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THE ROXIE THEATER presents
Sunday, May 18
Afternoon Program (separate admission)
A Triple-Feature Tribute to Monogram Pictures!
Friday, May 16
STRANGER ON THE 3rd FLOOR
After an ambitious newspaper reporter’s testimony sends
a hapless cabbie to death row for a murder he didn’t commit, pangs of guilt begin to set in. When the reporter suddenly finds himself on trial for murder, the wheels of injustice yet again spin madly out of control. Widely considered
to be the first true American studio noir film, this brilliantly
realized B picture is a veritable catalog of nearly every
noir convention that would follow. Starring John McGuire,
Margaret Tallichet, Elisha Cook, Jr. and Peter Lorre as the
stranger. Photographed by Nicholas Musuraca. Written
by Frank Partos. Directed by Boris Ingster. In Bv&W. 65
mins. 1940. FRIDAY at 6:30 and 9:50.
FRI MAY 16 - SUN MAY 25
Dark treasures from the Warner Archive
FOR
TEN WONDROUS DAYS AND
NIGHTS THE ROXIE WILL
AGAIN PLAY
HOST TO THE CITY’S MOST FASCINATING
ONGOING FESTIVAL OF FILM NOIR -I WAKE UP DREAMING! THIS YEAR THIRTY
AMAZING FILMS -- CLASSICS AND CURIOS
ALIKE -- WILL ILLUMINATE THE BIG ROXIE
SCREEN WITH THE MESMERIZING GLOW
THAT CAN ONLY BE ACHIEVED IN THE ENCLOSED CONFINES OF A MOVIE THEATER.
Mark Stock
All thirty films have been carefully culled from
the vast expanses of the WARNER ARCHIVE, with
titles from Warner Bros., RKO, MGM, Monogram,
and Allied Artists, spanning the years 1932 to 1965
and programmed exclusively for the Roxie by Elliot
Lavine. From the brash and risqué pre-code era
you’ll THRILL to the criminal exploits of Spencer
Tracy, Edward G. Robinson, and Barbara Stanwyck
in 20,000 YEARS IN SING SING, TWO SECONDS, and LADIES THEY TALK ABOUT while rubbing shoulders with Van Heflin and Robert Young in the rare and dazzling “proto-noirs” GRAND CENTRAL MURDER
and Tod Browning’s MIRACLES FOR SALE, that great director’s final film! GASP in wonderment at hardcore
1940s noir classics like Michael Curtiz’ creepily suspenseful THE UNSUSPECTED, John Brahm’s ornate masterpiece THE LOCKET, a pair of
Ann Sheridan scorchers: NORA PRENTISS and THE UNFAITHFUL,
Woolrich’s THE WINDOW, and the film most everyone heralds as the
first true American studio noir, STRANGER ON THE THIRD FLOOR!
Fans of ultra-low budget, hyper-surreal Poverty Row noir will have lots
to DROOL over with our Triple Feature Tribute to Monogram Pictures:
William Castle’s legendary WHEN STRANGERS MARRY, the Cornell
Woolrich adaptation FALL GUY and ANGELS IN DISGUISE starring
the Bowery Boys! The 1950s will be
well-represented by incendiary noir
thrillers like Andrew Stone’s breathtaking HIGHWAY 301, Dick Powell’s nuclear-fueled SPLIT SECOND,
Felix Feist’s haunting TOMORROW
IS ANOTHER DAY, Nicholas Ray’s
hot-house melodrama A WOMAN’S SECRET, two sensational
Fritz Lang thrillers, WHILE THE CITY SLEEPS and BEYOND A REASONABLE DOUBT, and the thoroughly whacked drug expose DEATH IN
SMALL DOSES!
Finally, be prepared to be startled by such 60s shockers as THE HYPNOTIC
EYE, Robert Bloch’s rarely screened psycho-drama THE COUCH, the mindbending William Conrad-directed films BRAINSTORM and TWO ON A
GUILLOTINE and Budd Boetticher’s widescreen black & white gangster epic
THE RISE AND FALL OF LEGS DIAMOND!
