TCM for Wednesday, March 24th: Star of the Month: Ginger Rogers

TCM celebrates the birthday of Mr. Steve McQueen, and continues its tribute to Star of the Month Ginger Rogers.



Wednesday, March 24th, 2010

1:00 AM Yojimbo (1961)
A samurai-for-hire sets the warring factions of a Japanese town against each other. Cast: Toshiro Mifune, Eijiro Tono, Seizaburo Kawazu. Dir: Akira Kurosawa. BW-111 mins, TV-14, Letterbox Format

3:00 AM Sanjuro (1962)
A wandering samurai recruits younger fighters to help him battle corruption. Cast: Toshiro Mifune, Tatsuya Hakadai, Yuzo Kayama. Dir: Akira Kurosawa. BW-96 mins, TV-14, Letterbox Format

4:45 AM Dodes 'Ka-Den (1970)
Slum dwellers in Tokyo fight to survive while dreaming of better lives. Cast: Yoshitaka Zushi, Kin Sugai, Kaou Kato. Dir: Akira Kurosawa. C-140 mins, TV-14

7:15 AM Short Film: Now Playing April (2010) (2010)
Features highlights of the month's programming on TCM, including festivals and stars. BW-21 mins, TV-PG, CC

7:45 AM Blob, The (1958)
A misunderstood teen fights to save his town from a gelatinous monster from outer space. Cast: Steve McQueen, Aneta Corseaut, Earl Rowe. Dir: Irvin S. Yeaworth, Jr. C-82 mins, TV-PG, Letterbox Format

9:15 AM Never So Few (1959)
A U.S. military troop takes command of a band of Burmese guerillas during World War II. Cast: Frank Sinatra, Gina Lollobrigida, Steve McQueen. Dir: John Sturges. C-125 mins, TV-PG, CC, Letterbox Format

11:30 AM Nevada Smith (1966)
A part-Indian cowboy avenges his parents' murder. Cast: Steve McQueen, Karl Malden, Brian Keith. Dir: Henry Hathaway. C-131 mins, TV-14, CC, Letterbox Format

1:45 PM Reivers, The (1969)
A young man comes of age when he stows away in his grandfather's stolen car. Cast: Steve McQueen, Rupert Crosse, Mitch Vogel. Dir: Mark Rydell. C-111 mins, TV-14, CC, Letterbox Format



3:45 PM Le Mans (1971)
During a deadly endurance race, a driver faces the trauma of a past accident. Cast: Steve McQueen, Siegfried Rauch, Elga Andersen. Dir: Lee H. Katzin. C-109 mins, TV-PG, Letterbox Format

5:45 PM Junior Bonner (1972)
An aging rodeo rider tries to deal with his dysfunctional family. Cast: Steve McQueen, Robert Preston, Ida Lupino. Dir: Sam Peckinpah. C-100 mins, TV-PG, CC, Letterbox Format

7:30 PM Quentin Tarantino (2008)
Celebrities reveal the classic movies that influenced their lives in interviews with acclaimed film critic/interviewer Elvis Mitchell. C-28 mins, TV-PG, CC, Letterbox Format

What's On Tonight: STAR OF THE MONTH: GINGER ROGERS



8:00 PM Vivacious Lady (1937)
After a whirlwind courtship, a nightclub singer has to adjust to her professor husband's conservative family. Cast: Ginger Rogers, James Stewart, Charles Coburn. Dir: George Stevens. BW-90 mins, TV-G, CC

9:45 PM Bachelor Mother (1939)
A fun-loving shop girl is mistaken for the mother of a foundling. Cast: Ginger Rogers, David Niven, Charles Coburn. Dir: Garson Kanin. BW-82 mins, TV-G, CC

11:15 PM Stage Door (1937)
Women at a theatrical boarding house try to make their big break happen. Cast: Katharine Hepburn, Ginger Rogers, Adolphe Menjou. Dir: Gregory La Cava. BW-92 mins, TV-G, CC, DVS



1:00 AM Having Wonderful Time (1938)
A New York girl finds love at a summer resort. Cast: Ginger Rogers, Douglas Fairbanks, Jr., Lucille Ball. Dir: Alfred Santell. BW-70 mins, TV-G, CC

2:15 AM Fifth Avenue Girl (1939)
To annoy his family, a millionaire hires an out-of-work girl to pose as a gold digger. Cast: Ginger Rogers, Walter Connolly, Tim Holt. Dir: Gregory La Cava. BW-83 mins, TV-G, CC

3:45 AM In Person (1935)
A movie star runs off to the mountains for an incognito vacation. Cast: Ginger Rogers, George Brent, Alan Mowbray. Dir: William A. Seiter. BW-87 mins, TV-G

5:15 AM Twenty Million Sweethearts (1934)
A promoter neglects his wife to make a singer a radio star. Cast: Dick Powell, Ginger Rogers, Pat O'Brien. Dir: Ray Enright. BW-90 mins, TV-G, CC

It's always on very late at night here, and it seems that schedulers aren't aware of what a gem they have.

Of course, it's absolutely packed with witty one-liners, but underneath is a sub-plot that's all too realistic,
and these fine actresses are good enough to make you aware of the desperation they live with every day - if they
don't laugh, they'd probably cry.

Ginger Rogers gives an excellent performance - pity about her politics, but she could act. And the way she and
Katharine Hepburn play off each other is rather a surprise. They were diametric opposites in every way you could
think of, but somehow their scenes together worked brilliantly.

And who can watch Hepburn's opening night scene ("The calla lilies are in bloom again...") without a tear in the
eye? It could be pure corn, but it manages to avoid the pitfalls inherent in the script, and it's wonderful to
see.