THE FILM SOCIETY OF LINCOLN CENTER
announces July/August FAMILY FILMS lineup

GENE KELLY, FRANK SINATRA AND JUDY GARLAND dominate the singing-and-dancing summer schedule with classics like ON THE TOWN, BRIGADOON, TAKE ME OUT TO THE BALLGAME, THE PIRATE and SINGIN’ IN THE RAIN

NEW YORK, NY – (June 24, 2013) The Film Society of Lincoln Center has announced the July and August lineup for Family Films with screenings of several of the most beloved Hollywood musical’s of 40s and 50s starring classic silver screen icons, led by Gene Kelly, Frank Sinatra and Judy Garland!

On July 6 and 7, the kids get a delightful intro to music Disney-style with Bob Cormack’s MAKE MUSIC MINE (1946) with short films set to various musical style courtesy of songs by Benny Goodman, Dinah Shore and others. The following two weeks feature the Busby Berkeley directed TAKE ME OUT TO THE BALLGAME (1949) on July 13 and 14, with Gene Kelly and Frank Sinatra competing for Esther Williams’ attentions while not singing and dancing on the baseball diamond, and FOR ME AND MY GAL (1942) on July 20 and 21 with Kelly teaming with Judy Garland for the first time in an entertaining celebration of vaudeville and USO tours. 

The musical entertainment continues into August with Vincente Minnelli’s big screen version of the Scotland-set Lerner and Loewe musical, BRIGADOON (1954). The film, about an 18th Century village that is present for one day each year screens on August 3 and 4. Kelly and Stanley Donen’s musical love letter to New York, ON THE TOWN (1949) on August 10 and 11, stars Kelly, Sinatra and Jules Munshin and three sailors trying to see all the sites and squeeze in all the romance they can while on leave in the Big Apple for 24 hours.

The following two weekends feature Kelly in all his athletic and swashbuckling glory, with George Sidney’s THE THREE MUSKETEERS (1948) featuring Kelly as the charming D’Artagnan, among an all-star cast including Lana Turner and Vincent Price, on August 17 and 18. Then, Kelly and Judy Garland team once again in Minnelli’s cinematic spectacle, THE PIRATE (1948) on August 24 and 25. The Family Films’ summer schedule closes with Donen’s much loved classic SINGIN’ IN THE RAIN (1952). Screening an August 31, September 1 and 2, the film stars Kelly, Donald O’Conner, Debbie Reynolds and Jean Hagen, includes possibly the most familiar musical numbers known to filmgoers (Kelly’s iconic “Singin’ in the Rain” number) and is still one of the standards by which all subsequent musicals are measured.

All screenings will take place at the Film Society of Lincoln Center’s Elinor Bunin Munroe Film Center, 144 West 65th Street. Tickets are on sale now at family friendly pricing at just $6. The family friendly pricing continues with FSLC’s indie lunch box meal special (after showing your ticket for the Family Films screening) featuring a NY State cheddar grilled cheese sandwich on multi-grain bread with apples and iced tea or fresh lemonade, all for only $6! Visit www.FilmLinc.com for more information.

FAMILY FILMS
Film, Description & Schedule (in alphabetical order)

BRIGADOON (1954) 108min
Director: Vincente Minnelli
Country: USA
A charming CinemaScope musical set in Scotland, shot in an MGM studio, choreographed by Kelly, and adapted from the Lerner & Loewe Broadway hit about an enchanted 18th-century village that reawakens annually for only one day.
August 3 and 4 at 2:00PM

FOR ME AND MY GAL (1942) 104min
Director: Busby Berkeley
Country: USA
Kelly made his screen debut alongside Judy Garland (in her first adult role) in this rousing celebration of vaudeville and USO troopers, cited by legendary director-choreographer Berkeley as his favorite film.
July 20 and 21 at 2:00PM

MAKE MINE MUSIC (1946) 75min
Director: Bob Cormack
Country: USA
Disney’s follow-up to FANTASIA combines shorts set to the popular music of the time: Benny Goodman, Dinah Shore and Prokofiev's “Peter and the Wolf,” among others. From ballet to baseball, dancing hat racks to singing whales, there is something for everyone. Ages 6+
July 6 and 7 at 2:00PM

ON THE TOWN (1949) 98min
Directors: Gene Kelly & Stanley Donen
Country: USA, 1949; 98m
The first MGM musical with scenes shot on location, ON THE TOWN deploys the magic of New York City—from Rockefeller Center to the Empire State Building—as its setting. The film is full of energy and joy, depicting the adventures of three sailors (Gene Kelly, Frank Sinatra, and Jules Munshin) on leave for 24 hours in the city. With an engaging and smart screenplay by Betty Comden and Adolph Green and music by Leonard Bernstein and Roger Edens, ON THE TOWN also stars Ann Miller and Betty Garrett as the love interests of Munshin and Sinatra, respectively.
August 10 and 11 at 2:00PM