These thirty films are coming to the Roxie via the Warner Archive who will be providing
us with the best available digital transfers, all brilliant and sharp and guaranteed to deliver a fantastic picture. We’d like to thank the fine folks at Warner Archive, especially Matt
Patterson who worked diligently and tirelessly to help make this historic show possible.
The poster at the top of this column was the result of the generous contribution of artist Mark Stock who donated
the use of his painting “A Double Life #2” and the beautiful work of graphic designer Wayne Shellabarger. As
many already know, Mark Stock passed away this past March 26 only an hour after appearing at the Roxie’s
benefit fundraiser where he happily appeared, signing copies of the poster and performing magic tricks. He was a grand and glorious fellow as well as a
transformational artist. A career retrospective exhibit is now in full swing at Modernism in San Francisco and runs through the end of June.
plus
THE UNSUSPECTED
Could the on-air host of a popular mystery radio program actually be a cold-blooded homicidal killer? The caustic wit of the
screenplay nearly overshadows the gothic weirdness of the film
itself in one of Hollywood’s great unsung and nearly forgotten
noir classics; vividly atmospheric and beautifully played by a
stellar Warner Bros. cast including Claude Rains, Joan Caulfield,
Audrey Totter, Hurd Hatfield, Constance Bennett. Photographed
by Elwood “Woody” Bredell. From the novel by Charlotte Armstrong. Directed by Michael Curtiz. In B&W. 103 mins. 1947.
FRIDAY at 8:00 only!
Saturday, May 17 Afternoon Program
(separate admission)
LOVE IS A RACKET
A down and dirty crime confection about racketeers, Broadway floozies and
hard-living newspaper columnists living in the kind of pre-code movie world where
someone just might get away with murder. Peppered with enough salty cynicism to
spice a dozen films, this is exactly the kind of picture that helped introduce the noir
sensibility. Starring Douglas Fairbanks, Jr., Ann Dvorak, Lee Tracy, Frances Dee,
Lyle Talbot. Photographed by Sid Hickox. Directed by William Wellman. In B&W.
72 mins. 1932. SATURDAY at 2:00 only!
and
LADIES THEY TALK ABOUT
Sexy and sassy gun moll Nan Taylor is tossed into San Quentin after a bank heist.
Things look pretty bleak until she learns that her two male partners in crime are on
the men’s side of the wall -- and about to hatch an escape plan. One of the first and
best of the pre-code women in prison films, still and always a crowd pleaser! Starring Barbara Stanwyck, Preston Foster, Lyle Talbot, Dorothy Burgess, Lillian Roth.
Photographed by John Seitz. Directed by Howard Bretherton, William Keighley. In
B&W. 69 mins. 1933. SATURDAY at 3:30 only!
Saturday, May 17 Evening Program (separate admission)
NORA PRENTISS
What begins as an innocent attraction between two strangers--a respectable, married doctor and a nightclub singer--quickly festers into
a sizzling love affair. In a moment of madness a treacherous scheme
is born that will signal danger and doom. Dazzling, brilliantly filmed
romantic noir, long unappreciated and certainly due for exposure at the
Roxie! Starring Ann Sheridan, Kent Smith, Bruce Bennett, Robert Alda,
Wanda Hendrix. Photographed by James Wong Howe. Directed by Vincent Sherman. In B&W. 111 mins. 1947. SATURDAY at 5:15 and 9:45.
plus
THE UNFAITHFUL
With her husband out of town, a happily married woman is
attacked in her home one night and in the struggle manages to
kill the intruder. Gradually a strange and shocking backstory is
revealed that could destroy the lives of several people. A brooding and provocative tale of gathering menace, from an original
screenplay by noir maestro David Goodis. Starring Ann Sheridan, Zachary Scott, Lew Ayres, Eve Arden. Photographed by
Ernest Haller. Directed by Vincent Sherman. In B&W. 109 mins.
SATURDAY at 7:30 only!
