On April 14, 1994, at 6 p.m. ET, Turner Classic Movies launched via a ceremony in New York City's Times Square. Media maverick Ted Turner and late host and historian Robert Osborne were joined by Hollywood legends Jane Powell, Celeste Holm, Van Johnson, Arthur Hiller and Arlene Dahl to pull the figurative “switch” that turned on the channel. The date marked the centennial anniversary of the first commercial exhibition of a motion picture in America. After a three-minute introduction from Osborne, the nine-minute documentary 100 Years at the Movies aired followed by David O. Selznick's landmark Civil War-era epic Gone with the Wind (1939). For 30 years, TCM has remained the only basic cable channel to champion preserving film and its history, while broadcasting movies uncut and commercial-free.
Every Thursday night in April, we’re celebrating TCM’s 30 years of devotion to cinema through a special theme, The Beginning of a Beautiful Friendship. To remember our friends who have been instrumental in keeping TCM’s legacy intact in the face of several parent company changes, each film is picked by a former TCM employee.
April 4th: Our celebration begins with a pick from Brad Siegel, who served as the president of TBS Superstation from 1993-2003. Siegal’s choice to kick off the night is Woody Allen’s Annie Hall (1977) starring Allen and Diane Keaton. Known as one of the most beloved romantic comedies of the 20th century, Annie Hall follows a neurotic Jewish comedian recalling his failed marriages and his previous relationship with a bohemian nightclub singer. Siegel’s pick will be preceded by 100 Years at the Movies directed by Chuck Workman.
Former general manager and executive vice president from 1995-2007, Tom Karsch, chose the night’s following film, Diner (1982), directed by Barry Levinson. Karsch established and oversaw such TCM popular franchises as The Essentials, Summer Under the Stars, and TCM’s Guest Programmer series. Karsch was also responsible for the creation and growth of TCM’s official website. Levinson’s Diner is a semi-autographical exploration of a group of friends in 1950s Baltimore who meet at a local diner and reminisce about their lives together. The film stars many 1980s powerhouse talents: Steve Guttenberg, Mickey Rourke, Paul Reiser, Kevin Bacon, Daniel Stern, Tim Daly and Ellen Barkin.
Two former VPs of studio production, Sean Cameron and Anne Wilson, wrap up the night together with their pick Dodsworth (1936). Responsible for all the lights, cameras and actions of TCM’s in-studio filming, Cameron worked from 1996-2018 and Wilson from 1996-2023. Both colleagues worked closely and regularly with late TCM host Osborne, whose favorite film was William Wyler’s Dodsworth. Ruth Chatterton stars in this prestige drama as the aging Midwestern wife of a recently retired self-made businessman played by Walter Huston. The couple’s marriage is in crisis as Mrs. Dodsworth seeks adventure in the arms of another man, and Mr. Dodsworth’s desperation to save his marriage is eased by another woman played by Mary Astor. Independently made at Samuel Goldwyn Pictures, the film’s production was rot with complications, including a scandalous trial involving Astor which mirrored events in the film along with internal battles among Wyler, Goldwyn and Chatterton. Nevertheless, the completed product received high praise upon its release, earning seven Academy Award nominations.
April 11th: Darcy Hettrich, former VP of Talent from 1993-2017, starts the night with My Favorite Year (1982). As head of talent, Hettrich was responsible for years of Golden Age and modern-day talent appearing on the network, its cruises and its annual TCM Classic Film Festival, including Jane Russell, Robert Mitchum, Betty Hutton, Spike Lee, Drew Barrymore and Julie Andrews. Hettrich’s pick harkens back to early Hollywood. Set in the mid-1950s during the Golden Age of Television, Peter O’Toole stars as an aging former matinee idol set to appear on a variety show. However, an up-and-coming comedy writer must keep the star sober before his appearance. O’Toole’s swashbuckler character was inspired by Errol Flynn and his appearance on Your Show of Shows.
Senior Director of Programming Dennis Millay joins us for his pick That’s Entertainment! (1974). Millay served in his role from 1993-2017, overseeing the management of the network’s talented, devoted programmers. That’s Entertainment! is a variety compilation film showcasing MGM musical moments. It was directed, written and produced by Jack Haley Jr., son of comedian/actor Jack Haley and former husband of Liza Minnelli. The best-of collection is hosted by Gene Kelly and Fred Astaire. The film signified the end of the studio era. MGM Studios had sold their property, and the sets were in the process of being demolished. Three sequels followed: That Entertainment, Part II (1976), That’s Dancing! (1985), and That Entertainment! III (1994). The latter was one of Kelly’s final films.
