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Home , Ann Sheridan, Audrey Totter, Blake Edwards, Constance Bennett, Dean Jagger, Gabriel Dell

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