The annual spring rite of Hollywood’s TCM Classic Film Festival (five years strong now, with no signs of slowing) has once again come and gone, supplying indelible memories to the many lucky movie fans in attendance. Whether a filmmaker or simply someone who enjoys great films, this love and shared passion for the classics of the past is a unifying thread running throughout this wonderful four-day celebration. Unlike many other film festivals where the marketplace and distribution hopes can often seem the raison d’etre, TCM fest attendees are dealing with known entities, films that have already stood the test of time. As always, there’s the additional thrill of stumbling upon an occasional lesser known gem ripe for rediscovery. The theme of this year’s festival was Family in the Movies: The Ties that Bind’. Broad to be sure, but a theme that dovetailed perfectly with the inclusive feeling of being part of the much heralded TCM ‘family’ of besotted classic film lovers. Throw in a long overdue tribute to comedy’s living king Jerry Lewis, and one could not hope for a more perfect cinephile’s dream weekend. With news that the closing night film to be screened in historic Grauman’s Chinese would be one of my all-time favorites, the 2014 TCM fest could not start soon enough for me.
There was a wonderful geographic circularity to this year’s edition of my favorite film festival – it began in Oklahoma and concluded four nights later back in neighboring Kansas. No tornado warnings for the festival’s gala Opening Night screening of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Oklahoma! (this is earthquake country after all), to the gratitude of the stars and fortunate passholders who strode the Chinese theatre red carpet under late-afternoon blue skies. That film’s seemingly ageless star Shirley Jones was the first to arrive on the carpet, accompanied by husband Marty Engels who seemed to particularly enjoy waving his homemade sign trumpeting their 37 years of marriage.
Marty might better have followed Kim Novak’s husband Robert’s lead as he ably supported his stunning wife as they made their way up the press gauntlet. Miss Novak (who was herself the center of TCM’s affection at the 2012 fest) looked every bit the movie legend, walking the carpet in chic black pinstriped jacket and slacks. Aside from introducing Bell Book and Candle (her lighthearted 1958 follow-up to Vertigo with good friend Jimmy Stewart), Novak was on hand at Club TCM to exhibit one of her many pieces of art, this an intriguing pastel tribute to her haunting Hitchcock film. The painting was featured in the TCM intro which preceded each screening, including inside the Chinese theatre where Novak had watched Vertigo unspool at the 2012 fest.
Back in the ’50s, Novak was named the No. 1 Worldwide Box Office Star three years in a row, and now seems genuinely happy to have been embraced so warmly by the TCM family, perhaps erasing some of the negative feelings toward the industry which prompted her to leave Hollywood mid-career for a life of quiet rural bliss. Unfortunately, there’s still plenty of pain and cruelty the town can dish out (see the last few Oscars), and Novak used her time at the fest to speak out eloquently against such bullying. She elevated the festival with her presence, and it’s comforting to know that she’s found a sanctuary of support within the TCM family of appreciative movie lovers.