ANGELS IN DISGUISE
The Bowery Boys find themselves up to their scruffy necks in robbery and
murder in this unusually dark and violent entry in the popular lowbrow comedy series. Monogram produced an amazing 48 films in this series between
1946 and 1958 and this early one is one of the best. Starring Leo Gorcey,
Huntz Hall, Gabriel Dell, Mickey Knox, Bernard Gorcey. Photographed by
Marcel Le Picard. Directed by Jean Yarbrough. In B&W. 63 mins. 1949. SUNDAY at 2:00 only!
with
FALL GUY
A young man, covered in blood and whacked out on cocaine is picked up
by the cops. But he can’t remember a thing about what happened the night
before or how that pretty young girl he was spotted with earlier turned up
dead. A desperate escape in the night to find the truth offers only the dimmest
hope. Starring Leo Penn, Robert Armstrong, Teala Loring, Elisha Cook, Jr.
Photographed by Mack Stengler. Based on the story “Cocaine” by Cornell
Woolrich. Directed by Reginald Le Borg. In B&W. 64 mins. 1947. SUNDAY
at 3:15 only!
and
WHEN STRANGERS MARRY (aka BETRAYED)
An innocent young woman arrives in the big city to meet her new husband.
But a series of recent mysterious, motiveless murders seem to have a strange
connection to him. Is the man she thought she trusted a homicidal maniac?
Perhaps the most famous and critically revered of all Monogram films, a highly stylish and stimulating noir classic. Starring
Kim Hunter, Robert Mitchum, Dean Jagger, Neil Hamilton. Photographed by Ira Morgan. Screenplay by Philip Yordan.
Directed by William Castle. In B&W. 67 mins. 1944. SUNDAY at 4:30 only!
Sunday, May 18 Evening Program (separate admission)
THE LOCKET
Just before his wedding, the bridegroom hears an incredible tale that suggests his beautiful bride might be dangerously disturbed and possibly even
a murderess! An intricate tale of death and deception that ingeniously and
famously turns the time-honored flashback convention inside out. Visually
sumptuous and unforgett able. Starring Laraine Day, Brian Aherne, Robert Mitchum, Gene Raymond, Ricardo Cortez. Photographed by Nicholas
Musuraca. Directed by John Brahm. In B&W. 85 mins. 1946. SUNDAY at
8:00 only!
and
THE WINDOW
The “boy who cried wolf” scenario is stretched to unbearably
suspenseful limits when a nine year
old kid with a hyper-active imagination witnesses a brutal murder
through the apartment window
across the way. Naturally, with the
boy’s reputation for fabricating tall
tales, no one believes him. Except the killers, of course. Exceptionally exciting to
the very end. Starring Barbara Hale, Arthur Kennedy, Paul Stewart, Ruth Roman, Bobby Driscoll. Photographed by Robert
De Grasse. From a story by Cornell Woolrich. Directed by Ted Tetzlaff. In B&W. 73 mins. 1949. SUNDAY at 6:30 and 9:45.
Monday, May 19
20,000 YEARS IN SING-SING
A blunt and often raw prison drama steeped in pre-code Hollywood violence and cynicism. A brash young hoodlum is sent to prison and promptly
begins a one man war against the system. One of the more powerful of the
many grim prison dramas produced in the early 30s. Starring Spencer Tracy,
Bette Davis, Arthur Byron, Lyle Talbot. Photographed by Barney McGill. From
the book by Lewis E. Lawes. Directed by Michael Curtiz. In B&W. 78 mins.
1932. MONDAY at 8:00 only!
and
TWO SECONDS
In the final seconds
before he is executed,
convict John Allen relives the final fateful days that led up to the
tragic circumstances that brought him to the death house. A film
of enormous power and scope, featuring a bravura performance
from its charismatic star, Edward G. Robinson. Also in at the cast
are Vivienne Osborne, Guy Kibbee, Preston Foster, J. Carrol Naish.
Photographed by Sol Polito. Directed by Mervyn Le Roy. In B&W.
