CALL NORTHSIDE 777 / LARCENY

ABOUT THE EVENT: 

7:30pm | Introduction

7:40pm | CALL NORTHSIDE 777

9:30pm | Intermission 

9:40pm | LARCENY

Start times are approximate.

ABOUT THE FILMS:

CALL NORTHSIDE 777, 112 Minutes, Disney, USA. 

Originally released February 18, 1948 by 20th Century–Fox

Screenplay by Jerome Cady and Jay Dratler, based on news articles by James P. McGuire

Produced by Otto Lang

Directed by Henry Hathaway

Jimmy Stewart is terrific as P.J. McNeal, a Chicago newspaper reporter determined to free a convicted killer (Richard Conte) he believes has been unfairly imprisoned for eleven years. Despite a mountain of seemingly irrefutable evidence, McNeal follows his gut and unravels a string of bad luck and miscommunication that would appear unbelievable were it not based on a true story. Stewart rarely ventured into the noir world, but when he did his heroism took on an obsessive bent, giving his performances a notable edge. The first Hollywood feature to be shot entirely on location in Chicago, CALL NORTHSIDE 777 also boasts fantastic cinematography by Joseph MacDonald and stellar supporting performances by Conte, Lee J. Cobb, and Helen Walker. Winner of the Edgar Award from the Mystery Writers of America for Best Motion Picture of 1948.

CAST: James Stewart (P.J. McNeal), Richard Conte (Frank Wiecek), Lee J. Cobb (Brian Kelly), Helen Walker (Laura McNeal), Betty Garde (Wanda Skutnik), Kasia Orzazewski (Tillie Wiecek), Joanne De Bergh (Helen Wiecek), Michael Chapin (Frank Wiecek, Jr.), Howard Smith (K.L. Palmer), Moroni Olsen (Parole Board Chairman), J.M. Kerrigan (Sullivan), John McIntire (Sam Faxon), Paul Harvey (Martin Burns), George Tyne (Tomek Zaleska), Leonarde Keeler (himself)

FORMAT: DCP

LARCENY, 89 Minutes, Universal Pictures, USA. 

Originally released September 3, 1948 by Universal Pictures

Screenplay by Williams Bowers, Herb Margolis, and Lou Morheim, based on the novel The Velvet Fleece by Lois Eby and John C. Fleming

Produced by Leonard Goldstein

Directed by George Sherman

John Payne and Dan Duryea play dandy grifters bent on bilking a wealthy war widow (Joan Caulfield) into funding a non-existent war memorial. Both these sharpies get tangled up with saucy Shelley Winters, who’s more dangerous than a loaded .38! George Sherman may not wield the directorial heft of his studio peers, but he clears out plenty of space for his actors to shine, and they fire off Bowers’ one-liners faster than speeding bullets. You know things have been morally compromised when Percy Helton, of all people, is playing an upstanding citizen. We once had to screen this riotously entertaining, little-known gem in 16mm (at NOIR CITY 4), but we’re thrilled to now show it in a glorious 35mm print courtesy of Universal Pictures.

CAST: John Payne (Rick Maxon), Joan Caulfield (Deb Clark), Dan Duryea (Silky Randall), Shelley Winters (Tory), Dorothy Hart (Madeline), Richard Rober (Max), Dan O’Herlihy (Duke), Percy Helton (Charlie Jordan), Walter Greaza (Mr. Owens), Nicholas Joy (Walter Vanderline), Patricia Alphin (waitress), Harry Antrim (Mr. McNulty), Russ Conway (detective), Paul Brinegar (mechanic), Don Wilson (Master of Ceremonies)

FORMAT: 35mm