrigued rather than scared, maybe that's how I would react!"

Scott's final pick is another Spielberg production, Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977). He describes this one as "a movie that actually inspires you about the idea of something new, something unknown - encountering aliens." "In a lot of alien movies, a war is being started with the extra-terrestrial," he notes. "But this movie was about showing a positive reaction in connecting. It also has a message about acceptance, equality - a lot of issues that we still have today."

by Roger Fristoe

Enjoy!


6:15 AM -- MGM PARADE SHOW #6 (1955)
Greta Garbo performs in a clip from "Anna Christie"; Robert Taylor introduces a clip from "Quentin Durward." Hosted by George Murphy.
BW-26 mins,


6:45 AM -- PRESTIGE (1932)
A woman joins her fiance at a Malaysian prison camp only to discover he's become an alcoholic.
Dir: Tay Garnett
Cast: Ann Harding, Adolphe Menjou, Melvyn Douglas
BW-71 mins,

Local girl Eunice Coleman was hired as Ann Harding's photo double, leading to much coverage in the local press. Coleman, who had training as a circus performer, did some stunt work with elephants for the film.


8:00 AM -- THE WET PARADE (1932)
A crusading politician fights the evils of both drink and prohibition.
Dir: Victor Fleming
Cast: Dorothy Jordan, Lewis Stone, Neil Hamilton
BW-117 mins, CC,

Myrna Loy's character was based on Texas Guinan, she even utters Guinan's catchphrase "Give the little lady a big hand!"


10:00 AM -- HOLLYWOOD - THE SECOND STEP (1936)
This short film takes a look at Jane Barnes' first steps to becoming a star, starting out as an extra and then a stand-in for Maureen O'Sullivan.
Dir: Felix E. Feist
Cast: Ralph Bushman, Larry Steers,
BW-10 mins,


10:15 AM -- DANGEROUS (1935)
A young fan tries to rehabilitate an alcoholic actress he's fallen in love with.
Dir: Alfred E. Green
Cast: Bette Davis, Franchot Tone, Margaret Lindsay
BW-78 mins, CC,

Winner of an Oscar for Best Actress in a Leading Role -- Bette Davis (On 14 December 2002 Steven Spielberg anonymously bought Davis' Oscar at a Sotheby's auction in New York to return it to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. The statuette was among the memorabilia sold by the Planet Hollywood restaurant chain, which has emerged from bankruptcy protection.)

According to notes on the film at TCM, producer Harry Joe Brown walked in on an intimate moment between Franchot Tone and Bette Davis. Tone was engaged to Joan Crawford at the time. This supposedly was the beginning of the famous Crawford-Davis feud.


11:45 AM -- TOO MUCH, TOO SOON (1958)
The daughter of iconic actor John Barrymore reunites with her father after a ten year estrangement.
Dir: Art Napoleon
Cast: Dorothy Malone, Errol Flynn, Efrem Zimbalist Jr.
BW-121 mins, CC,

Warner Brothers purchased the book the film is based on with the intention of starring Carroll Baker (then under contract) in an adaptation. When she declined on the grounds that she did not want to play "a nymphomaniac", they refused to lend her to an outside company to appear in The Devil's Disciple (1959) opposite Sir Laurence Olivier.


1:47 PM -- THE BOTTLE AND THE THROTTLE (1965)
In this short film, a teenager runs down a mother and child after having one too many alcoholic beverages.
C-10 mins,


2:00 PM -- WAY BACK HOME (1932)
A New England preacher shelters a young boy from his alcoholic father.
Dir: William Seiter
Cast: Phillips H. Lord, Effie L. Palmer, Frank Albertson
BW-81 mins, CC,

Bette Davis' film debut.


