<<< July 6 - 8,  2007 >>>

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Photos from the Tiki Luau!

This is an Egyptian Theatre Exclusive!

After the phenomenal success of our Tiki Sundays the past two summers, we decided to spread the exotica over a whole weekend with more fun feature films, diverting oddball shorts, vendors, food, music and more! We begin with an epic bang on Friday night with a rare screening of director George Roy Hill’s tropical behemoth, HAWAII starring Julie Andrews. After our first program on Saturday (Kevin Kidney’s screening of his spectacular collection of rare, island-themed TV surprises), join us in the Egyptian Courtyard for a Royal Southern California-style Luau with exotic musical entertainment from King Kukelele and his Friki Tikis and the Polynesian Paradise Dancers. Then, early evening, settle in for a great double feature: THE SOPHISTICATED MISFIT, a fascinating new documentary on pop culture icon, Shag (who’ll be appearng In-Person!), paired with the vintage Burt Lancaster island adventure, HIS MAJESTY O’KEEFE. There will also be Tiki vendors and other special surprises in the courtyard on Saturday from 1:00 PM till we shut it down. We wrap things up on Sunday with a screening of the scorching hot MISS SADIE THOMPSON, starring Rita Hayworth as a hard-luck dame stranded in Samoa with nobody for company but an evil Christian fundamentalist and a gang of fun-loving GI’s.

HAWAII, 1966, MGM Repertory, 161 min. Director George Roy Hill’s (THROUGHLY MODERN MILLIE) adaptation of James Michener’s sprawling South Seas epic was nominated for seven Academy Awards, including Best Cinematography (Russell Harlan) and Best Music Score (Elmer Bernstein). Max Von Sydow is the puritanical missionary who marries disappointed-in-love Julie Andrews just before they set sail to do the Lord’s work in the early 19^th century island paradise. But they get more than they bargained for, squeezed between an onslaught of natural disasters and strange native customs. Their Calvinist devotion to a fire-and-brimstone worldview clashes head-on with the uninhibited, Dionysian headiness of the tropical lifestyle. With Richard Harris as Andrews’ former flame, Gene Hackman, Carroll O’Conner, Jocelyne LaGarde (who received an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actress).

RARE TIKI ISLAND-THEMED TV

Approx. 60 min. Artist Kevin Kidney hosts an entertaining hour of vintage tiki-themed television from the early 1960s - including some special surprises! *Tickets available to this program at the door only UNLESS purchased with the Luau Dinner ($20).

LUAU DINNER

Following the 4 PM program, join us in the Egyptian Courtyard at 5 PM for a Royal Southern California-style Luau with live music from King Kukelele and his Friki Tikis, the Polynesian Paradise Dancers, vendors and a bountiful island-themed dinner.

Saturday, July 7 – 7:30 PM

Double Feature:

THE SOPHISTICATED MISFIT, 2007, Smee Entertainment, 65 min. Mark Chervinsky directed this four-year exploration of the world of Shag, the unlikeliest of Los Angeles artistic icons. Shag’s work doesn't reflect the multicultural urban milieu of contemporary Los Angeles but rather an entirely different era. Think post-WWII boom years, suburban tracts sprawling across the landscape, Disneyland opening its doors and designers embracing the space-age motifs of Sputnik and the mission to the moon. Shag's world is one of early 1960’s furniture, cocktail hours, sprawling ranch houses, built-in wet bars, and jet-set style. He embraces a simpler time. But his artwork is filled with subtle, humorous winks of the eye acknowledging that this period wasn't quite so simple. The smiling women in their mod dresses hold secrets. The festive party scene in the go-go '60’s home isn't really what it seems. With Whoopi Goldberg, Patton Oswalt, Paul Frank and Shag. Winner of the Maverick Filmmaker Award at the 2007 Newport Beach Film Festival.

HIS MAJESTY O’KEEFE, 1954, Warner Bros., 91 min. Director Byron Haskin (THE NAKED JUNGLE; the original WAR OF THE WORLDS) brings a bracing exuberance to this tall tale of stranded-in-Micronesia sea captain Burt Lancaster’s quest to manipulate his native hosts into helping him build a trading empire. Joan Rice is the enchanting island girl who ends up being queen to his king. The spectacular Fiji Islands locations were stunningly photographed by the great cinematographer Otto Heller (THE CRIMSON PIRATE). Co-starring Andre Morell, Abraham Sofaer, Benson Fong. "…This swashbuckling South Seas adventure feature is ideally suited to Burt Lancaster's muscular heroics. The Fiji Islands location lensing is a plus…" -- Variety Discussion in between films with Shag and director Mark Chervinsky.

MISS SADIE THOMPSON, 1953, Sony Repertory, 91 min. Dir. Curtis Bernhardt (POSSESSED). After having to leave Hawaii when her Honolulu singing job goes kaput, hard-luck dame Sadie Thompson (Rita Hayworth) is stranded on the isle of Samoa which is home to a U.S. Army base. She’s befriended by well-meaning, lovable GI hunk Aldo Ray as well as his soldier pals (including a young Charles Bronson). But dirty-minded lay minister and self-righteous gadabout Jose Ferrer, laying over with his wife on a trip, believes she is nothing more than a common prostitute and is offended by her presence. He takes it upon himself to make Sadie’s life a living hell until he can get her deported back to the States. Although Rita’s singing voice was dubbed by Jo Ann Greer, you would never know it during the musical numbers – she is positively dynamite performing "Hear No Evil," "The Heat Is On," and "Blue Pacific Blues." Originally shot in 3-D, this is a terrific color remake of W. Somerset Maugham’s classic tale Miss Thompson, first filmed in 1932 as RAIN by director Lewis Milestone with Joan Crawford.