68 mins. 1932. SUNDAY at 6:30 and 9:40.
Friday, May 23
Tuesday, May 20
Sunday, May 25
Afternoon program (separate admission)
THE RISE AND FALL OF LEGS DIAMOND
TOMORROW IS ANOTHER DAY
THE HYPNOTIC EYE
Despite any and all historical inaccuracies, this is a dynamic and emotionally wild gangster melodrama, the noir-tinged tale of a blindly ambitious punk whose career left a bloodstained swath across the Roaring 20s.
Deeply nuanced and ultimately troubling, an important entry in a great
director’s canon. Starring a B movie cast of a lifetime: Ray Danton, Karen
Steele, Elaine Stewart, Jesse White, Simon Oakland, Warren Oates. Photographed by Lucien Ballard. Directed by Budd Boetticher. In B&W. 101
mins. 1960. FRIDAY at 8:15 only!
plus!
After spending years in prison for a crime he didn’t commit,
a brooding ex-con attempts to adjust to life on the outside. His
search for redemption takes a detour when he hooks up with a
cynical dime-a-dance girl. A complex and compassionate noir
that packs an unexpected emotional punch. Starring Ruth Roman, Steve Cochran, Lurene Tuttle, Ray Teal. Photographed by
Robert Burks. Screenplay by Guy Endore.
Directed by Felix Feist.
In B&W. 90 mins. 1951.
TUESDAY at 8:00 only!
plus!
Beautiful women all over the city are inexplicably mutilating themselves. Could these women be under the hypnotic control of someone
so evil, so maniacally diabolical thatv nothing, absolutely nothing can
be done to stop this unholy madness? See for yourself in one of the
60s hottest cult horror noirs! Starring Jacques Bergerac, Merry Anders, Allision Hayes, Joe Partridge. Photographed by Archie Dalzell.
Directed byvGeorge Blair.In B&W. 79 mins 1960. SUNDAY at1:30
only!
and
AL CAPONE
Fact-fueled opus on
the life of the notorious
gangster who, after arriving in Chicago at the dawn of Prohibition, rose
to the top of the rackets through murder, extortion, and political fraud.
Outrageously bold performances highlight this one-of-a-kind film. Starring Rod Steiger, Fay Spain, James Gregory, Martin Balsam, Nehemiah
Persoff. Photographed by Lucien Ballard. Directed by Richard Wilson. In
B&W. 104 mins. FRIDAY at 6:00 and 10:15.
A WOMAN’S
SECRET
When a glamorous singer becomes afflicted with a rare throat disease she handpicks her successor, a young songbird with troubling emotional problems. Complications arise when deadly gunfire erupts. Like a slightly more daft and morbid version of
All About Eve, but with just a twist of noir. Starring Maureen O’Hara, Melvyn Douglas, Gloria Grahame, Jay C. Flippen, Victor Jory. Photographed by George Diskant.
Screenplay by Herman Mankiewicz. Directed by Nicholas Ray. In B&W. 84 mins.
1949. TUESDAY at 6:15 and 9:45.
Wednesday, May 21
Saturday, May 24
A vicious killer and his gang crash out of prison and hold a group
of hostages in a Nevada ghost town where an atom bomb test is
set to happen the following morning! Tension escalates to the boiling point as loyalties among the
gang gradually begin to shift.
Nuclear noir for the Fallout
Generation. Starring Stephen
McNally, Alexis Smith, Jan Sterling, Keith Andes, Paul Kelly.
Photographed by Nicholas Musuraca. Screenplay by William
Bowers and Irving Wallace. Directed by Dick Powell. In B&W.
85 mins. 1953. WEDNESDAY at 8:00 only!
with
EXPERIMENT ALCATRAZ
A group of five prison lifers are given the chance to gain their freedom if they’re willing to subject themselves to a bizarre and hazardous medical experiment -- one that
will blast radioactive isotopes into these desperate human guinea pigs! An ingenious
low-budget noir from one of the legendary Kings of the Bs. Starring John Howard,
Joan Dixon, Robert Shayne, Lynne Carter. Photographed by Jackson Rose. Directed
by Edward L. Cahn. In B&W. 57 mins. 1950. WEDNESDAY at 6:40 and 9:45.
