March 27, 2012 Packard Campus Theater Spotlights Classic Films in April

America’s favorite pastime and the “It Girl” Clara Bow will be celebrated in April at the Library of Congress Packard Campus theater in Culpeper, Va. with screenings of “The Natural,” considered one of the country’s greatest baseball movies, and the silent film “It” that catapulted Bow to fame and fortune. Film adaptations of two essential American novels, “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” by Mark Twain and “To Kill a Mockingbird,” which will be shown on author Harper Lee’s 86th birthday, are also featured in the April lineup. The theater will be closed April 6 and 7.

In addition to Lee’s riveting story, the month’s film series also showcases other National Film Registry titles, including the independently produced social drama “The Salt of the Earth” and a new preservation print of the Spencer Tracy/Katharine Hepburn classic “Adam’s Rib,” made at the Library of Congress Film Conservation Lab. For more information on the National Film Registry, visit www.loc.gov/film/filmnfr.html.

Screenings are preceded by an informative slide presentation about the film, with music selected by the Library’s Recorded Sound Section. Short subjects will be presented before select programs. Titles are subject to change without notice.

All Packard Campus programs are free and open to the public, but children 12 and under must be accompanied by an adult. For reservation information, call (540) 827-1079 ext. 79994 or (202) 707-9994 during business hours, beginning one week before any given screening. Reservations will be held until 10 minutes before showtime. In case of inclement weather, call the theater reservation line no more than three hours before showtime to confirm cancellations. For further information on the theater and film series, visit www.loc.gov/avconservation/theater/.

The Library of Congress Packard Campus for Audio Visual Conservation is a state-of-the-art facility funded as a gift to the nation by the Packard Humanities Institute. The Packard Campus is the site where the nation’s library acquires, preserves and provides access to the world’s largest and most comprehensive collection of motion pictures, television programs, radio broadcasts and sound recordings (www.loc.gov/avconservation/). The Packard Campus is home to more than 6 million collection items, including nearly 3 million sound recordings. It provides staff support for the Library of Congress National Film Preservation Board, the National Recording Preservation Board, and the national registries for film and recorded sound.

Founded in 1800, the Library of Congress is the nation’s oldest federal cultural institution. It seeks to spark imagination and creativity and to further human understanding and wisdom by providing access to knowledge through its magnificent collections, programs and exhibitions. Many of the Library’s rich resources can be accessed through its website at www.loc.gov.

Series Schedule

Thursday, April 5, 7:30 p.m.
“It” (Paramount, 1927)
The famed “It Girl” Clara Bow stars as a spunky working girl who sets out to land her boss. Antonio Moreno plays the romantic interest in this silent comedy directed by Clarence Badger. Live musical accompaniment will be provided by Andrew Simpson.

Thursday, April 12, 7:30 p.m.
“The Southerner” (United Artists, 1945)
French director Jean Renoir helmed this independent production of the story of a Texas sharecropper who must fight the elements to start his own cotton farm with his family. The cast includes Zachary Scott, Betty Field and Beulah Bondi.

Friday, April 13, 7:30 p.m.
“It Started With Eve” (Universal, 1941)
Deanna Durbin stars as a hat-check girl suddenly asked by a young man to pose as his fiancée in order to make his dying father's last moments happy. Robert Cummings and Charles Laughton round out the cast in this musical comedy-romance directed by Henry Koster.

Saturday, April 14, 7:30 p.m.
“The Natural” (TriStar, 1984)
Robert Redford stars as Roy Hobbs, a 35-year-old rookie with a mysterious past, who soon becomes the star player of the 1939 New York Knights. Barry Levinson directed this baseball drama based on the novel by Bernard Malamud. .

Thursday, April 19, 7:30 p.m.
An Evening of TV Westerns
“Alias Smith & Jones” (ABC, 1971)
In this made-for-television movie that served as the pilot for the series, Pete Duel and Ben Murphy portray Hannibal Heyes and Kid Curry, two likable outlaws who are offered amnesty on the conditions that they stay out of trouble for a year and don't tell anyone about the deal.

The program also will feature episodes of three other Westerns:
“Wanted: Dead or Alive” (CBS, 1958-1961), starring Steve McQueen;
“The Deputy” (NBC, 1959-1961), starring Henry Fonda;
“Laredo” (NBC, 1965-1967), starring Philip Carey & Peter Brown.

Friday, April 20, 7:30 p.m.
“Adam’s Rib” (MGM, 1949)
Husband-and-wife lawyers argue opposite sides in a sensational women's rights case. Named to the National Film Registry in 1992, this romantic comedy was directed by George Cukor and stars Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn.

Saturday, April 21, 2 p.m.
“The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” (MGM, 1939)
Mark Twain’s classic story about a rambunctious boy adventurer who escapes his abusive father by sailing a raft down the Mississippi River, accompanied by his friend Jim, a runaway slave. Mickey Rooney (Huck) and Rex Ingram (Jim) star in this family film directed by Richard Thorpe.

Thursday, April 26, 7:30 p.m.
“Salt of the Earth” (Independent Productions, 1954)
Herbert J. Biberman directed this social drama about Latino mine workers in New Mexico who go on strike in spite of the tremendous hardship it causes. Selected for preservation in the National Film Registry in 1992, the film stars Will Geer and David Wolfe.

Friday, April 27, 7:30 p.m.
“Solaris” (Magna, 1972)
In this sci-fi psychological drama, an alien intelligence infiltrates a space mission. In Russian and German with English subtitles, the production was directed by Andrey Tarkovskiy and stars Natalya Bondarchuk and Donatas Banionis.

Saturday, April 28, 7:30 p.m.
“To Kill a Mockingbird” (Universal, 1962)
Based on the enduring novel by Harper Lee, this award-winning adaptation stars Gregory Peck as a Southern lawyer who defends a black man wrongly accused of rape, and tries to explain the proceedings to his children. Directed by Robert Mulligan, the movie was named to the National Film Registry in 1995. It also stars Mary Badham, Phillip Alford, Brock Peters and Robert Duvall.