Our 2016 WNY Movie Expo was held the weekend of Sept. 8 to 11, 2016, Thursday to Sunday. We featured two screening rooms, which brought a wider variety of films we could show – a silent movie presented in the main room, for example, and a vintage TV show in the secondary room.

The schedules below are divided between Main Screening Room and Screening Room “B”. Lunch and dinner breaks are indicated, too.

Main Screening Room Schedule ~

Thursday, Sept. 8, 2016 ~

7 pm – The Big Timer (1932) – With Ben Lyon, Thelma Todd, Constance Cummings, Charles DeLaney, Robert Emmett O’Connor, Tom Duggen, and Charles Grapewin – 72 minutes.

8:15 pm – Spills for Thrills (1940) – Short subject with Harvey Parry, Mary Wiggins, Allen Pomeroy, who worked as stuntmen and women in films of the 1930s and 1940s. A side note – Harvey Parry doubled for Peter Lorre in the Mr. Moto series (20th Century-Fox, 1937-39), as well as at Warner Bros. in the 1940s and American International Pictures in the early 1960s – 20 minutes.

8:35 pm – A Tour of the Thomas H. Ince Studios (1922) – With Lloyd Hughes, Louise Glaum, Margaret Livingston, Douglas MacLean, Lewis Stone, Enid Bennett, and Hobart Bosworth, directors Wesley Ruggles and John Wray, and Mr. Ince himself – 20 mins.

9 pm – D.W. Griffith Miscellaneous Shorts – The Battle at Elderbush Gulch (1913), Griffith interview, Griffith funeral, newsreel footage, and more – 60 mins.

10 pm – Jimmie Lunceford and His Orchestra – Musical short – 10 mins.

10:10 pm – Louis Jordon short – 10 mins.

10:20 pm – Les Hite and His Orchestra – 10 mins.

10:30 pm – Louie Armstrong and His Orchestra – 10 mins.

10:40 pm – Smith and Dale, the Original “Sunshine Boys” – Festival of vaudeville routines and comedies – 50 mins total.

11:30 pm – Lucy and Her Famous Friends – Unaired tribute film made for a Lucille Ball tribute – 25 mins.

11:55 pm – Too Many Orphans (1931) – Short subject, also known as Second Hand Kisses, with Louise Fazenda, James Finlayson, and Billy Barty – 20 mins.

12:15 am – Sleepless Hollow (1936) – With Eddie Gribbon and Anita Garvin – 20 mins.

12:35 am – Oh, Dear (1931) – Short subject, also known as She Whoops to Conquer, with Daphne Pollard, Billy Bevan, and Zasu Pitts – 10 mins.

Friday, Sept. 9, 2016 ~

9 am – Powdersmoke Range (1935) – With Harry Carey, Hoot Gibson, Tom Tyler, Bob Steele, Guinn Williams, Wally Wales – 71 mins.

10:15 am – The Bells (1926) – A beautiful 35mm pre-print, With Lionel Barrymore and Boris Karloff, and live musical accompaniment by Jeff Rapsis – 70 mins.

11:30 am – The Smallest Show on Earth (1957) – With Peter Sellers and Margaret Rutherford – 80 mins.

12:50 pm – The Unknown (1927) – With Lon Chaney, Sr. and Joan Crawford – 60 mins.

1:50 pm – Murder at 3:00 A.M. (1953) – With Dennis Price, Peggy Evans, Philip Saville, Greta Mayaro, and Rex Garner – 60 mins.

2:50 pm – In Old Missouri (1940) – With The Weaver Brothers, Elviry, and Thurston Hall – 67 mins.

4 pm – Animation Presentation – Animation restoration specialist Steve Stanchfield hosts a presentation on preserving vintage cartoons. – 60 mins.

4:45 pm – Dinner Break

6:30 pm – Mack Sennett Kodascope Festival – Including The Campus Vamp (1928), with Carole Lombard and Daphne Pollard, and The Burglar (1928), with Mary Ann Jackson – 60 mins.

7:30 pm – Growing Up with Hollywood – Film-maker Denise Costa’s documentary on child stars gives a history of the child stars from the silent era to the inception of television, and features interviews with some of these child stars including 1920s silent-screen star Baby Peggy. – 60 mins.