Thursday, May 22
HIGHWAY 301
A gang of desperate armed robbers led by a psychotic killer
spread a wave of terror throughout the southeast, wantonly killing
anyone who gets in their way. One of the last great gangster noirs,
breathlessly paced and brutally violent. Based on a true story.
Starring Steve Cochran, Virginia Grey, Gaby Andre, Robert Webber, Aline Towne. Photographed by Carl E. Guthrie. Written and
directed by Andrew L. Stone. In B&W. 83 mins. 1950. THURSDAY
at 8:00 only!
DEATH IN SMALL DOSES
Tawdry B expose’ about the illegal amphetamine racket!
Long-haul truckers are the targets of this heinous web of destruction that keep sending drugged drivers to their doom. A
tough-minded federal agent is called in to straighten things out.
As 50s trash-noir goes, this one rates awfully high. Starring
Peter Graves, Mala Powers, Chuck Connors, Merry Anders.
Photographed by Carl E. Guthrie. Directed by Joseph M. Newman. In B&W. 79 mins. 1957. THURSDAY at 6:15 and 9:45.
Sunday, May 25
Evening program (separate admission)
One of the 60s great unsung films and arguably the last great American studio noir film! A research scientist saves a
beautiful young woman from a suicide attempt, falls in love with her, and plots to murder her husband--the powerful and
egomaniacal head of the corporation he works for. Maddeningly brilliant and compelling no matter how often you’ve seen it,
this dazzler was first presented at the Roxie back in
1995 and it’s still a welcome sight! Starring Jeffrey
Hunter, Anne Francis, Dana Andrews, Viveca Lindfors. Photographed by Sam Leavitt. Screenplay by
Mann Rubin. Directed by William Conrad. In B&W.
113 mins. 1965. SUNDAY at 7:45 only!
A suave, internationally known magician
finds himself involved in a diabolical scheme
involving fake spiritualists and…murder! A rare
and fascinating proto-noir, wholly unusual and
ripe with bizavrre imagery. Sadly, this was the
final film from the masterful auteur responsible
for DRACULA and FREAKS. Starring Robert
Young, Florence Rice, Frank Craven, Henry
Hull. Photographed by Charles Lawton, Jr.
Screenplay by Harry Ruskin. Directed by Tod
Browning. In B&W. 71 mins. 1939. SATURDAY
at 1:30 only!
with
GRAND CENTRAL MURDER
A tough-as-nails private eye matches wits
with the cops and a train full of suspects when
a glamorous movie star is found strangled
to death! Paced at a lightning fast clip and
charged with some of the snappiest hardboiled patter this side of Chandler. Starring
Van Heflin, Patricia Dane, Virginia Grey,
Samuel S. Hinds, Sam Levene. Photographed
by George Fosley. Screenplay by Peter Ruric.
Directed by S. Sylvan Simon. 73 mins. 1942.
SATURDAY at 2:50 only!
plus!
BUNCO SQUAD
Exciting B noir about the undercover detectives who go after the phony mediums and
spiritualists who prey mercilessly on the weak
and the grieving. Smartly atmospheric and suspenseful, this is another seldom seen gem in
need of critical re-ealuation. Starring Robert
Sterling, Joan Dixon, Ricardo Cortez, Douglas
Fowley, John Kellogg. Photographed by Henry
Freulich. Directed by Herbert Leeds. In B&W.
67 mins. 1950. SATURDAY at 4:20 only!
Saturday, May 24
Evening Program (separate admission)
Two classic FRITZ LANG shockers!
