TCM Classic Film Festival 2017: Day 2 Recap

Greetings from the Hollywood! On Friday I attended my fifth hand and footprint ceremony and it's my fourth time covering this event for my blog. The honorees this time were Carl Reiner and Rob Reiner. It was the first time a father and son have been honored with dual imprints in cement. There were lots of special guests. We got to hear speeches from Ben Mankiewicz, Tom Bergeron and Billy Crystal. Also in attendance was Norman Lear, Cary Elwes and Kevin Nealon among others. I'll have a full report soon. In the meantime here is a sneak peak.

Kevin Nealon

Billy Crystal

Carl Reiner and Rob Reiner

Cary Elwes and Norman Lear

Afterwards I had some time to kill so I ate lunch and hung out at the Delta charging area. They had three photo stations where you could pose with backdrops. The films featured were Born Yesterday, The Palm Beach Story and The Graduate.

Delta also had a photo printout station. All you had to do was tweet or Instagram a photo using hashtag #TCMFF and they could print out a commemorative copy for you. Of course I had to have a copy of that epic moment when I met Dick Cavett. I think out of all the years that Delta has had a charging station, this year's concept was the best. The seats were great, I loved the backdrops and the photo printout idea was a winner.

Then I attended my first movie of the day, Panique (1946). Every year I try something new. This French film directed by Julien Duvivier was one I had not heard of and I'm glad I saw it. I'll have a full report soon. In attendance was Pierre Simenon, son of author Georges Simenon. The film is an adaptation of Simenon's book. Surprise guest Norman Lloyd was in the audience. Seeing him at TCMFF never gets old.

Then I made my way over to Larry Edmunds Bookshop. I had a great chat with Jeff and Sean and I bought a couple of books while I was there. If you're ever in Hollywood, make sure you stop by. It's a classic movie lover's paradise.

Larry Edmunds Book Shop

Edward G. Robinson's memoir All My Yesterdays

I then headed over to the Egyptian theatre to get in line for my favorite pre-code of all time Red-Headed Woman (1932). We had about half an hour before they seated us so Jay, host of #Bond_Age_ and the Cinema Shame podcast and cocktail connoisseur, and I headed over to the Pig n Whistle for some gin gimlets. Having a cocktail with Jay was high on my list of TCMFF must dos so I'm glad we were able to find a window of time to make it happen.

Cheers!

Cari Beauchamp introduced Red-Headed Woman at the Egyptian. The film seemed a lot sillier when I watched it with an audience.

Jay and I made our way over to Grauman's Chinese theater for Mel Brooks' High Anxiety (1977). I had never seen this Alfred Hitchcock spoof. Mel Brooks was in attendance and we were treated to a hilarious interview that ended up being even funnier than the film. Ben Mankiewicz and Mel Brooks could have talked for hours and we'd all be okay with that. I noticed this year that TCM is projecting the interview on the big screen so people in the back can see the host and special guest. This was brilliant and made the experience much more enjoyable.

Mel Brooks and Ben Mankiewicz

Another item high on my list of TCMFF musts was to attend the midnight screening of Zardoz (1974). While I'm glad I did it, I had a very mixed experience. This film was just terrible and I was so exhausted I slept through at least half of it. Midnight screenings are all about the social experience and so many of my friends were there. Millie of Classic Forever convinced Carlos to come. He had a blast. My favorite moment of the screening was when it's revealed in the movie that the name "Zardoz" comes from the Wizard of Oz. Everyone exclaimed "oohhhhh". It was a nice aha moment when the film was primarily filled with what-the-hell-is-going-on moments.

I don't know if I'll review this film here. Probably not. Let's just say it was really bizarre and everyone involved must have been on some serious drugs.

The midnight screening crew and a bonus shot of Matt Patterson

Day 3 and 4 recaps are coming soon!