A NEW UPDATE FROM THE SYRACUSE CINEPHILE SOCIETY

As promised, we are working to keep you informed and updated on our restarting plans for the Monday night movie series.

As a result of various COVID vaccines being administered to the public, the pandemic situation has improved with case numbers steadily decreasing and more businesses and events reopening. 

With New York State successfully reaching a 70% vaccination level, and with most of the Covid-related restrictions now lifted, we are planning to resume our Monday night movie screenings and begin our Fall season at the Spaghetti Warehouse on September 13, 2021.

We will be implementing some new safety features (hand sanitizers, etc.) while still maintaining the enjoyable fun that our audience members have come to expect from our weekly gatherings. 

We will continue to give you updates and in the meantime please visit our “Syracuse Cinephile Society” group page on Facebook….and please continue to support our friends at The Spaghetti Warehouse which is now open for indoor dining and take-out orders.

With our restart date of September 13, 2021, here is the schedule that we will be presenting when we return.  As you can see, we have some great titles lined up for you, and when possible we will be opening our “single feature” shows with a surprise short subject to give you that authentic “A Night at the Movies” experience:

FALL  2021  SEASON SCHEDULE                  Programs begin at 7:30 PM

9/13   THE THIN MAN GOES HOME (1944).  Cast:  William Powell, Myrna Loy, Gloria De Haven, Anne Revere, Harry Davenport, Lucile Watson, Leon Ames, Donald Meek, Edward Brophy.  Director: Richard Thorpe.  Our season opens with this entertaining entry in MGM’s “Thin Man” series of comedy-mysteries. Nick and Nora Charles visit Nick’s hometown and become involved in a murder while they’re there.  Lots of suspense, but plenty of fun laughs too.

9/20    CHAD HANNA (1940).  In Technicolor. Cast: Henry Fonda, Dorothy Lamour, Linda Darnell, Guy Kibbee, Jane Darwell, John Carradine. Director: Henry King. Walter D. Edmonds’ colorful drama of a circus troupe traveling through Central and Upstate New York during the 1840s. Several familiar Central New York cities and towns are mentioned and depicted, including Syracuse.  

9/27   THE SPIRAL STAIRCASE (1946).  Cast: Dorothy McGuire, George Brent, Ethel Barrymore, Kent Smith, Rhonda Fleming, Elsa Lanchester. Director: Robert Siodmak. An atmospheric and suspenseful thriller about a mute servant (McGuire) who works in an eerie Victorian home that may be harboring a serial killer. An “edge of your seat” classic.  

10/4    “COMEDIANS AND KIDS” DOUBLE FEATURE

             KENTUCKY KERNELS (1934).  Cast: Bert Wheeler, Robert Woolsey, Spanky McFarland, Mary Carlisle, Noah Beery, Lucille LaVerne, Margaret Dumont, Willie Best.  Director: George Stevens. Wheeler & Woolsey travel to the South to reunite a young orphan (Spanky) with his wealthy relatives…and they get caught in the middle of a longtime family feud!  We will be presenting a beautiful new restoration taken from the original 35mm camera negative.

              TILLIE AND GUS (1933).  Cast: W.C. Fields, Alison Skipworth, Baby LeRoy, Jacqueline Wells, Clifford Jones, Clarence Wilson, Edgar Kennedy.  Director: Francis Martin. When a young couple and their baby are swindled out of their rightful inheritance, a long-lost uncle and aunt (Fields and Skipworth) arrive to help save the day.  Great fun!

10/11     CITY STREETS (1931).  Cast: Gary Cooper, Sylvia Sidney, Paul Lukas, Guy Kibbee, Wynne Gibson. Director: Rouben Mamoulian. A crook’s daughter (Sidney) is fascinated by gangsters…until her formerly naïve boyfriend (Cooper) becomes one!  An interesting Pre-Code mix of crime story and romantic drama, written by Dashiell Hammett.  PLUS:  The 1936 short THE PERFECT SETUP from MGM’s “Crime Does Not Pay” series.

10/18     TALL IN THE SADDLE (1944).  Cast: John Wayne, Ella Raines, Ward Bond, Gabby Hayes, Elisabeth Risdon, Raymond Hatton. Director: Edwin L. Marin.  Wayne plays a cowboy who begins a new job on a ranch and is met with several surprises, including a murder, a crooked lawyer (Bond) and a beautiful but feisty wildcat of a woman who owns the neighboring ranch (Raines).  One of the Duke’s most popular westerns of the 1940s.