WHILE THE
CITY SLEEPS
Internal power struggles at a New York
newspaper serve as
the backdrop for this
unwholesome tale of
sex and murder. An ambitious editor exploits
the recent series of
brutal sex-slayings that
has the city in a panic
by using fear and greed as motivating principles. A brilliant noir melodrama, and one of this great director’s signature American films. Starring Dana Andrews, Rhonda Fleming, George Sanders, Howard Duff,
Thomas Mitchell, Vincent Price, Ida Lupino, John Drew Barrymore. Photographed by Ernest Laszlo. Screenplay by Casey Robinson. Directed
by Fritz Lang. In B&W. 100 mins. 1956. SATURDAY at 7:45 only!
with
plus!
The pretty young daughter of a recently dead magician must spend
seven nights in a row in a darkly foreboding mansion if she expects
to cash in on the family inheritance. Macabre chills with a nasty noirish touch make this ultra-rare shocker a must-see for any
discerning movie-goer. Starring Connie Stevens, Dean Jones, Cesar Romero. Photographed by Sam Leavitt. Screenplay by
Henry Slesar. Directed by William Conrad. In B&W. 107 mins. 1965. SUNDAY at 3:00 only!
BRAINSTORM
Afternoon Program: Another Incredible Triple-B-Feature!!!
(separate admission)
MIRACLES FOR SALE
SPLIT SECOND
TWO ON A GUILLOTINE
BEYOND A REASONABLE DOUBT
In order to call attention to the inequities of the death
penalty, a writer conspires with his editor to have himself
framed for murder, tried, convicted and sentenced to death
despite being innocent. Fate steps in to deliver a bizarre
twist to this ingenious tale from one of the true founding
fathers of film noir. Starring Dana Andrews, Joan Fontaine, Sidney Blackmer, Arthur Franz, Barbara Nichols.
Photographed by William E. Snyder. Written by Douglas
Morrow. Directed by Fritz Lang. In B&W. 80 mins. 1956.
SATURDAY at 6:00 and 9:50.
plus!
THE COUCH
While undergoing therapy, a charming serial killer continues his
murder spree as police stand by helplessly trying to figure things out.
Generally overlooked at the time of its release, this is nevertheless a disarming thriller with a psychologically complex central character. Coming during the tsunami of deeply dark shock-thrillers left in the wake of
Hitchcock’s PSYCHO, this is a fairly forgotten film that deserves closer
scrutiny. Starring Grant Williams, Shirley Knight, Onslow Stevens. Photographed by Harold E. Stine. Screenplay by Robert (PSYCHO) Bloch,
from a story by Blake Edwards. Directed by Owen Crump. In B&W.
100 mins. 1962. SUNDAY at 5:30 and 10:00.
IMPORTANT INFO ABOUT THIS YEAR’S SHOW!
For the first time we will be having separate afternoon programs on Saturday and Sunday. This was done in order to
present as many films as possible during our ten day series.
The afternoon programs will require a separate admission;
tickets for the afternoon programs will not be honored for
the evening programs.
As always, these programs are all DOUBLE FEATURES
(and in two cases Triple Features). One admission is good
for both (or all) films on each program at all times during
this festival.
TICKETS FOR EVENING PROGRAMS: $12.00
TICKETS FOR AFTERNOON PROGRAMS: $10.00
For info about advance tickets, go to www.roxie.com.
We would like to express our gratitude to the Warner Archive, now a
proud sponsor of the I WAKE UP DREAMING film series at the Roxie
Theater. This program could never have happened without their generous participation. We are also grateful to our wonderful friends at
PSPrint in Oakland, both for the beautiful calendar they have printed
for us and the incredible support they have shown for repertory film
programming in the Bay Area.
This year’s beautiful 20”x30” limited
edition I WAKE UP DREAMING poster
-- featuring Mark Stock’s incredible painting -- will be available for sale both at the
theater and at roxie.com
Series programmed by Elliot Lavine.
Calendar designed by Wayne Shellabarger.
wayneshellabarger.com
This year’s program dedicated to the memory
of Mark Stock
ROXIE THEATER • 16th STREET @ VALENCIA in San Francisco • (415) 863-1087
As the PsPrint logo get sm
symbol will vary in size
the “DELUXE” copy.
Minimum logo dimension
Width = 1.75”