Coming Soon to Turner…

This coming Friday, Turner Classic Movies is running a Marxian festival commencing in the early morn: A Night at the Opera, A Day at the Races, Room Service, Go West, A Night in Casablanca, Double Dynamite and A Girl in Every Port. Those are more or less in order of best to worst. The last two are Groucho only. The rest have him, Harpo and Chico but no Zeppo.

Then early Saturday morning, you can watch a half-hour short called Perversion for Profit, a 1965 documentary that was financed by that fine guardian of morality, Charles Keating. The thesis is that the spread of pornography (defined by a pretty low bar, even for '65) will lead to the downfall of America and a complete Communist takeover. A lot of folks love this film because it's (a) so campy and over the top and/or (b) full of naughty pictures. It's also a nice record of Los Angeles newsman George Putnam, who could sound like he was lecturing you on morality when he announced a freeway closure.

On Monday, they have a bunch of Whistler films starring Richard Dix, followed by Red Skelton's three "whistling" comedies — Whistling in the Dark, Whistling in Dixie and Whistling in Brooklyn. The Skeltons are in order of weakest to strongest, though they're all pretty much the same movie. If you like Red (and Ann Rutherford), you'll enjoy 'em.