SLOW TRAVEL
Turner Classic Movie Cruise Stars Announced
The Turner Classic Movie cruise sets sail for the fourth time this year, with a ship load of passionate movie fans sharing and watching films, seeing the actors and talent who made them, hearing stories from behind the scenes and enjoying special panels. Today, Turner Entertainment revealed the lineup of stars for this year’s themed voyage.
Sailing October 21-26 from Port Canaveral, Disney Magic will take movie fans to Key West and Disney Cruise Line‘s private island in the Bahamas, Castaway Cay. On board? Along with movie stars and producers Richard Dreyfuss , Shirley Jones , Roger Corman, Tab Hunter, Ann Blyth, Diane Baker and James Karen, game show host Alex Trebek, producer-writer-actress Illeana Douglas, author and film noir expert Eddie Muller and film historian Bruce Goldstein of The Film Forum
TCM’s Robert Osborne and Ben Mankiewicz will serve as the official hosts for the star-studded cruise, which will take place Oct. 21-26 aboard the Disney Magic. Also featured, the Mont Alto Motion Picture Orchestra, which is celebrating 20 years of reviving the art of silent film music. Back by popular demand will be Hot Sardines, the foot-stomping jazz band from New York making its third TCM Classic Cruise appearance.
The 2014 Turner Classic Movie cruise will sail from Port Canaveral, with stops in Castaway Cay and Key West. Along the way, travelers will be treated to a wide variety of Turner Classic Movie cruise -themed events and activities, including in-depth interviews and Q&A sessions with the special guests, screenings of great movies, unique presentations, trivia games and more.
Details about the voyage, including information on cabin reservations and background on this year’s special guests, are available on the TCM Classic Cruise website.
This year’s voyage marks the second time the Turner Classic Movie cruise will take place aboard the Disney Magic, the Disney Cruise Line ship that ranked #1 in the large ships category of the Condé Nast Traveler Readers’ Poll. One of the most admired and recognizable ocean liners in the world, the Disney Magic underwent a complete renovation just prior to the December 2013 TCM Classic Cruise. Sailing to exotic international and domestic ports each year, the distinctively designed Disney Magic blends classic beauty and grace with all the modern luxuries, technology and comforts that make cruising a pleasure.
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- When Ben Mankiewicz made his TCM debut in September 2003, he became only the second host hired in the network’s history. Born and raised in Washington, D.C., Mankiewicz graduated from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism, eventually working as a reporter and anchor in Miami before moving to Los Angeles—nearly 75 years after his grandfather, screenwriter Herman Mankiewicz had arrived. He is also a film critic, co-hosting At the Movies for a year and currently co-hosting the web-based show What the Flick?! and writing reviews for The Huffington Post
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- Robert Osborne has been primetime host and anchor of Turner Classic Movies since its launch in 1994, providing insider information, facts and trivia on TCM movie presentations. In addition to his regular hosting duties, he has done multiple specials for the network, including Private Screenings and the TCM Guest Programmer series. Osborne is also well known as a columnist and critic, and his many books—including 85 Years of the Oscar—have established his reputation as the official biographer of Oscar. On February 1, 2006, Osborne received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
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- A product of Hollywood’s golden age, Tab Hunter became Hollywood’s golden boy. His first starring role, at the tender age of 19, was opposite Linda Darnell in the romantic South Seas adventure Island of Desire (1952). An instant success, Tab went on to star in over 40 major motion pictures, including Battle Cry (1955), The Pleasure of His Company (1961), That Kind of Woman (1959), Gunman’s Walk (1958), They Came to Cordura (1959), Ride the Wild Surf (1964), The Loved One (1965), The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean (1972), and the Academy Award-nominated Damn Yankees (1958). A few of Tab’s leading ladies include Sophia Loren, Natalie Wood, Gwen Verdon, Rita Hayworth, Lana Turner, Debbie Reynolds, Kim Basinger and Michelle Pfeiffer.
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- With an entertainment career spanning more than four decades, Academy Award-winning actor Richard Dreyfuss has been one of America’s most versatile and individualistic actors. He is a spokesperson on the issue of media informing policy, legislation, and public opinion, both speaking and writing to express his sentiments in favor of privacy, freedom of speech, democracy, and individual accountability.
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- The Shirley Jones success story could not have been more perfect if it were concocted by a studio press agent. Born in tiny Smithton, PA. (pop. 877), the only daughter of the Jones family, (brewers of popular “Stoney’s Beer”) the feisty and precocious Shirley Mae was an early handful, but showed signs of a particularly mellow vocal range. Her church, her teachers, and her parents were all savvy enough to see her talent and Shirley’s local music lessons opened the door to summers at the Pittsburgh Playhouse.
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- Roger Corman is an Academy Award–winning producer of over 300 feature films. Hollywood’s oldest rebel, he is one of the most influential filmmakers in cinematic history. Almost singlehandedly creating the low-budget and genre film, Roger is known as the “Godfather of Independent Film,” “The Father of Drive-In Cinema” and the “Pope of Pop Culture.” Roger is famous for his iconic monster movies and for his acclaimed Edgar Allen Poe cycle, starring Vincent Price. One of the first producers to make movies targeting teenagers, Roger was always ahead of the culture curve. The heirs to his cinematic legacy are big-budget Hollywood spectacles. The Fast And Furious series, the Death Race franchise and the Little Shop Of Horrors cultural phenomenon are all based on his properties. Roger’s grindhouse style has greatly influenced filmmakers such as Quentin Tarantino, Robert Rodriguez and Eli Roth.