10/25      HALLOWEEN DOUBLE FEATURE

                THE MUMMY’S TOMB  (1942).  Cast: Lon Chaney, Jr., Dick Foran, Wallace Ford, Elyse Knox, George Zucco, Turhan Bey, John Hubbard, Mary Gordon.  Director: Harold Young. The murderous mummy Kharis (Chaney) is transported to America to seek revenge on the surviving members of a 30 year-old archeology expedition.  It’s mad mayhem in the classic Universal style.

                 ISLAND OF LOST SOULS (1933).  Cast:  Charles Laughton, Richard Arlen, Bela Lugosi, Kathleen Burke, Leila Hyams.  Director: Erle C. Kenton. H.G. Wells’ classic story of a mad scientist (Laughton) who lives on a remote island and transforms jungle beasts into bizarre half-human creatures.  Pre-Code horror that still packs a punch today.

11/1   HELLO, FRISCO, HELLO (1943).  In Technicolor.  Cast: Alice Faye, John Payne, Jack Oakie, June Havoc, Lynn Bari, Laird Cregar.  Director: H. Bruce Humberstone. Beloved 20^th Century-Fox musical of four Barbary Coast singing and dancing performers and the changes they face when they hit the big time.  Wonderful music, including Alice Faye singing her Oscar-winning signature tune, “You’ll Never Know”.

11/8    THE FIGHTING 69^th  (1940).  Cast: James Cagney, Pat O’Brien, George Brent, Alan Hale, Frank McHugh, William Lundigan, Jeffrey Lynn, Dick Foran, Dennis Morgan.  Director: William Keighley.  In honor of Veterans Day we present this Warner Brothers drama about the famed regiment during WWI.  Great cast, excellent performances and exciting battle action make this a classic tribute to the U.S. military.

 11/15   MYSTERY DOUBLE FEATURE

              CHARLIE CHAN IN RENO (1938).  Cast: Sidney Toler, Ricardo Cortez, Phyllis Brooks, Slim Summerville, Sen Yung, Kane Richmond, Kay Linaker. Director: Norman Foster. Chan tries to solve a murder case in the 1930s divorce capital and has to deal with some squabbling couples in the process.  An interesting assortment of characters in this fun puzzler.

              THE POWER OF THE WHISTLER (1945).  Cast: Richard Dix, Janis Carter, Jeff Donnell, John Abbott.  Director: Lew Landers. A helpful woman (Carter) tries to aid a confused amnesiac (Dix) in recalling his identity.  The closer he gets to remembering who he is, the more dangerous the situation becomes.  A great entry in Columbia’s popular “Whistler” series based on the famous radio show.    

11/22   GRAND HOTEL (1932).  Cast: Greta Garbo, John Barrymore, Lionel Barrymore, Joan Crawford, Wallace Beery, Jean Hersholt, Lewis Stone. Director: Edmund Goulding. MGM’s all-star drama that depicts the various characters and situations in a plush Berlin hotel.  Academy Award winner for Best Picture of 1932.  We are proud to be screening a stunning restoration that gives this classic an impressive pristine presentation.

11/29  OLD ACQUAINTANCE (1943).  Cast: Bette Davis, Miriam Hopkins, Gig Young, John Loder, Dolores Moran, Philip Reed, Roscoe Karns. Director: Vincent Sherman. Davis and Hopkins play two longtime friends who have personal and professional rivalries that span the years. An engrossing story with fascinating performances. 

12/6   THE SEVEN LITTLE FOYS (1955).  In Technicolor.  Cast: Bob Hope, Milly Vitale, George Tobias, Angela Clarke, Billy Gray, Jerry Mathers and special guest James Cagney.  Director: Melville Shavelson.  Our season finale is this entertaining biography of vaudevillian Eddie Foy (played by Hope) and his performing family.  It’s a nice mix of comedy, drama and music….A film that’s fun and enjoyable for the holidays.           

Please join us for dinner before the show, now with Cheesecake Factory desserts!  It is suggested you arrive for dinner no later than 6:15 PM so you can complete your meal prior to show time at 7:30 PM.