Events & Appearances

Workshop: How to Critique a Movie

The University of Arizona
Tucson, Arizona 85721
520‑621‑2211

Map link to The University of Arizona

The Skirball Cultural Center June 11, 2023 BEHIND THE BLACKLIST film and discussion program moderated by AKR.

About the Program

See how prejudice manifested during the Hollywood Red Scare with a double feature that looks at antisemitism in the 1940s. Waging a “cold war” on minority groups, the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) used the Hearings to target Jews and other oppressed peoples, whether or not evidence of their involvement with the Communist Party existed.

In between films, hear from film historian Alan Rode and Thomas Doherty, professor of American studies at Brandeis University and cultural historian focusing on Hollywood cinema.

PROGRAM SCHEDULE

11:00 am— Hollywood on Trial
This Oscar-nominated documentary is an authoritative account of the 1947 HUAC Hearings centering on the screenwriters, directors, and producers who were cited for contempt of Congress. Archival footage of the Hearings is punctuated by interviews with the participants and others who were affected. Directed by David Helpern. (1976, 105 min. No MPAA rating.)

12:45 pm—Conversation and Q&A with Thomas Doherty
Moderated by film historian, author, and cinema host Alan Rode.

2:00 pm—Crossfire
Crossfire is an essential post-war drama examining antisemitism in the US military. Despite its financial success and five Oscar nominations, the film led to its American Jewish director (Edward Dmytryk) and producer (Adrian Scott) being Blacklisted and jailed with the Hollywood Ten. (1947, 84 min. No MPAA rating.)

Look out for related artifacts in the exhibition! Blacklist: The Hollywood Red Scare features protest materials by members of the Hollywood Ten, a spotlight on Crossfire, and more!

More information here: The Skirball Cultural Center

Doctor X + Mystery of the Wax Museum

San Diego Digital Gym June 17, 2023 will be showing two Michael Curtiz horror films and I’ll be presenting the films, doing Q&A and signing my books.

More info here: https://digitalgym.org/programs/michael-curtiz-horror-double-feature-w-biographer-alan-k-rode/

Michael Curtiz may be best known for directing Oscar-winning films such as Casablanca and Mildred Pierce but in the 1930s he made a trio of stunning pre-Code horror films (the only time he worked in the genre). Film Geeks will be screening the gorgeously restored two-strip Technicolor films Doctor X (1933) and Mystery of the Wax Museum (1933 with a feisty pair of performances from Fay Wray and Glenda Farrell) with Curtiz biographer Alan K. Rode on hand to introduce the films and answer questions.
VIP tickets include admission to both movies, buttons for each film, poster reprints and a personally autographed copy of Rode’s Michael Curtiz book.

Price: $45.00
General Admission for the Double Feature is $20.00.
Individual tickets for each screening may be available at the door for $12.00 if there are unsold seats.
Tentative Schedule:
11:00AM – Introduction by Alan K. Rode
11:10AM – Screening of Doctor X
12:30PM – Intermission / Book Signing
1:00PM – 2nd Introduction by Alan K. Rode
1:15PM – Screening of Mystery of the Wax Museum
2:30PM – Q&A

About the Program

Check out two classic films by Blacklisted screenwriter and director Abraham Polonsky! Born in New York City to Russian Jewish immigrants, Polonsky was a committed Marxist, union supporter, and proud member of the Communist Party. Like many Blacklisted screenwriters, Polonsky continued to write under pseudonyms and fronts. While it is now known Polonsky wrote Odds Against Tomorrow, many of his scripts remain uncredited to this day.

In between films, hear film historian Alan Rode speak with Hank Polonsky about Abraham Polonsky’s experience with the Hollywood Red Scare and its impact on their family.

PROGRAM SCHEDULE

11:00 am— Odds Against Tomorrow
This multi-layered film stars Hollywood legends Harry Belafonte, Robert Ryan, and Ed Begley as three desperate men who band together for a dangerous heist. Beyond its gripping plot, Odds Against Tomorrow issues a strong statement about the endemic racism at the beginning of the Civil Rights Movement. Directed by Robert Wise. (1959, 96 min. No MPAA rating.)

12:45 pm—Conversation and Q&A with Hank Polonsky
Moderated by film historian, author, and cinema host Alan Rode.

2:00 pm— Force of Evil
Force of Evil stars John Garfield as a lawyer embroiled in a scheme to control “the numbers racket” in New York City, leading to a series of events that test his morality and loyalty. Polonsky’s directorial debut is a poetic urban saga underscoring how unbridled capitalistic greed creates personal debasement and tragedy. (1948, 78 min. No MPAA rating.)