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- James Karen began his Broadway career in A Streetcar Named Desire, and followed this with appearances in Who’s Afraid Of Virginia Wolf, The Country Girl, Cactus Flower and numerous other plays. He was brought to California in 1975 to appear in the Academy Award winning film, All The President’s Men (1976), and has continued working since then, appearing in over two hundred television shows and a hundred movies. Some his notable films include The Pursuit Of Happyness (2006), Mulholland Drive (2001), Any Given Sunday (1999), Up Close And Personal (1996), Wall Street (1987), Frances (1982), Jagged Edge (1985), Poltergeist (1982), The China Syndrome (1979) and the cult favorite, Return Of The Living Dead (1985). His most recent film, The Bender Claim, is in post-production for fall release.
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- Iconic indie queen Illeana Douglas is a hit with critics and moviegoers alike. She is currently playing herself on the hit show Maron for IFC and is doing a stint on Lifetimes Drop Dead Diva. She will soon be seen in Welcome to Sweden, a Swedish/American comedy shot in Sweden and produced by Amy Poehler. In May 2013, Illeana, an avid film buff, hosted Second Looks- films that deserve a second chance for Turner Classic Movies. She just wrapped filming the comedy All Stars (2013) with Fred Willard, Richard Kind, and John Goodman, Sister (2013) with Barbara Hershey and Max Rose with Jerry Lewis and Kevin Pollak. She has been winning awards for Chez Upshaw (2012), with Kevin Pollak, Molly Sims and Greg Grunberg and It’s Dark Here (2013), based on a true story of a mother’s struggle with her son’s descent into schizophrenia, A Country Christmas (2013) also with Kevin Pollak, was released December, 2013. She starred in the critically acclaimed The Green (2011) alongside Cheyenne Jackson and Julia Ormond. Douglas won best supporting actress for her role at the San Diego Gay and Lesbian Film Festival.
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- Currently in his 30th year as host of Jeopardy!, Alex Trebek is one of America’s leading and most recognizable television icons. Trebek has challenged and entertained millions of viewers worldwide, hosting more than 6,000 episodes since Jeopardy! made its syndicated debut in 1984.
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- The radiant singer and actress Ann Blyth personifies the era of the great and glamorous movies, stage and television. One of the prized stars of the great MGM musicals, Ann is known and loved the world over. Her memorable performance as Veda, the tormented daughter of Joan Crawford, in the film noir masterpiece Mildred Pierce (1945) earned her an Academy Award nomination and an iconic place in film history.
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- Take a blustery brass lineup, layer it over a rhythm section led by a stride-piano virtuoso in the Fats Waller vein, and tie the whole thing together with a one-of-the-boys frontwoman with a voice from another era, and you have the Hot Sardines. (We haven’t even told you about the tap dancer yet.) In a short time, the Hot Sardines have gone from their first gig – at a coffee shop on the last Q train stop in Queens – to selling out Joe’s Pub five times in as many months, headlining at Lincoln Center’s Midsummer Night Swing, and opening for the Bad Plus, Lulu Gainsbourg and French gypsy-jazz artist Zaz. Through it all they’ve become regulars at the Shanghai Mermaid speakeasy and turned The Standard, where they play regularly, into their own “saloon in the sky” (The Wall Street Journal) – complete with tap dancing on the bar – honing a live persona that’s been called “unforgettably wild” and “consistently electrifying” (Popmatters).
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- The Mont Alto Motion Picture Orchestra is a five piece chamber ensemble that revives the lost art and repertoire of the silent movie orchestra. 2014 marks Mont Alto’s 20th year of silent film accompaniment. To date they have scored over 100 silent movies using historic orchestrations, recording over 35 film scores for video release and broadcast on Turner Classic Movies. The Mont Alto Orchestra are regulars at the Telluride Film Festival, the San Francisco Silent Film Festival, the Silent Film Society of Chicago, and the Kansas Silent Film Festival, and have toured from the Brooklyn Academy of Music to the Egyptian Theater on Hollywood Boulevard.
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- Diane Baker made her screen debut as Margot, the older sister, in The Diary of Anne Frank (1959) and has gone on to play numerous wives and, in maturity, strong female characters. That same year, Baker was seen in Journey to the Center of the Earth and The Best of Everything. Baker was later cast in Alfred Hitchcock’s Marnie (1964), as Lil, the sister-in-law of Sean Connery who would like to be his next wife.
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- Eddie Muller is a contemporary renaissance man. He writes novels, biographies, movie histories, plays, short stories, and films. He also programs film festivals, curates museums, designs books, and provides commentary for television, radio, and DVDs. He produces and hosts NOIR CITY: The San Francisco Film Noir Festival, the largest noir retrospective in the world, which now has satellite festivals in four other U.S. cities.