Alexa Foreman, senior researcher from 1993-2014, closes out the night with Ernst Lubitsch’s To Be or Not to Be (1942). A wealth of outstanding knowledge and history, Foreman has been responsible for fact-checking and proofing for TCM. She further used her historical knowledge to tell the story of Mary Astor’s scandalous trial in the documentary Scandal: The Trial of Mary Astor (2018). Lubitsch’s WWII-era screwball comedy stars Carole Lombard and Jack Benny as husband-and-wife actors in a Nazi-occupied theater company forced to cancel their satirical play about the Gestapo and instead perform “Hamlet.” The troupe eventually finds themselves embroiled in a plot to foil a German spy’s attempt to destroy a Polish resistance movement. Despite its grave subject matter, Lubitsch delivered a film with witty levity providing a space for Lombard and Benny to deliver at peak career heights. It marked Lombard’s final performance before her untimely death in 1942.
April 18th: The Thin Man (1934) starts the night, chosen by former TCM Director of Marketing from 1993-2009 Katherine Evans Porges. During Porges’s tenure with the network, she oversaw several collaborations and branding changes. W.S. Van Dyke’s comedy introduces us to a booze-loving husband-and-wife detective team, and their lovable dog Asta, whose case of finding a missing person turns deadly. Van Dyke kept an air of spontaneity on set, encouraging his actors to improvise, and often used first takes or takes in which the actors didn’t know they were being filmed. Myrna Loy and William Powell’s dynamic chemistry led to the film’s popularity, resulting in five sequels during the 1930s and ‘40s.
Shannon Davis, former Creative Director from 1993-2007, joins us for her pick, Killer’s Kiss (1955). Stanley Kubrick’s film noir follows a boxer who rescues a taxi dancer from a shady nightclub owner, sending him into the underworld of New York City. Kubrick shot the film on location without sound, choosing to post-dub to save on his minuscule $75,000 budget and have more freedom wielding the camera. The film’s lush cinematography by Kubrick, who began his career as a photographer, feels like a perfect fit for a creative director. Davis currently works as a photographer and brand design consultant. As one of the founding members of TCM, Davis used her artistic talents to animate and oversee the network’s on-air design elements.
If you’ve read articles about a film you’ve just watched on TCM, chances are that you’ve come across an article written by Jeff Stafford, who closes out our night with Real Life (1979). Stafford was a TCM producer from 1994-1996 before returning to the network in 2000 to serve as the TCM website manager for 12 years. He currently does research for the network. His pick is the directorial debut of Albert Brooks. The director plays an exaggerated version of himself as a documentary producer attempting to record the life of an average American family. His plans to control the narrative fall apart as cameras document the process along the way. Brooks had previously directed pseudo-documentaries for Saturday Night Live during the long-running sketch comedy show’s first season. Pioneering documentary director Penelope Spheeris, known for her The Decline of Western Civilization trilogy, served as Real Life’s producer.
April 25th: Our final night celebrating 30 years of TCM begins with the Katharine Hepburn and Spencer Tracy marriage comedy Woman of the Year (1942), chosen by Laura Galietta, TCM’s VP of Strategic Partnerships from 1993-2004. Galietta built partnerships that increased awareness around the network and its programming. After her time at TCM, she worked for numerous media networks and became a certified yoga teacher. In Galietta’s pick, Hepburn is a political journalist of international affairs named “Woman of the Year” for her unrelenting quality of work. She falls in love with a sportswriter Tracy, and the two quickly marry, but her devotion to work puts a comedic strain on their relationship. Woman of the Year was the first of nine movies pairing Hepburn and Tracy. The duo fell in love while filming, leading to an affair that lasted until Tracy died in 1967.
The In-Laws (1979) follows and was chosen by Jim Weiss, VP of PR from 1993-2003. At the launch of TCM, Weiss served as the head of publicity, working to get the word out about the network. His pick, directed by Arthur Hiller, stars Peter Falk and Alan Arkin as two New York in-laws who get caught up in a series of political misadventures on the eve of their children’s marriage. Written by Andrew Bergman, who previously co-wrote the hit comedy Blazing Saddles (1974), The In-Laws was a sleeper hit, growing in popularity as word of mouth spread, the purest form of publicity itself. The success of the film led to a 1985 reteaming for Falk, Arkin, and Bergman in Big Trouble (1986) directed by John Cassavetes.
Our celebration of 30 years with Turner Classic Movies closes out with Christmas in Connecticut (1945) starring Barbara Stanwyck and Dennis Morgan. The film is chosen by Sandi Winslow, TCM teleprompter operator from 1993-2014. Winslow has been a mainstay at Turner, originally using paper cue cards before transitioning the company into computer-based teleprompting. Her pick finds Stanwyck as a popular columnist for a housekeeping magazine. Morgan is a wartime hero lost at sea and comforted by her writings of domesticated bliss on a Connecticut farm, without knowing that her reality couldn’t be farther from the truth. The magazine’s publishers plan a publicity stunt for the two to spend the holidays together, forcing a hilarious farce to bring the non-existent Connecticut housewife to life. Sydney Greenstreet and S.Z. Sakall also star.