8:35 pm – The Lost Patrol (1934) – Rare original uncut print of the John Ford movie with Victor McLaglen, Boris Karloff, and Wallace Ford; from Merian C. Cooper’s private collection, courtesy of James D’Arc – 73 mins.

9:50 pm – Safety Last (1923) – with Harold Lloyd – 60 mins.

10:50 pm – Madame Racketeer (1932) – With Allison Skipworth as a supreme con-artist, George Raft, and Richard Bennett – 71 mins.

12 midnight – Charley Chase Kodascope Festival – Including Fluttering Hearts (1927), Isn’t Life Terrible (1925), and Innocent Husbands (1925).

Saturday, Sept. 10, 2016 ~

9 am – Passport to Alcatraz (1940) – with Jack Holt, “Slapsie” Maxie Rosenbloom, Guy Usher, and Ceceilia Callajo – 60 mins.

10 am – Stand and Deliver (1928) – Kodascope print from the Carey Collection, with Rod La Rocque, Lupe Velez, and Warner Oland; directed by Donald Crisp – 57 mins.

11 am – Criminal Lawyer (1937) – With Lee Tracy, Margo Grahame, Eduardo Ciannelli, and Erik Rhodes – 72 mins.

12:15 pm – The Boogie Man Will Get You (1942) – With Boris Karloff, Peter Lorre, and “Slapsie” Maxie Rosenbloom – 66 mins.

1:25 pm – Lady and Gent (1932) – With George Bancroft, James Gleason, John Wayne, and Wynne Gibson – 90 mins.

2:50 pm – Thief of Bagdad (1939) – With Sabu, Rex Ingram, Conrad Veidt, and June Duprez – 106 mins.

4:40 pm – To be announced.

5:30 pm – Dinner Break

6:30 pm – Nicholas of Myra – Special presentation by the film’s writer-director Gerald Hartke. The origins of many of our age-old traditions are woven together like never before in this dramatic and layered tale that, until now, has been lost to the lore that replaced it for nearly two hundred years. This true story of St. Nicholas does not undo the cherished myth we all grew up with, but instead reinforces the hope and kindness it kindled within us as children. Made in Buffalo, New York, this movie is scheduled for a December 2016 release. – 60 mins.

7:30 pm – Why Sailors Go Wrong (1928) – Kodascope print from the Dennis Carey Collection, introduced by Robert Harned, the son of actress Sally Phipps, with Nick Stewart, Sammy Cohen, and Sally Phipps. Robert Harned will also sign copies of his book Sally Phipps: Silent Film Star. – 65 mins.

8:35 pm – In the Zone with Rod Serling – Hosted by archivist and historian Michael Piper and sponsored by The Rod Serling Archive Bundy Museum of History and Art, this presentation on the life and career of Rod Serling combines film and videos, including rare photos of Serling growing up in Binghamton, NY; a look at Serling the war hero; Serling’s Golden Age of Television series The Twilight Zone (1959-1964), The Loner (Civil War series running 1965-1966), and The Night Gallery (1969-1973); Serling movie projects such as Planet of the Apes (1968); game shows, and more. Rod Serling won six Emmy Awards for dramatic writing on TV, a Peabody Award, a Sylvania Award, and many other honors. – 90 mins.

10 pm – The Laurel and Hardy Show – Restorations and rarities, including Why Girls Love Sailors (1927); Habeas Corpus (1929), Film Preservation Archives production, restored by David Shepard; and Slipping Wives (1926), restored print directed by Stan Laurel (uncredited) and Fred Guici.

11 pm – Violent Playground (1957) – Film noir, With David McCallum (of The Man from U.N.C.L.E. TV series), Anne Heywood, and Stanley Baker – 108 mins.

Screening Room “B” Schedule ~

Thursday, Sept. 8, 2016 ~

7:30 pm – Classic Era TV Session #1 – Telephone Time, “The Vestris” (Feb. 28, 1958), with Boris Karloff.

8:45 pm – Animation Favorites Session #1 – 60 mins.

9:45 pm – Banjo (1947) – With Sharyn Moffett, Jacqueline White, Una O’Connor, and Louis Beavers; directed by Richard Fleischer – 68 mins.

11 pm – Meet the Wildcat (1943) – With Ralph Bellamy, Margaret Lindsay, Alan Jenkins, Jerome Cowen, Iris Adrian, Joseph Schildkraut, and Reed Hadley – 66 mins.

