Directed by Frank Capra | Barbara Stanwyck, Ralph Graves
In Ladies of Leisure, socialite and would-be artist Ralph Graves flees a wild shindig at his penthouse and meets Kay Arnold, a world-weary “lady of leisure” escaping yet another wild party. Sensing something in her, he hires her as the model for a painting he wants to call “Hope.” Stanwyck delivers a nuanced and believable performance in this story about two people from wildly different backgrounds learning to trust and love each other. This was the first of many Capra films with Barbara Stawyck.
Matthew Kennedy, CinemaLit’s new curator, has written biographies of Marie Dressler, Joan Blondell, and Edmund Goulding. His book Roadshow! The Fall of Film Musicals in the 1960s, was the basis of a film series on Turner Classic Movies.
“I don't have a favorite film,” Matthew says. "I find that my relationships to films, actors, genres, and directors change as I change over the years. Some don't hold up. Some look more profound, as though I've caught up with their artistry. I feel that way about Garbo, Cary Grant, director John Cassavetes, and others."
The films Matthew will introduce this winter include Scarface: The Shame of the Nation for January’s film theme Speakeasy: Prohibition at 100. Queen Christina opens February, with special guest Donna Rifkind, author of The Sun and her Stars: Salka Viertel and Hitler’s Exiles in the Golden Age of Hollywood. March will be dedicated to pre-code Barbara Stanwyck films.
“Classic films have historical context, something only time can provide,” Matt observes. “They become these great cultural artifacts, so revealing of tastes, attitudes, and assumptions.”
Please join us in welcoming Matthew as he engages members and the public through our ongoing series of Friday night film screenings.
CinemaLit Films