More info and tickets:  Skirball Cultural Center

Feature Screening and Book Signing with Alan Rode

About the Program

Enjoy a thrilling noir starring Blacklisted Jewish actor and anti-fascist activist John Garfield! 

While he was never a member of the Communist Party, his wife was. In a brave act of loyalty that effectively ended his career, Garfield testified before the House Un-American Activities Committee saying that he did not know any Communists.

PROGRAM SCHEDULE

11:00 am— The Breaking Point
This definitive screen adaptation of Ernest Hemingway’s To Have and Have Not features one of John Garfield’s finest performances as a hard-luck skipper in what would be his next-to-last film. Directed by Michael Curtiz. (1950, 97 min. No MPAA rating.)

12:45 pm—Book Signing
Film historian, author, and cinema host Alan Rode will sign copies of his book, Michael Curtiz: A Life in Film, about the director of The Breaking Point and Casablanca.

• Screening FREE to all visitors

Separate tickets required for Museum admission.
Museum admission is FREE to WGA members with code 99949 and SAG-AFTRA members with code 99950*.
*Please present your membership card at check in.

More info: Skirball Cultural Center

The Night of the Hunter

Alan K. Rode of the Film Noir Foundation will speak before screening this classic thriller.  4pm Sunday, October 8, 2023, at the newly rejuvenated nearly 100 year-old venerated Eagle Theater in the Eagle Rock section of Los Angeles.

Director: Charles Laughton Run Time: 93 min. Format: DCP Release Year: 1955

Starring: Evelyn Varden, James Gleason, Lillian Gish, Robert Mitchum, Shelley Winters

Screenwriters: James Agee, Charles Laughton

Producer: Paul Gregory

Co-presented by the Alex Film Society

Charles Laughton’s lone directorial departure, The Night of the Hunter, is one of the most chilling and haunting films ever set to celluloid. Robert Mitchum is beyond terrifying as a serial-killing preacher in the Deep South, set on hunting children in his search for fortune. With a striking Southern Gothic atmosphere and stunning black-and-white imagery that will burn itself into your brain, this is one gorgeously twisted masterpiece.

Admission is free. No advance reservations. Your seat will be assigned to you when you pick up your ticket at the box office. Seats are assigned on a first come, first served basis. The box office opens one hour before the event. The Billy Wilder Theater is located inside the Hammer Museum, 10899 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90024.

Two of the best episodes from the television series will be shown, with commentary and Q & A in between by Alan K. Rode and actor-writer Michael McGreevey.

Naked City: “The King of Venus Will Take Care of You”

5/30/1962

Veteran character actor Jack Warden (Twelve Angry Men) guest stars as a fugitive who takes refuge in a tenement rooftop hideaway belonging to a troubled child (Mike McGreevey). As police close in, the misfit pair confront each other and their individual life circumstances, which are untenable. The episode features a Nelson Riddle score, NYC location photography, and a tense, humanistic teleplay penned by blacklisted writer Arnold Manoff, credited here under his pseudonym “Joel Carpenter.”

DCP, b&w, 51 min. ABC. Production: Shelle Productions; Screen Gems Television. Executive Producer: Herbert B. Leonard. Director: David Lowell Rich. Writer: Arnold Manoff. With: Paul Burke, Horace McMahon, Harry Bellaver, Jack Warden, Michael McGreevey. Use of Naked City courtesy of AMC Networks.

Naked City: “A Horse Has a Big Head — Let Him Worry!”

11/21/1962

In groundbreaking casting, future superstar Diahann Carroll (Julia) guests as an earnest special education teacher searching for a sight-impaired student (John Megna) who, in defiant independence, wanders away on a field trip. The humanist episode, featuring extensive location photography of New York City streets, was directed by Academy Award winner Denis Sanders (Time Out of War) and penned by blacklisted writer Abram S. Ginnes.

DCP, b&w, 51 min. ABC. Production: Shelle Productions; Screen Gems Television. Executive Producer: Herbert B. Leonard. Director: Denis Sanders. Writer: Abram S. Ginnes. With: Paul Burke, Horace McMahon, Harry Bellaver, Diahann Carroll, John Megna, Nancy Malone. Use of Naked City courtesy of AMC Networks.

Plus:

Television Academy Foundation: Diahann Carroll — excerpt

1998

Beloved icon Diahann Carroll (Dynasty) discusses her Emmy-nominated performance on Naked City.

DCP, color, 8 min. Courtesy of the Television Academy Foundation Interviews. Special thanks to Jenni Matz.