Every year, Turner Classic Films devotes each day of August to a different star of the silver screen. Escape the heat, get comfy, and tune in each day for 11-13 films from the entirety of an actor’s career. Some films are well-known classics, while others delve deeper into the vault for lesser-seen but worthy titles. This year’s slate contains eight new names to the Summer Under the Stars celebration: Christopher Plummer, Ruby Dee, Pedro Armendáriz, Charles Bronson, James Gleason, Gina Lollobrigida, Tom Courtenay, and Donald O’Connor. The latter’s day, on August 28, marks what would’ve been the triple-threat’s 100th birthday. There are some favourite talents to revisit here, too, with days devoted to Audrey Hepburn, Elizabeth Taylor, Judy Garland, Claude Rains, and Frank Sinatra, to name just a few.
The annual salute to the notable stars of the silver screen kicks off on August 1 with These Glamor Girls (1939), starring Lana Turner, and wraps up on August 31 with Roberta (1935), starring Irene Dunne. The latter contains one of the earlier appearances of the Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers partnership, and is well worth staying up for.
So explore the official printable schedule, mark your favourites in your calendars, and set your DVRs for the best this year’s Summer Under the Stars has to offer. Here’s the schedule in brief, with our pick for each day’s unmissable film–some may already be on your radar, some we like to think of as hidden gems:
8/1 – Lana Turner, The Bad and the Beautiful (1952) – 10:15 PM
8/2 – Christopher Plummer, The Man Who Would Be King (1975) – 1:00 AM (on August 3)
8/3 – Audrey Hepburn, Two for the Road (1967) – 4:00 PM
8/4 – Howard Keel, Seven Brides for Seven Brothers (1954) – 8:00 PM
8/5 – Claude Rains, Notorious (1946) – 8:00 PM
8/6 – Judy Garland, The Clock (1945) – 1:15 AM (on August 7)
8/7 – Ruby Dee, A Raisin in the Sun (1961) – 8:00 PM
8/8 – James Garner, The Americanization of Emily (1964) – 3:00 PM
8/9 – Elizabeth Taylor, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958) – 3:00 PM
8/10 – Clark Gable, The Misfits (1961) – 10:15 PM
8/11 – Glenda Farrell, I Am a Fugitive From a Chain Gang (1932) – 10:45 PM
8/12 – Pedro Armendáriz, 3 Godfathers (1948) – 10:00 PM
8/13 – Shirley MacLaine, Some Came Running (1958) – 3:30 AM (August 14)
8/14 – Sterling Hayden, The Killing (1958) – 8:00 PM
8/15 – Janet Leigh, Touch of Evil (1958) – 10:00 PM
8/16 – Charles Bronson, The Magnificent Seven (1960) – 12:45 PM
8/17 – Jennifer Jones, Portrait of Jennie (1948) – 12:00 PM
8/18 – James Gleason, Here Comes Mr. Jordan (1941) – 8:00 PM
8/19 – Hedy Lamarr, Algiers (1938) – 10:00 PM
8/20 – James Cagney, The Strawberry Blonde (1941) – 10:15 AM
8/21 – Patricia Neal, Hud (1963) – 10:00 PM
8/22 – Frank Sinatra, The Man with the Golden Arm (1955) – 10:45 PM
8/23 – Gina Lollobrigida, Come September (1961) – 8:00 PM
8/24 – Henry Fonda, Mister Roberts (1955) – 12:00 AM (August 25)
8/25 – Shirley Jones, Elmer Gantry (1960) – 1:00 AM (August 26)
8/26 – Tom Courtenay, The Dresser (1983) – 12:00 AM (August 27)
8/27 – Joan Crawford, A Woman’s Face (1941) – 12:00 PM
8/28 – Donald O’Connor, I Love Melvin (1953) – 6:30 PM
8/29 – Alexis Smith, Gentleman Jim (1942) – 4:00 AM (August 30)
8/30 – Kirk Douglas, Paths of Glory (1957) – 2:00 PM
8/31 – Irene Dunne, The Awful Truth (1937) – 12:00 PM
Find out more at the official Summer Under the Stars site and tune in when it all begins tomorrow, August 1.