Friday, Sept. 9, 2016 ~

10 am – Classic Era TV Session #2 – Playhouse 90, “Confession” (Nov. 29, 1956)

11:30 am – The Stars Off-Screen – Rare 16mm film prints from the early days of Hollywood showing candid shots of the stars about town – 45 mins.

12 noon – Lunch Break

2 pm – Super 8mm Follies – Hosted by Steve Osborne and Shorty Caruso. Some big screen rarities proving that Super 8mm can be as great a film experience as 16mm with the proper projection and people in charge!

5:30 pm – Dinner Break

7 pm – Stagecoach (1939) – Classic western, with John Wayne, Claire Trevor, John Carradine, Thomas Mitchell, Andy Devine, and directed by John Ford – We’re showing the print owned by Merian C. Cooper, old friend and drinking buddy of director Ford – 2 hours.

9 pm – To be announced

Saturday, Sept. 10, 2016 ~

10:30 am – Make Room for Daddy, “That Ole Devil Jack Benny” (Jan. 11, 1960) – With Danny Thomas, Jack Benny, and Gale Gordon – 30 mins.

11 am – My Little Margie, “Margie’s Millionth Member” (Dec. 23, 1953) – With Gale Storm and Charles Farrell – 30 mins.

11:30 am – Lunch Break

1 pm – The Epic that Never Was (1965) – Hosted by Dirk Bogarde, this documentary on the aborted 1937 filming of I, Claudius, starring Charles Laughton, includes all of its surviving footage, reconstruction of several scenes, and interviews with members of the original cast and crew, such as Flora Robson, Merle Oberon, Emlyn Williams, and director Josef von Sternberg. – 74 mins.

2:15 pm – Music on Film – With the Delta Rhythm Boys, Johnny Cash, Spike Jones, and many more; from jazz, Big Bands to country in the 1930s, ’40s, and ’50s.

3:15 pm – The Perils of Pauline (1947) – With Betty Hutton, John Lund, William Demarest, and Constance Collier – 96 mins.

4:50 pm – Dinner Break

7 pm – Vaudeville Varieties – Early 20th-Century acts of all kinds, including dancers, contortionists, animal acts, and more!

Possible additions afterwards and also repeats by request, of movies not seen due to scheduling conflicts.

8 pm – Classic Era TV Session #2 – The Red Skelton Scrapbook – With many original commercials – 55 mins.

8:55 pm – Ed Sullivan’s 10th Anniversary Show (1958) – A special retrospective show hosted by Ed Sullivan, as he shows clips from some of the famous performers of the past decade, including Elvis Presley, Jackie Gleason and Art Carney, and many more – 50 mins.

10 pm – Wayne and Schuster Look at the Marx Brothers – Canadian comedy greats host a retrospective on the Marx Brothers, showcasing their best routines.

11 pm – The Jack Benny Program, “Irene Dunne – Vincent Price Show” (Dec. 6, 1953) – 30 mins.

11:30 pm – Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, “Think Mink” (Jan. 19, 1963) – With Fess Parker and Sandra Warner, and guest Buster Keaton – 30 mins.

Sunday, Sept. 11, 2016 ~

9 am – Waterfront Lady (1935) – With Ann Rutherford, Frank Albertson, J. Farrell MacDonald, Barbara Pepper, Grant Withers, Charles Wilson, Jack LaRue, Mary Gordon, Robert E. O’Connor, Smiley Burnette, Clarence H. Wilson, Wally Albright, and Ward Bond – 68 mins.

10:15 am – Ray Bradbury and Ray Harryhausen Tribute – Including short subjects and the 30-minute documentary Ray Bradbury: Portrait of a Writer, filmed in the mid-1980s and featuring Bradbury at home with family, at work, lecturing and in discussion groups with fellow writers, as well as a Twilight Zone-type playlet based on a short story Bradbury was working on at the time. – 50 mins.

11 am – Buster Keaton Rides Again (1964) – A biography-documentary shot during the making of Buster’s final silent movie The Railrodder (1965); a second crew recorded the events off-screen with Keaton working out gags with director Gerald Potterton and telling stories about his career in show business. – 55 mins.

12 noon – Animation Fest

1 pm – Western NY Movie Expo ends – Thank you for coming!

Schedules from our past festivals ~

WNY Movie Expo Schedule – 2018
WNY Movie Expo Schedule – 2017
WNY Movie Expo Schedule – 2016