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In primetime, we get more of the films of Ismail Merchant and James Ivory (produced by them, not directed!), including The Ballad of the Sad Cafe (1991), The Deceivers (1988), and The Perfect Murder (1990), along with a pair of documentaries. Enjoy!
6:00 AM -- Our Vines Have Tender Grapes (1945)
A Norwegian farmer tries to raise two children in the Midwest.
Dir: Roy Rowland
Cast: Edward G. Robinson, Margaret O'Brien, James Craig.
106 min, TV-PG , CC
Jerry Marin, the lollipop man from Wizard of oz, Stood in for Margaret O'Brien in the scene where she is floating down the river in a washtub.
8:00 AM -- Between Two Worlds (1944)
Passengers on a luxury liner realize they are en route to the afterlife.
Dir: Edward A. Blatt
Cast: John Garfield, Paul Henreid, Sydney Greenstreet.
112 min, TV-G , CC
The play "Outward Bound" opened on Broadway in New York City, New York, USA on 7 January 1924 and closed in May 1924 after 144 performances. The opening night cast included Dudley Digges, Leslie Howard, J.M. Kerrigan, Alfred Lunt and Beryl Mercer. There was one Broadway revival in 1938, directed by Otto Preminger.
10:00 AM -- The Sellout (1951)
A small-town newspaper editor risks everything to expose a corrupt sheriff.
Dir: Gerald Mayer
Cast: Walter Pidgeon, John Hodiak, Audrey Totter.
83 min, TV-PG , CC
Pidgeon had a notoriously poor memory for names, referring to anyone whose name he could not remember as "Joe." This became such a habit that, for his birthday one year, the cast and crew of the picture he was working on bought him a present: A director's chair enscribed "Joe Pidgeon."
11:30 AM -- That Hagen Girl (1947)
A small-town teenager thinks a lawyer is her illegitimate dad.
Dir: Peter Godfrey
Cast: Ronald Reagan, Shirley Temple, Rory Calhoun.
83 min, TV-G , CC
In his autobiography "Where's the Rest of Me?", Ronald Reagan wrote that he attempted to persuade director Peter Godfrey to have the ending rewritten, arguing that audiences wouldn't approve of a romantic pairing between Reagan and the 17-years-younger Shirley Temple. According to Reagan, Godfrey pointed out that his own wife, Renee Godfrey, was 20 years younger than himself, and Reagan decided it would be unwise to press the matter.
1:00 PM -- Tish (1942)
Three small-town spinsters adopt a baby.
Dir: S. Sylvan Simon
Cast: Marjorie Main, ZaSu Pitts, Aline MacMahon.
85 min, TV-PG
Filmed in part at Big Bear Lake and Lake Arrowhead, in the San Bernardino National Forest in California.
2:30 PM -- We Who Are Young (1940)
A man violates company policy by getting married.
Dir: Harold S. Bucquet
Cast: Lana Turner, John Shelton, Gene Lockhart.
80 min, TV-PG , CC
This picture marked the American debut of European producer Seymour Nebenzal.
4:00 PM -- Any Number Can Play (1949)
The owner of a gambling casino tries to win back his estranged wife and child.
Dir: Mervyn LeRoy
Cast: Clark Gable, Alexis Smith, Wendell Corey.
103 min, TV-PG , CC
There were two different (usually uncredited) character actors named William O'Brien - William H. O'Brien and William J. O'Brien - and they both appear in this film (uncredited) as gamblers.
6:00 PM -- White Heat (1949)
A government agent infiltrates a gang run by a mother-fixated psychotic.
Dir: Raoul Walsh
Cast: James Cagney, Virginia Mayo, Edmond O'Brien.
114 min, TV-PG , CC
Nominated for an Oscar for Best Writing, Motion Picture Story -- Virginia Kellogg
If the surprise expressed by James Cagney's fellow inmates during "the telephone game" scene in the prison dining room appears real, it's because it is. Director Raoul Walsh didn't tell the rest of the cast what was about to happen, so Cagney's outburst caught them by surprise. In fact, Walsh himself didn't know what Cagney had planned; the scene as written wasn't working, and Cagney had an idea. He told Walsh to put the two biggest extras playing cons in the mess-hall next to him on the bench (he used their shoulders to boost himself onto the table) and to keep the cameras rolling no matter what.
TCM PRIMETIME - WHAT'S ON TONIGHT: TCM SPOTLIGHT: 50 YEARS OF MERCHANT IVORY
8:00 PM -- The Ballad Of The Sad Café (1991)
A small-town eccentric opens a café in her decaying home.
Dir: Simon Callow
Cast: Vanessa Redgrave, Keith Carradine, Cork Hubbert.
C-101 min, TV-14 , CC
The original Broadway production of "The Ballad of the Sad Cafe" by Edward Albee opened at the Martin Beck Theater in New York on October 30, 1963, ran for 123 performances, won the 1964 Tony Award for the Best Play and was the basis for the screenplay for this filmed production.
10:00 PM -- The Deceivers (1988)
A British tax collector tries to unmask a murderous Indian cult.
Dir: Nicholas Meyer
Cast: Pierce Brosnan, Saeed Jaffrey, Shashi Kapoor.
C-103 min, TV-PG
Filmed on location in India.
12:00 AM -- The Perfect Murder (1990)
A Bombay police detective reluctantly accepts a Swedish investigator as partner on a murder case.
Dir: Zafar Hai
Cast: Naseeruddin Shah, Dalip Tahil, Madhur Jaffrey.
C-93 min, TV-14
Stellan Skarsgård also stars in this film as the Swedish forensic expert. A Swedish forensic expert in India?
2:00 AM -- Street Musicians of Bombay (1994)
Cameras capture the variety and pageantry of Bombay street performers.
Dir: Richard Robbins
Cast: Trevor Nichols, Rosemary Martin
C-59 min, TV-PG
Documentary from Merchant-Ivory Productions.
3:15 AM -- Sweet Sounds (1976)
Teachers introduce their students to the joy of music at a New York school for the arts.
Dir: Richard Robbins
Cast: Jean Whitelock, Laura Wilson, John Desser
C-29 min, TV-PG
Yet another documentary from Merchant-Ivory. These guys have amazingly varied interests!
4:00 AM -- A Song to Remember (1945)
The famed composer Chopin sacrifices everything, even love, for his native Poland.
Dir: Charles Vidor Cast: Paul Muni, Merle Oberon, Cornel Wilde.
C-112 min, TV-G , CC
Nominated for Oscars for Best Actor in a Leading Role -- Cornel Wilde, Best Cinematography, Color -- Tony Gaudio and Allen M. Davey, Best Film Editing -- Charles Nelson, Best Music, Scoring of a Dramatic or Comedy Picture -- Miklós Rózsa and Morris Stoloff, Best Sound, Recording -- John P. Livadary (Columbia SSD), and Best Writing, Original Story -- Ernst Marischka
Darren McGavin's film debut, as an uncredited student.
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