TCM Schedule for Saturday, July 1, 2017 -- What's On Tonight: The Essentials - Falling for your Mark

The Essentials tonight features a trio of films about con artists who give it all up for love. Enjoy!



6:30 AM -- The Mummy (1932)
An Egyptian mummy returns to life to stalk the reincarnation of his lost love.
Dir: Karl Freund
Cast: Boris Karloff, Zita Johann, David Manners
BW-73 mins

The character name "Imhotep" was taken from an actual ancient Egyptian, but the real Imhotep was the architect who designed the pyramids and--far from being executed in disgrace--was the only Egyptian, other than the pharaohs, who was made a god after his death. "Ardath Bey" (the name Imhotep assumes after his exhumation) is an anagram of "Death by Ra" (Ra is the Egyptian sun-god).


7:45 AM -- Island of Lost Souls (1933)
On a remote island, a mad scientist turns wild animals into human monsters.
Dir: Erle C. Kenton
Cast: Charles Laughton, Richard Arlen, Leila Hyams
BW-70 mins, CC

In response to British censors who claimed the film was "against nature", Elsa Lanchester (Mrs. Charles Laughton) is said to have stated, "Of course it's against nature. So's Mickey Mouse!"


9:00 AM -- Gold Rush Maisie (1940)
A Brooklyn showgirl helps a poor family strike it rich.
Dir: Edwin L. Marin
Cast: Ann Sothern, Lee Bowman, Slim Summerville
BW-82 mins, CC

The third of ten movies starring Ann Sothern as the heroine Maisie Ravier.


10:30 AM -- The Chance of a Lifetime (1943)
An ex-thief helps some fellow ex-cons adjust to life as defense workers, only to get involved with a robbery investigation.
Dir: William Castle
Cast: Chester Morris, Erik Rolf, Jeanne Bates
BW-66 mins, CC

The sixth of fourteen Boston Blackie films starring Chester Morris. There were eight silent films about Blackie, starring a variety of actors, and a television series in the early 1950s, starring Kent Taylor.


12:00 PM -- Requiem for a Heavyweight (1962)
A washed-up prizefighter tries to free himself from his ruthless promoters to build a new life.
Dir: Ralph Nelson
Cast: Anthony Quinn, Jackie Gleason, Mickey Rooney
BW-85 mins, CC

When CBS acquired "Requiem" for TV broadcast, the film ran 87 minutes. The network wanted to expand it to 100 minutes to fill a two hour time slot. It took deleted odds and ends including a restaurant scene with Rooney, Quinn, and Gleason that lasted seven minutes. Director Ralph Nelson was so upset that he demanded that his name be removed from the credits. The owner of the film, Columbia Pictures, insisted it stay in, but even with the new cobbled together version, the film still ran short.


1:45 PM -- The Spirit of St. Louis (1957)
Charles Lindbergh risks his life to complete his historic flight from New York to Paris.
Dir: Billy Wilder
Cast: James Stewart, Murray Hamilton, Patricia Smith
C-135 mins, Letterbox Format, CC

Nominated for an Oscar for Best Effects, Special Effects -- Louis Lichtenfield

In Charles Lindbergh's first view of Ireland, he flies over Skellig Island, this is the same island featured in Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015), *** spoiler alert ***

when Rey (Daisy Ridley) meets Luke (Mark Hamilton) for the first time.


4:15 PM -- Lord of the Flies (1963)
Schoolboys marooned on a Pacific island create their own savage civilization.
Dir: Peter Brook
Cast: James Aubrey, Tom Chapin, Hugh Edwards
BW-91 mins, CC

Eleven-year-old Hugh Edwards, who plays Piggy in the film, landed his role by writing a letter to the director which read, "Dear Sir, I am fat and wear spectacles."


6:00 PM -- Badlands (1973)
A young tough guy and his teen-aged girlfriend take off on a killing spree.
Dir: Terrence Malick
Cast: Martin Sheen, Sissy Spacek, Warren Oates
C-94 mins, CC

The film's tag line ("In 1959 a lot of people were killing time. Kit and Holly were killing people&quot inspired the Zodiac Killer, who had been lying low for years, to write a letter to a newspaper denouncing their flippant attitude to violence in society by running such an ad.



TCM PRIMETIME - WHAT'S ON TONIGHT: THE ESSENTIALS: FALLING FOR YOUR MARK



8:00 PM -- The Lady Eve (1941)
A lady cardsharp tries to con an eccentric scientist only to fall for him.
Dir: Preston Sturges
Cast: Barbara Stanwyck, Henry Fonda, Charles Coburn
BW-94 mins, CC

Nominated for an Oscar for Best Writing, Original Story -- Monckton Hoffe

Barbara Stanwyck and Henry Fonda rarely retired to their dressing rooms between takes. Instead, they hung out with Preston Sturges, listening to his stories and reviewing - and often re-writing - their lines.


10:00 PM -- Mr. Lucky (1943)
A gambling-ship owner is out to fleece a beautiful society woman, but falls in love.
Dir: H. C. Potter
Cast: Cary Grant, Laraine Day, Charles Bickford
BW-100 mins, CC

Writer Milton Holmes said that his story was inspired by a real 1936 event, where a nightclub owner staged a one-night gambling benefit at the Beverly Hills Hotel to raise $40,000 for a church. In his original story, the character of Joe dies at the end.


12:00 AM -- Nobody Lives Forever (1946)
A con artist falls for the rich widow he's trying to fleece.
Dir: Jean Negulesco
Cast: John Garfield, Geraldine Fitzgerald, Walter Brennan
BW-100 mins, CC

Humphrey Bogart refused the role of Nick Blake (played by John Garfield).


2:00 AM -- Kiss of the Tarantula (1976)
A disturbed teenage girl unleashes her pet tarantula against her "enemies."
Dir: Chris Munger
Cast: Eric Mason, Suzanne Ling, Herman Wallner
C-84 mins, Letterbox Format, CC

According to Wikipedia, "Except in cases of anaphylaxis (severe allergic reaction), no species of tarantula are dangerous to humans, and some species have become popular in the exotic pet trade."


3:45 AM -- The Bad Seed (1956)
A woman suspects that her perfect little girl is a ruthless killer.
Dir: Mervyn LeRoy
Cast: Gage Clarke, Jesse White, Joan Croyden
C-129 mins, CC

Nominated for Oscars for Best Actress in a Leading Role -- Nancy Kelly, Best Actress in a Supporting Role -- Eileen Heckart, Best Actress in a Supporting Role -- Patty McCormack, and Best Cinematography, Black-and-White -- Harold Rosson

According to Patty McCormack, the "curtain call" of actors at the end of the movie was a holdover from the Broadway production. The original ending of the play, in which Christine dies and Rhoda lives to kill again, so angered Broadway audiences that when the performance was over, "they were almost literally ready to kill someone." The "curtain call," where Christine turns Rhoda over her knee and spanks her, was a way of breaking the tension and sending the audience off with a laugh, by having Rhoda get her comeuppance.