The Latest TCM Classic Film Festival Announcements

TCM has now announced a number of interesting additions to the 2015 TCM Classic Film Festival schedule.

Personal appearances just announced for the festival: Ann-Margret will introduce a 50th anniversary screening of THE CINCINNATI KID (1965), William Daniels and Ken Howard will be at 1776 (1972), and former NASA astronaut James Lovell will introduce the previously announced 20th anniversary restoration of APOLLO 13 (1995).

Although I generally prefer classic-era films, I very much hope to attend the APOLLO 13 screening, which is in my Top 20 favorite films of the last quarter century. It would be worth it just to see beautifully scored launch sequence on a big screen for the first time in 20 years! But the entire movie is terrific, and I especially like the performances of Ed Harris and Gary Sinise as the men "on the ground" spearheading the rescue effort. "Failure is not an option!"

While I admit I'm not especially interested in the storyline of the film THE CINCINNATI KID, it's got a great cast and I might give it a try in order to see Ann-Margret. I admire her and especially enjoyed her in VIVA LAS VEGAS (1964). I also thought she was terrific as Blanche in a TV production of A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE (1984).

I'd especially love to see the restorations of a pair of favorite Warner Bros. musicals, 42ND STREET (1933) and CALAMITY JANE (1953), and I'd love to see David Ladd at the screening of a restored print of THE PROUD REBEL (1958), also starring his father Alan Ladd and Olivia de Havilland. I saw David's sister Alana a couple of years ago at a screening of THE GREAT GATSBY (1949).

TCM has been trying to persuade Doris Day to attend the festival for quite some time. I tend to doubt she'd come, but if she did attend I'm quite sure that her appearance would cause the most excitement in the festival's history!

The festival's premiere restorations will also include Disney's PINOCCHIO (1940) and the crime film RIFIFI (1955), which I saw in a gorgeous print at UCLA last summer. I can't recommend that one highly enough.

Visit the festival site for the complete list of films announced to date.

I'll be sharing more festival information as it's released!

Previous 2015 TCM Classic Film Festival Posts: TCM Announces 2015 Festival Dates and Theme; TCM Classic Film Festival Announcements; The Sound of Music (1965) to Open 2015 TCM Classic Film Festival.