3:30 PM -- I'LL CRY TOMORROW (1955)
True story of singer Lillian Roth's battle against alcoholism.
Dir: Daniel Mann
Cast: Susan Hayward, Richard Conte, Eddie Albert
BW-119 mins, CC, Letterbox Format

Winner of an Oscar for Best Costume Design, Black-and-White -- Helen Rose

Nominee for Oscars for Best Actress in a Leading Role -- Susan Hayward, Best Cinematography, Black-and-White -- Arthur E. Arling, and Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, Black-and-White -- Cedric Gibbons, Malcolm Brown, Edwin B. Willis and Hugh Hunt

Pryor to filming, Susan Hayward took the opportunity to study Lillian Roth's vocal style, tone and delivery when Miss Roth performed in Las Vegas. Moreover, the two women became friends during the production.


5:32 PM -- DO SOMEONE A FAVOR! (1954)
In this comedic short, a friendly "do-gooder" takes his good deeds too far.
Dir: Dave O'Brien
Cast: Greta Granstedt, Dave O'Brien,
BW-9 mins,


5:45 PM -- DAYS OF WINE AND ROSES (1962)
A husband and wife fight to conquer alcoholism.
Dir: Blake Edwards
Cast: Jack Lemmon, Lee Remick, Charles Bickford
BW-117 mins, CC,

Winner of an Oscar for Best Music, Original Song -- Henry Mancini (music) and Johnny Mercer (lyrics) for the song "Days of Wine and Roses"

Nominee for Oscars for Best Actor in a Leading Role -- Jack Lemmon, Best Actress in a Leading Role -- Lee Remick, Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, Black-and-White -- Joseph C. Wright and George James Hopkins, and Best Costume Design, Black-and-White -- Donfeld

The cast and crew were very concerned that the bleak ending would be changed. Director Blake Edwards recalled for Entertainment Weekly magazine that studio head Jack L. Warner wanted a lighter ending, but he came into a screening with a very attractive date who blasted the decision. Warner reluctantly gave in. In addition, Jack Lemmon purposely flew to Paris after filming had wrapped so he would be "unavailable" for re-shoots.



TCM PRIMETIME - WHAT'S ON TONIGHT: TCM GUEST PROGRAMMER: DREW SCOTT



8:00 PM -- HIGH NOON (1952)
A retired Marshal must defend his town from a revengeful villain.
Dir: Fred Zinnemann
Cast: Gary Cooper, Thomas Mitchell, Lloyd Bridges
BW-85 mins, CC,

Winner of Oscars for Best Actor in a Leading Role -- Gary Cooper (Gary Cooper was not present at the awards ceremony. John Wayne accepted on his behalf.), Best Film Editing -- Elmo Williams and Harry W. Gerstad, Best Music, Original Song -- Dimitri Tiomkin (music) and Ned Washington (lyrics) for the song "High Noon (Do Not Forsake Me, Oh My Darlin')", and Best Music, Scoring of a Dramatic or Comedy Picture -- Dimitri Tiomkin

Nominee for Oscars for Best Director -- Fred Zinnemann, Best Writing, Screenplay -- Carl Foreman, and Best Picture

The 1980s were a tumultuous time in Poland. Workers' strikes in Gdansk led to the formation of the Solidarity movement. In 1980, Lech Walesa was elected chairman of this reform movement. The red and white Solidarity logo became an international icon that literally wrapped itself around the city, creating a visual momentum that led to a political revolution. Once again, posters played a pivotal role in defining the future. In 1989, the day before the country was to vote on the political future of Poland, a poster featuring an image of Gary Cooper from this film was plastered on kiosks and walls around the country. This landmark image of the famous actor strolling towards the viewer depicted him carrying not a gun, but a voting ballot, and wearing a Solidarity logo above his Marshal's badge that read, "It's high noon, June 4, 1989." As Frank Fox, former professor of Eastern European History, stated, "Indeed, an American Western was an apt symbol for a political duel that marked the beginning of the end of Communism in Eastern Europe. Gary Cooper would have approved."


