Firefly Blog

Tony, Emmy and Golden Globe winning actor John Lithgow is coming to Turner Classic Movies (TCM) to host this summer’s edition of TCM ESSENTIALS JR.  Lithgow, who has also earned acclaim as a children’s author, will present 13 films ideal for parents to introduce to their kids, beginning Sunday, June 7, with the musical classic Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942).
 
“We’re proud to celebrate the second summer of TCM ESSENTIALS JR. with John Lithgow, who is not only an acclaimed actor but also a champion of educating children, which he does through his beloved books and his numerous activities designed to introduce kids to poetry and classical music,” said Charles Tabesh, senior vice president of programming for TCM.  “We look forward to working with John as we provide a perfect opportunity for parents to introduce their children to the movies they loved when they were young.”
 
TCM ESSENTIALS JR. will run each Sunday throughout the summer and will include such comedies as Father of the Bride (1950) and Mr. Hulot’s Holiday (1953), musicals like An American in Paris (1951) and It Happened at the World’s Fair (1963), and dramas like High Noon (1952) and Notorious (1946).  The following is a complete schedule:

• June 7                     Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942)
• June 14                   To Have and Have Not (1944)
• June 21                   Father of the Bride (1950)
• June 28                   The Philadelphia Story (1940)
• July 5                      Mr. Hulot’s Holiday (1953)
• July 12                    The African Queen (1951)
• July 19                    An American in Paris (1951)
• July 26                    High Noon (1952)
• Aug. 2                    Heaven Can Wait (1978)
• Aug. 9                    Notorious (1946)
• Aug. 16                  It Happened at the World’s Fair (1963)
• Aug. 23                  Gaslight (1944)
• Aug. 30                  You Can’t Take It With You (1938)

John Lithgow burst onto the scene in 1973, when he won a Tony Award for his work in David Storey’s The Changing Room.  Since then, he has appeared in nearly 20 Broadway productions, earning another Tony, three Tony nominations, four Drama Desk Awards and induction into the Theatre Hall of Fame.  Among the many productions in which he has appeared are My Fat Friend, Trelawney of the ‘Wells’, Comedians, Anna Christie, Bedroom Farce, Beyond Therapy, M. Butterfly, The Front Page, Retreat from Moscow, Mrs. Farnsworth and the musicals Sweet Smell of Success and Dirty Rotten Scoundrels.  In 2007, he made his Royal Shakespeare Company debut in Neil Bartlett’s production of Twelfth Night.  He also presented his one-man show, John Lithgow: Stories by Heart, at Lincoln Center and recently returned to the stage in the Broadway revival of Arthur Miller’s All My Sons.

Lithgow has penned seven New York Times best-selling children’s books, created two activities books for parents and children, developed readers for use in elementary schools and compiled 50 classic poems aimed at young people.  He has earned two Parents’ Choice Silver Honor Awards and four Grammy nominations.  Simon & Schuster recently released his newest children’s book, I Got Two Dogs.  Lithgow has also performed concerts for children with the Chicago, Pittsburgh, Detroit, Baltimore and San Diego symphony orchestras, and at Carnegie Hall with the Orchestra of St. Luke’s.  He has also released three albums for kids.

Turner Classic Movies is a Peabody Award-winning network celebrating 15 years of presenting great films, uncut and commercial-free, from the largest film library in the world.  Currently seen in more than 80 million homes, TCM features the insights of veteran prime-time host Robert Osborne and weekend daytime host Ben Mankiewicz, plus interviews with a wide range of special guests.  As the foremost authority in classic films, TCM offers critically acclaimed original documentaries and specials, along with regular programming events that include The Essentials, 31 Days of Oscar and Summer Under the Stars.  TCM also produces a wide range of media about classic film, including books and DVDs, along with hosting a wealth of materials at its Web site, www.tcm.com  TCM is part of Turner Broadcasting System, Inc., a Time Warner company.

Tags: Essentials Jr, featured, John Lithgow, summer, TCM