THE PIRATE (1948) 102min
Director: Vincente Minnelli
Country: USA
In its 1948 review of the film, The New York Times called THE PIRATE the “pinnacle of spectacle.” Contemporary audiences will no doubt agree, as this fun, over the top, and campy satirical film provides dazzling costumes, characters, sets, and cinematographic techniques. Set on the Caribbean island of Calvados in the 19th century, Gene Kelly plays Sarafin, a traveling actor, who falls in love with Manuela (the exceptional Judy Garland) and pretends to be an infamous pirate named Macoco. Channeling both Douglas Fairbanks and John Barrymore, Kelly’s turn as the flashy Sarafin/Macoco is evident in his dizzyingly seductive numbers, such as “The Pirate Ballet” and “Nina.”
August 24 and 25 at 2:00PM

SINGIN’ IN THE RAIN (1952) 102min
Director: Stanley Donen
Country: USA
This beloved musical, which tells the story of the arrival of sound to the big screen, is widely considered the best and most enjoyable in its genre for its combination of comical humor, engaging performances and sparkling choreography.
August 31 at 2:00PM, September 1 at 2:00PM and September 2 at 2:00PM

TAKE ME OUT TO THE BALL GAME (1949) 93min
Director: Busby Berkeley
Country: USA
With a story created by Gene Kelly and Stanley Donen, TAKE ME OUT TO THE BALLGAME is an underappreciated gem. As two baseball players who also work the vaudeville circuit during the early 1900s, the pairing of Kelly and Frank Sinatra—after their successful coupling in ANCHORS AWEIGH—is again delightful. Kelly’s more outgoing and aggressive Eddie and Sinatra’s shy Dennis not only hark back to ANCHORS AWEIGH, but also foreshadow a similar character dynamic in ON THE TOWN. After their baseball team is given new ownership in the form of Esther Williams (who is only briefly seen in a pool), the two men consequently fall in love with her. Added to the mix are a group of gangsters led by Edward Arnold who have their own agenda when it comes to the baseball team.
July 13 and 14 at 2:00PM

THE THREE MUSKETEERS (1948) 125min
Director: George Sidney
Country: USA
Channeling his childhood hero, Douglas Fairbanks, Gene Kelly’s choice to play the athletic and charming D’Artagnan in MGM’s non-musical version of Alexander Dumas’ The Three Musketeers comes as no surprise. As the young man who comes to Paris to join forces with the famous Athos, Porthos, and Aramis to protect King Louis XIII, Kelly presents the same grace and dexterity as he does in his various musical films. As he brandishes his sword in numerous duels, Kelly’s flexibility is evident in every leap, jump, and twist of his body. With costumes by the talented Walter Plunkett, THE THREE MUSKETEERS presents a lavish vision of 17th century fashion (as the seductive Lady de Winter, Lana Turner’s hats deserve their own screen credit). Also starring Frank Morgan, Vincent Price, and June Allyson, this Technicolor film is a fun and stylish romantic adventure involving the recovery of lost jewels, infidelity, mystery, scandal, and friendship.
August 17 and 18 at 2:00PM

FILM SOCIETY OF LINCOLN CENTER
Founded in 1969 to celebrate American and international cinema, the Film Society of Lincoln Center works to recognize and support new directors, and to enhance the awareness, accessibility and understanding of film. Among its yearly programming of film festivals, film series and special events, the Film Society presents two film festivals in particular that annually attract global attention: the New York Film Festival, which just celebrated its 50th edition, and New Directors/New Films which, since its founding in 1972, has been produced in collaboration with MoMA. The Film Society also publishes the award-winning Film Comment Magazine, and for over three decades has given an annual award—now named “The Chaplin Award”—to a major figure in world cinema. Past recipients of this award include Charlie Chaplin, Alfred Hitchcock, Martin Scorsese, Meryl Streep, Tom Hanks, Sidney Poitier, and most recently – Barbra Streisand. FSLC presents its year-round calendar of programming, panels, lectures, educational and transmedia programs and specialty film releases at the famous Walter Reade Theater and the state-of-the-art Elinor Bunin Munroe Film Center.

The Film Society receives generous, year-round support from Royal Bank of Canada, Jaeger-LeCoultre, American Airlines, The New York Times, Stonehenge Partners, Stella Artois, the Kobal Collection, the National Endowment for the Arts and New York State Council on the Arts. For more information, visit www.filmlinc.com and follow @filmlinc on Twitter.

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