9:45 PM -- TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD (1962)
A young girl grows up fast when her lawyer father defends a black man accused of raping a white woman.
Dir: Robert Mulligan
Cast: Gregory Peck, Frank Overton, John Megna
BW-129 mins, CC, Letterbox Format

Winner of Oscars for Best Actor in a Leading Role -- Gregory Peck, Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium -- Horton Foote (Horton Foote was not present at the awards ceremony. Alan J. Pakula, the film's producer, accepted the award on his behalf.), and Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, Black-and-White -- Alexander Golitzen, Henry Bumstead and Oliver Emert

Nominee for Oscars for Best Actress in a Supporting Role -- Mary Badham, Best Director -- Robert Mulligan, Best Cinematography, Black-and-White -- Russell Harlan, Best Music, Score - Substantially Original -- Elmer Bernstein, and Best Picture

The first scene that Gregory Peck shot showed him returning home from his character's law office while his children ran to greet him. Author Harper Lee was a guest on the set that day, and Peck noticed her crying after the scene was filmed. He asked Lee why she was crying, and she responded that Peck had looked just like her late father, the model for Atticus. Lee explained that Peck even had a little round stomach like her father's. "That's not a pot belly, Harper," Peck told her, "That's great acting".


12:07 AM -- POLTERGEIST (FEATURETTE) (1982)
A behind-the-scenes promotional short on the making of "Poltergeist" (1982).
Dir: Frank Marshall
C-7 mins,


12:15 AM -- POLTERGEIST (1982)
Evil spirits abduct a suburban family's daughter causing chaos and havoc.
Dir: Tobe Hooper
Cast: Jobeth Williams, Craig T. Nelson, Beatrice Straight
C-114 mins, CC,

Nominee for Oscars for Best Effects, Visual Effects -- Richard Edlund, Michael Wood and Bruce Nicholson, Best Effects, Sound Effects Editing -- Stephen Hunter Flick and Richard L. Anderson, and Best Music, Original Score -- Jerry Goldsmith

The shot of the chairs that position themselves in the amazing balancing act on the table was all done in one take. As the camera panned along with JoBeth Williams, who was getting some cleaning materials, several crew members quickly set an already organized pyramid of chairs on the table, then took the single chairs away before the camera scrolled back. Just as Diane bends down to get items out of a cupboard, the chrome toaster on the kitchen counter reflects the crew switching the chair arrangement.


2:30 AM -- CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND (1977)
A blue-collar worker's encounter with a UFO leaves him a changed man.
Dir: Steven Spielberg
Cast: Richard Dreyfuss, François Truffaut, Terry Garr
C-135 mins, CC, Letterbox Format

Winner of an Oscar for Best Cinematography -- Vilmos Zsigmond

Winner of an Oscar Special Achievement Award for Frank E. Warner for sound effects editing

Nominee for Oscars for Best Actress in a Supporting Role -- Melinda Dillon, Best Director -- Steven Spielberg, Best Art Direction-Set Decoration -- Joe Alves, Daniel A. Lomino and Phil Abramson, Best Sound -- Robert Knudson, Robert Glass, Don MacDougall and Gene S. Cantamessa, Best Film Editing -- Michael Kahn, Best Effects, Visual Effects -- Roy Arbogast, Douglas Trumbull, Matthew Yuricich, Gregory Jein and Richard Yuricich, and Best Music, Original Score -- John Williams

Production designer Joe Alves drove 2,700 miles through the West to find a suitable mountain site for the mother ship landing. He finally suggested Devil's Tower in Wyoming, which closely resembled prominent features of Monument Valley, where John Ford shot movies like The Searchers (1956). Devil's Tower was preferable because it was less familiar to movie audiences and a more solitary and abrupt intrusion on the landscape. These features made the sheer, jagged-edge rock rising nearly 1,300 feet from the surrounding terrain eerie and imposing. (Personal note: I've been to Devil's Tower multiple times when going west to visit my grandparents when I was a child. The first time I saw the film, when Richard Dreyfuss started sculpting the mashed potatoes, I had the same reaction -- "I know this. I know what this is! This means something. This is important." )


5:00 AM -- HOLLYWOOD WITHOUT MAKE-UP (1966)
In this special, Ken Murray hosts his own behind-the-scenes home movies of some of Hollywood's greatest stars.
BW-50 mins, CC,

[longship]

1. That's a pretty damned good night of films.

If I had cable, I would tune in for it all.

Thankfully I have NetFlix DVD.