Summer Movie Magic kicks off June 22 with screenings of "Thunder Road" and festivities celebrating the film's 50th anniversary including the attendance of James Mitchum, Robert Mitchum's son and Thunder Road co-star.
The East Tennessee Region AACA (Antique Automobile Club of America) will display a collection of Thunder Road-era cars and is coordinating a weekend of events surrounding the anniversary, to include a reenactment of the film's famous chase scene and a parade of classic cars. The Tennessee Archive of Moving Image and Sound at the East Tennessee History Center will screen original trailers, vintage local ads, and classic film previews.
Ticket Info:
Single tickets: $8 adults, $6 youth ages 12 and under, seniors 60 and over, plus $2 per-ticket fee for web & phone orders.
Series passes: $40.50 adults, $30 youth/senior (plus $1 per-ticket fee).
Available at the Tennessee Theatre box office, by phone at 865-684-1200 or online.
Doors open at 6 p.m.
Seating for the films is general admission.
The theater opens one hour prior to each performance. Sodas, water, popcorn and other snacks will be sold at each performance. Bill Snyder plays the Mighty Wurlitzer before every feature film.
Summer Movie Magic 2008 screenings:
"Thunder Road"
3 and 7 p.m., Sunday, June 22,
1958, 92 minutes. black & white, PG
Robert Mitchum plays Lucas Doolin, a veteran of the Korean War who returns to his mountain home to take over the family moonshining business. He battles big-city gangsters who are trying to take over the business and the police who are trying to put him in prison. Based on actual events that transpired in and around Knoxville, the film is celebrating the 50th anniversary of its release, and the Tennessee Theatre will host festivities including special guest speakers and a reenactment of the famous crash!
"The Seven Year Itch"
8 p.m., Saturday, June 28, 2 p.m. Sunday, June 29,
1955, 105 minutes, black & white, NR
Billy Wilder directs an unforgettable Marilyn Monroe in this timeless farce! After sending his wife and son to Maine on a summer-long vacation, 38-year old Richard Sherman (Tom Ewell, who originated the role on Broadway) meets his drop-dead gorgeous 22-year-old blonde neighbor. His paranoia about the pop-psychology concept of the "seven-year itch" that leads married men to cheat inspires Sherman him to fantasize about seducing the bombshell known only as "The Girl."
"Vertigo"
8 p.m., Friday, July 11,
2 p.m., Sunday, July 13,
1958, 129 minutes, color, PG
In honor of the 100th anniversary of James Stewart's birth, Summer Movie Magic presents one of Alfred Hitchcock's greatest thrillers! Retired San Francisco police detective John "Scottie" Ferguson (Stewart) suffers from a severe fear of heights, a condition he is challenged to overcome when a friend from college asks Scottie to trail his beautiful but suicidal wife, Madeleine (Kim Novak), who believes she is possessed by a dead ancestor. Vertigo was voted the 19th Greatest Film of all time by Entertainment Weekly and No. 9 on the American Film Institute's list of Greatest Movies of All Time.
"Grease!"
8 p.m., Friday, July 25,
2 p.m., Sunday, July 27,
1979, 110 min, color, PG
Grease is the word! The timeless summer classic comes to the Tennessee Theatre. Don't miss the T-Birds and the Pink Ladies as they come together in this Oscar-nominated award winner.
"It Happened One Night"
8 p.m., Friday, Aug. 8,
2 p.m., Sunday, Aug. 10,
1934, 105 min, black & white, NR
Two great lovers of the silver screen meet for the first time! Legendary stars Clark Gable and Claudette Colbert set the standard for romantic comedies with their witty, "screwball" antics in "It Happened One Night." Winner of five Academy Awards, this is truly a gem of Hollywood's golden age.
"Gone with the Wind"
8 p.m., Friday, Aug. 22,
2 p.m., Sunday, Aug. 24,
1939, 238 min, color, G
Often considered cinema's greatest, most enduring historical film of all time, "Gone with the Wind" delivers unforgettable grandeur with an immortal cast (Vivian Leigh, Clark Gable, Hattie McDaniel, Butterfly McQueen,) and a classic tale of a love-hate romance during the chaotic Civil War. It is truly a landmark of American film that's improved by viewing (with an intermission) at the historic Tennessee Theatre.