Matinee At The Bijou: Our Film Heritage is America's Living Past

Matinee at the Bijou II

::::: The Sequel Series :::::

The film content in the Matinee at the Bijou sequel series is being produced in spectacular High Definition utilizing pristine 35mm and 16mm film elements.

The timeless appeal of all things retro combined with today’s new cutting edge technology and social networking opportunities will draw an entirely new generation of viewers to America's film heritage -- authentically presented as originally intended.

While the cliffhanging serial for the first new season of Matinee at the Bijou II has not yet been determined, here is a very special Sneak Preview of the cartoon, short subject and feature film currently being prepared for inclusion during the premiere season of 13 new Matinee at the Bijou episodes.

COMING SOON ...

Pantry Panic (1941)

Wacky and wildly uninhibited Woody Woodpecker stars in his 3rd theatrical short. Woody and a gnarly feline are famished and fancy each other for supper. Watch for Woody's Big Screen comeback in 2014.

___________________

Hold Your Temper (1943)

Bijou pays tribute during the premiere Matinee at the Bijou II season to comedy genius Edgar Kennedy who starred as the “Average Man” in 103 two-reel comedy short subjects released by RKO Radio Pictures from 1931 to 1948.

These farcical theatrical shorts foreshadowed the TV sitcoms of the 1950s like I Love Lucy and The Honeymooners. In this one Edgar’s wife is played by a very young Irene Ryan, who was Granny on The Beverly Hillbillies series.

The screenplay for Hold Your Temper was written by Arthur Ripley, an early film pioneer who upon retirement was asked by UCLA to become its first Professor of Cinema Arts and as such founded the UCLA Film Center.

___________________

Coming Attractions Trailers

No Matinee at the Bijou would be complete without a tempting array of Prevues of Coming Attractions Trailers and Extra Added Attractions to lure audiences back week after week for more ...

___________________

When's Your Birthday? (1937)

Joe E. Brown has an astrological fixation in this rollicking 1930s screwball comedy featuring Edgar Kennedy, Marian Marsh, Margaret Hamilton and Zodiac; the Homeless Dog.

A very funny cartoon sequence created by animation pioneers Bob Clampett and Leon Schlesinger was originally presented in Technicolor. Bijou will be restoring the film and the color sequence for the Matinee at the Bijou II premiere HD presentation of this hilarious comedy classic. Here are the first 15 minutes of the film from one of our work prints ...

Director Billy Wilder’s Oscar-nominated screenplay for Some Like it Hot was likely influenced by this sequence where Joe E. Brown is chased by gangsters around a swanky hotel and attempts his escape in drag as a chorus girl. Of course, Brown went on to land a riotously memorable feature role in Wilder’s classic 1960 cinematic romp.

The incomparable Debbie Reynolds, beloved star of Singin’ in the Rain, is the perfect host to introduce contemporary audiences to America’s rich cinematic heritage while re-engaging those who fondly remember their experiences the first time around. An original new theme song from composer and songwriter Rich Mendoza will also be performed by Ms. Reynolds.

Key members of the original production team have reassembled to repeat the magic that propelled the series into a PBS ratings success and pop culture phenomenon. Bob Campbell, co-creator and producer of the original Matinee at the Bijou series is heading up the production.

A distinguished coalition of veteran classic film distributors, preservationists and private collectors has joined the Bijou team and are enthusiastically helping us locate, preserve and present rarely seen classic motion picture content from the Golden Age of Hollywood. These include Ron Hall (Festival Films), Conrad Sprout (Hollywood Select Video) and Greg Luce (Sinister Cinema).

Many yet-to-be-discovered and rarely seen film treasures exist only in the hands of private collectors -- many of whom are now associated with this project.