In what's sure to be a great "double bill," this Friday the Dryden Theatre at the George Eastman House in Rochester, New York will screen The Canary Murder Case (1929), which stars Louise Brooks. The screening will be preceded by a special presentation by Ira Resnick, author of Starstruck: Vintage Movie Posters from Classic Hollywood.
Originally shot as a silent film, The Canary Murder Case is notable for many reasons. It was the first film in which the popular detective Philo Vance appeared. The Canary Murder Case is also notable as the last American film in which Brooks had a starring role. Her refusal to re-shoot her scenes for sound effectively ended her career in the United States.
Friday’s screening will be preceded by a special presentation by Ira Resnick, a well known collector of movie posters and movie art,. His new book, Starstruck: Vintage Movie Posters from Classic Hollywood, bears a special relationship to Brooks. In the book, Resnick, writes about his "passion" for Brooks and tells the story behind his acquisition of some truly marvelous lobby cards, posters, one sheets, and stills featuring the actress For those keeping count, there are ten drop-dead gorgeous Brooks-related images in this new book. One of them is for The Canary Murder Case.
Fans will also want to listen to WXXI’s “Connection with Bob Smith” radio program, broadcast from 1 to 2 p.m. (Eastern time) on Thursday, June 10. The show will feature a one-hour live interview with Resnick and Eastman House assistant curator of motion pictures, Jim Healy. The interview will stream online at http://interactive.wxxi.org/listen
Ira Resnick’s presentation, and the screening of The Canary Murder Case, will take place at 8 pm on June 11th at the Dryden Theatre at the George Eastman House in Rochester, New York. More info at http://dryden.eastmanhouse.org/films/ira-resnick-in-person-the-canary-murder-case/ and at http://blog.eastmanhouse.org/2010/06/09/get-%E2%80%98starstruck%E2%80%99-friday-eve-at-the-dryden/
4 comments:
Looking forward to this, my second Brooksie screening (sadly, I missed Beggars of Life in April). I'm hoping to catch the WXXI radio interview as well.
Emily, if you have a chance, please post a little report about this event. Whatever observations you might have, etc... Oh, how I wish I could be there.
I'll take along a little notepad and jot down what I can. If this radio interview is any indication, it should be a fantastic event.
I think the archived audio for the radio program can be found at http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/wxxi/local-wxxi-906788.mp3
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