News From the Lake for February 4th, 2016

News in a nutshell: TCM announces new films and guests for the upcoming festival, getTV reveals their March slate of shows, and what’s new on DVD and Blu-ray.

If you read my ten films worth screening at TCMFF 2016 article then you’d know the network announced a slate of titles and guests for the upcoming festival in Hollywood. Actress Gina Lollobrigida is being honored with screenings of two of her best known works, Buona Sera, Mrs. Campbell (1986) and Trapeze (1956). Marlee Matlin will introduce a 30th-anniversary tribute to Children of a Lesser God (1986) and Bruce Brown will be on-hand for a 50th-anniversary screening of The Endless Summer (1966). Voices of Light: The Passion of Joan of Arc (1928) is set to screen during the event, billed as a presentation of the film with “the original score by Richard Einhorn with conductor Dr. Mark Sumner and a live orchestra and chorus. And four films receiving restoration will have their premieres – Charlie Chaplin’s The Kid (1921) gets its U.S. premiere, while The Song of Bernadette (1943), The Keys of the Kingdom (1944) and Private Property (1960) are world premieres. Passes are still available for the event, although Classic Passes are officially sold out. The 2016 TCM Classic Film Festival is set to take place April 28th-May 1st, 2016.

In honor of Black History Month in February, getTV’s Monday nights will honor famous African-American actors and performers. Sidney Poitier, Ray Charles, and Dionne Warwick will all receive tributes throughout the month. They’ll also salute the upcoming Academy Awards with showings of various Academy Award-nominated films like The Lion in Winter (1968), A Man for All Seasons (1966), and Here Comes Mr. Jordan (1941). You can find the full schedule at getTV’s website.

Warner Archive: Warner Archive releases a trio of titles on Blu-ray that I am dying for, starting with Alfred Hitchcock’s I Confess (1953). They’ll also be debuting Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall’s two noir titles – The Big Sleep (1946) and Key Largo (1948) on HD for the first time. Other big titles included throughout the month: Hedy Lamarr in Lady of the Tropics (1939) and White Cargo (1942), a nine-feature set of George O’Brien Westerns, The Angel Wore Red (1960), The Angry Hills (1959), Rhino! (1964), Take the High Ground (1953), Watusi (1959), and The Whip Hand (1951). All of these can be purchased, on-demand, via Warner Archive.